The trip that keeps on giving: Easter reflections

Good morning!  I decided to spend a little extra time in devotion this morning since I had to work yesterday, which was Good Friday.   I spent zero time reflecting on all that took place on the day that my LORD was crucified.  It left me feeling like I didn't honor Him properly.  See, I love Jesus deeply.  If I let my obligations that I have in this world come between me and Jesus then I am not giving Him the honor that is due!  Maybe a good example is how I remember my sweet mother-in-law, Linda.  She died of cancer about 8 years ago.  On her birthday and holidays I take time to remember her, talk about her with family and maybe look at pictures.  That doesn't mean that I don't think about her almost every day!  She was a part of my life for almost 20 years!  She has made a huge impact on how I love others, mother my children, cook my meals ( I use a lot of her recipes) and much more.  If I let my world obligations get in the way on her birthday and didn't take time to reflect on all she means to me then I would feel like I didn't honor her.  So, this is where I am with Jesus this morning.  I can't say I didn't think about it yesterday because I did.  I just didn't reflect on it properly. If I had then I would have ended up on my knees praising God for His amazing sacrifice.  And that didn't happen.
I decided to start with reading the account of the crucifixion in all four gospels.
As I read the testimonies in Matthew 26, Mark 14, Luke 22 and John 18, I was overcome with all that Jesus suffered for us.  I was overcome by not only the physical but emotional suffering.  Have you ever been betrayed by someone you love and trust?  It is so hurtful. What about abandonment from someone who pledged they would be with you till death?  Anguish of knowing suffering and death are right around the corner?  Being wrongly accused or have your character totally misinterpreted? Humiliation from being mocked for all you know is true?  Feeling like your life has no value in the eyes of others?  Being spit on, punched, slapped?   All of these were suffered by Jesus.  He knows how we feel!  Then there are the physical sufferings of torture that I can not even begin to comprehend!  The Romans placed a crown of thorns on His head and then began to beat Him in the head with a staff.  That must have felt like nails being hammered in His skull.  He was beaten, flogged, and then crucified.  Jesus suffered beyond comprehension.  When they were done torturing Him, He was unrecognizable.
So why call it Good Friday?  Was it good that Jesus suffered?  Died?  Well, no.  If the testimony of all Jesus did stopped there it would have never been called Good Friday!  But the story doesn't stop there.  We have eye witness accounts of those who followed Him and over 500 other people that Jesus arose from the dead and appeared to them!  He conquered death and assures us if we believe we too will be raised from the dead.  He paid the penalty for our sin! What a price that penalty cost Him.   He gives us the chance to be in God's presence and favor!   Let me tell you.  I did end up on my knees giving God praise and thanksgiving for all that Jesus did for me.(and you!)

That is the reason I celebrate Easter.  That while I was still a sinner Christ died for me.  That all who believe will not perish but have everlasting life.  Please do not let the world taint what we are celebrating this weekend.  Go to church.  Offer praise and thanksgiving.  Reflect on what Jesus did for you.  Invite the greatest love into your life!

Every time I read the bible my trip to Israel gives me great visuals.  I would like to share a few pictures from the time of the last supper till the resurrection.
The first picture is a window from the upper room.  This room is where Jesus and his disciples had the last supper together.  It is a very large room.  It could easily hold 100 + people in it.  We also read that the disciples hid here after the crucifixion and later it became the meeting place.  This is the site of the first Christian Church!  No fancy light show, pounding music, or great entertainment.  Just people who love Jesus reflecting on all that He had taught them.   In this room they found evidence that when the disciples would pray they would not face the Holy Temple but would face the opposite direction which is the site of the crucifixion and empty tomb!  The room was too dark (it was sunset when we arrived) so I didn't get a great picture of the inside.  This stained glass window wasn't there when the disciples were but it is till beautiful.

 The second picture is of an olive tree in the Garden of Gethsemane that is about 1800 years old.  This garden is where Jesus prayed in anguish and was betrayed by Judas.  Judas brought with him 300-600 armed soldiers to arrest Jesus.  Notice the new life that springs out of the dead trunk.  Even the trees still tell the story of Jesus!

 This next picture is inside of the Church of all Nations.  The church was built around the rock that Jesus prayed to His Father "remove this cup but not my will your will be done."  This church is absolutely glorious and surreal.

 Next is the empty tomb!   It is hard to get a good picture of it because of the lighting in the Church of the Holy Sepulcher. The hill was carved out around the tomb so the tomb is standing alone with a building around it for protection.  They then built the church over the tomb AND over the hill where Jesus was crucified.  You can walk from Calvary (which is upstairs in this huge church) to the tomb (which is downstairs)  to the basement which is the bedrock of the mountain.  It is fascinating.  Mark and I saw the grooves in the rock where the wood crosses would have been placed. There were 3 that we could see.  We saw so much physical evidence to what we already knew was true.

 I love this picture.  Read Matthew 27:51-54!  This is from the earthquake that happened when Jesus died! See the crack in the mountain??   Gives me chills.

I pray that you will take a significant amount of time to ponder all the things God has done for us.  He deserves our honor, glory, worship, devotion, love, and time.  He gave His all for us.  What we have to offer to Him is so small in comparison! 

God Bless and Happy Easter. 

Mount of Beatitudes

So many thoughts to sort out!  We have been in Galilee and northern Israel for 4 days.  I didn't take my computer because the internet was not great. The wifi did let me load photos from my phone so hopefully I will get a chance today to go into Facebook and label the pictures.  We love northern Israel!  It amazes me that this tiny country has so many types of topography.  Don't get me wrong northern Israel is still full of hills but it is a lot greener and doesn't feel as congested.  Jerusalem is a huge city with tons of tourist so it is nice to escape to Galilee.  We stayed at a lovely resort called Ma'agan Eden on the southeast shore of the Sea of Galilee.  We loved our resort!  We could see Tiberias from our beach.   Tiberias is a large city located across the water with tons of night life and lots of shopping.  After visiting several sites we are exhausted and a little overstimulated, so it was nice to go to this quiet resort.
Before we got the resort we had been to several sites.  Each day is filled with Old and New Testament reflections.  As we drive or hike we are constantly identifying landmarks on our maps and then reading about the stories that took place there.  Tuesday we started off with hiking up to Tel Beth Shan.  We oriented ourselves with Harod Valley and pointed out Mt Gilboa across the way.  Here we read the story of Saul's and his sons death on that mountain.  Beth Shan is the town that they hung the bodies of Saul and his sons on.  They displayed their bodies on the outside wall and because it was up on a hill, and along a major international road, the whole world could see what had happened. Then men from from Jabesh-Gilead came and stole the bodies back.  Our instructor pointed out that Saul was a Benjamite.  Benjamites were almost completely wiped out and had not enough women to build up their tribe so they went and stole women from Jabesh Gilead. This town also called upon Saul to save them from the Ammonites who wanted to pluck out their right eye.  Some scholars believe they called upon Saul here because he had family in this area. That one of Saul's descendants was one of the women who were taken from this area to be a Benjamite wife.  We often think that once these women became wives to the Benjamites that they lost all contact with their previous family but that would be contradictory to how the middle eastern culture.   Women tended to keep connections to their families after moving away to live with their grooms. That was something I had never connected before and that it makes sense and would at least one of the reasons Saul was willing to travel to save this town.  Below Beth Shan lay the ruins of a huge Roman city Scythopolis. This city was destroyed by a huge earth quake.   Rome would often set up these large cities in the regions to seduce the people into their culture.  Rome would build large theaters, fine roads, steam baths, and market places that had tons of luxurious items.  They would use theater to push their agendas (sound familiar USA?) and desensitize them to their many gods.    It would start a slow fade but after a couple of generations Yahweh would be completely forgotten or at least another god among the hundreds Rome worshipped.  NOTHING NEW UNDER THE SUN comes to mind!  The more I think about this the more I wonder why we pay for cable?  900 channels of crap! We pay people to entice our children and offer a counter culture.  We pay so they can desensitize us to their agendas?  Why would we do this??   It was pretty cool to climb and play on the ruins of the city.  The theater would have been 3 tier and  sat 7, 000 people.  Archeologists have determined that theaters in that time were designed to seat about 10% of the population. Scythopolis is a reminder to me to not stray and be enticed by the seductions of our culture.  God has defined what is right and wrong.  We are not judging others when we choose to be faithful. That is God's job.  Our job is to just be faithful.
Our last stop was on the Mount of Beatitudes by the shore of the Sea of Galilee.  We read Matthew 5 and discussed what it meant. Some suggested it was Christ offering comfort to those oppressed by Rome and we touched a bit on social justice.  I don't think social justice is wrong by any means and we certainly can use this to remind us to care for the poor,  but Mark and I shared how we were taught it was a building block of what Christians needed to become in order to be a follower of Christ. Each one of these "blessed" areas build off one another. They are to be found in those who give their life to Christ and then list the consequences that will come once you do.  (You don't sign a surgical waiver without knowing the risks and benefits of the surgery.)
Blessed are the poor in spirit (those who realize that sin has separated them from God)
Blessed are the those who mourn (those who are grieved by their depravity and repent to God),
Blessed are the meek (those who have self control and don't sin), Blessed are those who thirst and hunger for righteousness (those who want to draw closer to God and devote themselves to daily study and prayer),
Blessed are the merciful (being Jesus to the world),
Blessed are the pure in heart (being in the world but not of it), Blessed are the peacemakers (helping others come to God),
Blessed are the persecuted for righteousness sake. (if we implement all of these above statements we will be mocked and persecuted because that is how the world reacts to truth)
Rick Wenneborg you just taught a small class at the Sea of Galilee! I think maybe even a few to come because our instructor liked that thought.

Action, Solitude, and the World

If you are following me on Facebook you can see the pictures of our travels for the day.  I would say our focus for the day was on how the Jews had different sects of Judaism during the first century. 2 of them being near the Dead Sea and the other back in Jerusalem. First we went to Masada.  Masada is Herod's luxury fortress overlooking the Dead Sea.  It has a phenomenal view!   It became a hideout for Jewish zealots during the Jewish revolt against Rome in 66AD or around that time.  These zealots were able to live off of the ginormous amount of food and water storage that King Herod had at his palace.  The zealots thought if they lead their violent revolt that God would come in and win the battle.  Rome built a siege ramp to this huge fortress.  When the zealots realized that their fate was death or slavery by the Roman's they killed their families and then committed suicide.  Nearly a thousand died at Masada.
At Qumran we learned about the Yahad (which many think are the Essenes). The Yahad were a commune out in the wilderness that basically lived like monks but with families.  They had rigid "life style" rules to adhere to.  Their philosophy was that if they just removed themselves from the world and lived a pure life that God would fight the battle for them. They too were taken over by Romans.  They hid the Dead Sea scrolls to save them but they could not save themselves.
Back in Jerusalem you have the Sadducees who just try to adhere to the way Rome wants to govern them. They didn't think it is so bad because Rome offered many luxuries.  Surely God would understand.  They did not do well either.  The Romans completely destroyed the Temple and I am sure the priests too.
These 3 separate sects all had part of what God wants from his people but not all of it.  I do believe that God wants us to take action and defend His ways but not to the point of killing anyone who doesn't agree or convert to your way of thinking.  We need to be able to discern when to draw closer to God and let him guide us. Not isolate ourselves from the world.  It is hard to be in the world when our only interactions are with people in our christian community.  We ARE to have Christian community and fellowship but not at the expense of not sharing the gospel message.  We can't conform to ways that go against what God has already judged.  We are to be in the world but not of the world.  Ending our time in the Dead Sea today gave me time to ponder how we need to balance seeking God, taking action by sharing the Gospel with those we know, and not conforming to the ways of the world.  Balancing these 3 things is what Christ has called us to do.  I know that I need to keep myself in check. I think if I had to identify with one of these groups it would probably be the Essenes. I have a tendency to want to stay in my safe little Christian bubble.  Or maybe the Sadducees who enjoy the guilty pleasures that I know probably are not what I should be watching or doing.  This was a good reminder that behaving this way doesn't usually end well.  Be salt and light.

God still grants miracles!

Saturday, Oct 24th
This is the 3rd entry I've made today.  Our week has been so crammed and I have been fighting a sinus infection so I really haven't felt like doing much of anything when I get back to our room!  I am feeling much better today but yesterday was a rough day!  We started with a gorgeous hike in the Sorek valley. The academic lesson of this hike was to show us why an army wouldn't choose this valley to march across to the coast.  Let me just say...lesson learned!  It was a fun hike but it is not easy to get down the hillside.  If I had to describe the mountains in Israel (that we have seen so far) I would say they are maybe the height of the Appalachian's with the rockiness of the Rocky Mountains, then add a few million more rocks and maybe a couple million truck loads of stones and you would be close.  IT IS ALL ROCK!  It was a great hike but I was really starting to feel sick at the end of it.  My head was throbbing and I was just exhausted. I dragged myself on the bus and rested till the next stop.  We were headed to the Elah Valley to see where David and Goliath battled.  It was a different hill top than the last trip and had some great ruins on top. I was excited to see the different perspective. The only problem was it was about a mile and a half hike up a unshaded dusty road and it was 93 degrees outside. The bus driver refused to take us up the road so we had to hike the whole way.   I made it about a mile and then I felt like I was either going to have to stop or pass out.  I was so hot, exhausted, and light headed.  This was the hardest thing for me. I didn't want to disappoint Mark! We are on the trip of a lifetime and here I am sick and unable to finish the hike.  I insisted that Mark keep going and he did make it to the top!  Me and another couple decided to cram under the shade of a lonely tree on the side of the road. I did not conquer my Goliath =(  From there we went to Lachish for lunch.   After eating and taking some exedrin I was starting to feel better.  Mark and I quickly explored the ruins and got back on our air conditioned bus!  The last part of our day was in Ashkelon which is located on the coast of the Mediterranean Sea.   Yeah for the beach! I was feeling so much better and we couldn't wait to get our feet in the sea! That never happened. I had just finished writing Mark and Tina 25 years in the sand and snapped the picture when I heard someone scream "Steve is being pulled out in a riptide!"  I look up and see our travel companion being sucked out into the Mediterranean.  The tide was strong and the waves were huge and Steve was getting smaller and smaller in the distance.  A younger guy from our group tried to get to him but the waves were too strong. Even the police and the others on the beach couldn't go out. We were helpless as we saw Steve waving his arms for help.  Mark looked at me and said I can't watch this! We both dropped to our knees in the sand and began to cry to God.  I mean literally crying and praying for 10-15 minutes. (although it felt like much longer) We didn't look up...we just pleaded for God to perform a miracle and bring Steve safely to shore.  We prayed for miraculous strength on his part to overcome the waves.  We didn't lift our heads till we heard cheering. I can not stress enough that this is a miracle.  We knew when we dropped to my knees that the only way this guy was coming out of the water was if God saved him or they found his floating body.   Steve made it half way back in and then one of our other guys and an Israeli could reach with a life preserver. They drug him in.  He was so exhausted that he couldn't walk and could hardly breath. They had to carry him to the ambulance.   God had answered our prayers!! I felt God was with us in that moment.   We are thankful for all of you who are praying for our safety and want you to know that God hears our prayer and He is still performing miracles!

Jordan, Jericho, and Joshua

Friday: Oct 23rd.
I am so excited to have been able to go the Jordan River! It was such a cool experience.  As our bus pulled up you can see Christian monasteries on both sides of the river.  Aubrey explained to us that the Jordan River separates the countries of Jordan and Israel.  We were at the lowest part of the Jordan so this was likely the place that Joshua would have used to cross over into the promise land.  It is also likely to be the place that John the Baptist would have brought people to be baptized.  So many thoughts are running through my mind as we discuss all these things. Looking at the Jordan River and imagining Jesus being baptized.  Why did Jesus need baptized?  He was without sin.  He was God in flesh, perfect in every way.   I don't think anyone really knows why it had to be done.  As we are watching people go into the Jordan and being baptized, being cleansed of their sin, their sin being left behind in the water, it reminded me of something I read or heard once. Maybe his baptism is symbolic.  Jesus who is without sin to lie in those waters that are full of sin.  The sin that was left behind by others now is all on Him. It is an interesting image.  Sitting on our Israeli side of the Jordan looking across the river we see a Jordanian group of Christians come to the river.  They start seeing Standing on the Promises of God.  I couldn't help but get teary eyed.  I thought this is what Heaven will be like.  Every tribe, every nation coming together to Praise God!  The rivers and oceans might separate us but Christ brings us together.  One LORD, one faith, one baptism.
We hopped on the bus and went to Jericho and shopped a bit.  We saw the wall that came tumbling down!  Every day we spend time talking about Joshua.  Mark and I have thanked God many times on this trip because we studied Joshua last year in our Wednesday night bible study!  We feel God used that study to prepare us for this trip.  Mark and I have felt that God has always gone before us.  Of course we also are thankful for Rick who leads us through the Old Testament every week.  Mark and I were able to view all the cities we discussed in class and the route that Joshua took when he marched through the land.  In our minds we had pictured a much larger distance but they are all so close to one another!  This is how these cities run along the hill side...Jerusalem then Gibeah of Saul, then Ramah, then Mizpah.  That would translate for us like this....Springfield, then Chatham then Auburn then Virden.   We ended Friday where Joshua ended in Gezer.  Joshua asked for the sun and moon to be still here and they did. God granted him a miracle to accomplish his will.  I believe God still grants miracles today.  We experienced one on Saturday.  I will explain in my next blog....stay tuned!

Away to a manger

Today is Sunday.  Our day of rest!  We are so thankful for it.  We have been going from sun up to sun down all week. JUC is such a great program.  It is an academia approach to viewing the Holy Land.  Our lessons are filled with biblical, cultural, and topography lessons.  I highly recommend the program for anyone who is interested in spending significant amount of time prepping for the tour with map work at home, who can handle long hikes on tough terrain, and long days.  It is worth all the energy exerted but it is not a "tour and shopping" trip!  We do get a couple of free days to shop and visit museums around Jerusalem and usually 15-20 minutes to shop when we are at locations outside the city.  Today is one of those days!  Mark has been informed we will need to convert a significant amount of money!

I am so behind on blogging.  Last time I came with Olivia it was a requirement for the course we took and so each night I would force myself to sit and type out what we had seen and what I thought about it all.  This time since it is not a requirement and I am with Mark, I seem to do this verbally at night and then we pass out from exhaustion!  So, what that means is I will be going through my photos and notes from several days.  Buckle up!  

I believe I left off with our New Testament day that ended at the Holy Sepulcher.  Our next day (Wed Oct 21st) started off with views of Jerusalem from Mt Scopus. This is located to the north and has lovely views of the beginning of the wilderness. In the distance we could see Anathoth the home of Jeremiah the prophet.  I have never really studied the prophets of the old testament much.  I know some key messianic verses but beyond that have never associated their message to Israel as a message to me.  I think I am very wrong.  The warnings that they give and the fact that Jesus refers to them in his teachings makes me think the old testament is a vital part of the new testament so much richer in meaning.  Just as the land here gives me visuals to help me understand the history I read about in the bible, so does the old testament give us visuals for the new testament.  

Our next stop was the Mount of Olives. The mount of Olives is actually a range of what we would classify has large hills.  There are 3 distinct ones from the view of the city.  One mount is covered with tombs and the other two were more olive tree groves.  They sit across the central valley from Jerusalem.  The Garden of Gethsemene is located on the second hill.  We read about Jesus crying out in prayer to his Father to take this cup away from him but that if not he would be faithful.  It always makes me emotional to think of that moment that he chose to give His life, His blood for mankind. For me. What a gift.  There are several churches on the Mt of Olives.  One is shaped like a tear drop to remember when Jesus wept for Jerusalem.  We went into the Church of all Nations that is located in the Garden of Gethsemane.  I love this church because there is silence.  You have an emotional experience based on quiet time with God. Based on reflection.  Not based on music, lights, or a praise team.  The church sets the mood to make it feel like it is night time in the garden.  No one speaks. We just walk around to different parts of the church that have art work on the walls and huge alabaster stained glass windows depicting crosses.  As you walk up the middle isle you come to an alter and huge rock protruding from the floor.  This is where Jesus cried out to his father.  It literally brought me to my knees.  I had to kneel and touch the ground and offer my thanksgiving and praise.  

Same day we drove to Herodium and looked at his magnificent palace. it is a cool place filled with tons of archeological information from the time of King Herod up to the fall of Jerusalem in 70 AD.  We climbed in cisterns, tunnels, and around the palace.  It is huge!  We were able to see the shepherd fields from top and reflect on how the hillside developed the character of David as king. This area outside of Bethlehem would have been where he would have been tending sheep.  Protector, Leader, Warrior.  All are needed to survive in this land.   Next we went into Bethlehem.  We made a quick stop to the shepherd fields where the angels appeared to the shepherd (remembered as the place.  Hard to find any archeological evidence of angels appearing!)  A quick trip and we were at the Church of the Nativity in Bethlehem.  There is documentation from 1st century that this is where Jesus was born.  This is huge!  There would have still been family in the area to confirm that yes, this is the place.  No one disputed it. We were able to go into the room and see the manger (which is made of stone and not wood)   It was a permanent fixture in the "storage room" of the house.  The animals would have been brought in when the weather was bad.  Since it is stone it would not have been moved in and out as it would have been way to heavy.  When Mary and Joseph came to stay with their relatives there was no room in the "guest room" (other relatives were already there)  so they put them in the room with the manger.  I love this thought more.  God didn't desert them and let them fend for themselves as the Savior of the world is being born.  He provided them with a house full of family support.  Joseph didn't cut the cord!   Every woman in the family and likely some neighbors as well were acting as midwives to make sure Mary and baby were taken care of.  That is the how it is still done today in some areas.  They value birth and life as a gift from God and would have surrounded them to help.  LOVE IT!  Think about it.  How did the shepherds find them.  They come into Bethlehem and ask one maybe two people. Everyone knows who had a baby because it is a community effort in those days.  I wish I could upload some pictures to go with my blog but unfortunately my computer isn't cooperating.  I am trying to put them on Facebook.  

OVERWHELMING (In a good way)

Tuesday afternoon was our first day out in the city and by the time we made it back to campus we had hiked over 7 miles!  You know as I type this 7 miles doesn't sound like much, but since it included about a billion stairs my body was pretty sore by the time I plopped onto our bed at 8pm!  We are having an amazing time!  We started off by  quickly walking through Old Jerusalem to not only orient ourselves with the maze but to take a look at Hezekiah's Wall (the Broad Wall) We were staring at a structure that is dated some 700 yrs BC! It is an amazing feat for Hezekiah's to enclose this part of the city and protect his people from Assyria.  The rest of the day was hiking down the Tyropoeon Valley to the City of David, walking through Hezekiah's tunnel,  and sitting on the stairs of the pool of Siloam. 

  My thoughts and emotions are all over the place.  Hezekiah save the day by protecting the city and its water supply.  

The "Large Stone" ruins which could have possibly been David's palace(as it is dated 10th century BC) and the Burnt house are evidence of the destruction brought about during the Babylonian invasion about 100 years later.  God used the Assyrians and the Babylonians to bring judgement to His unfaithful children.  God had given them the promise land and they had renewed their commitment to follow God in Joshua 24 and in verse 13 Joshua reminds them what God had promised them. " I gave you a land on which you had not labored and cities that you had not built, and you dwell in them. You eat the fruit of vineyards and olive orchards that you did not plant."  Of course God's promise came with action on their part and when they had turned their back on God and His ways over and over again Zephaniah predicts that they are about to be evicted from the promise land.  

“On that day,” declares the Lord,

    “a cry will be heard from the Fish Gate,
a wail from the Second Quarter,
    a loud crash from the hills.
¹¹ Wail, O inhabitants of the Mortar!
    For all the traders^[c] are no more;
    all who weigh out silver are cut off.
¹² At that time I will search Jerusalem with lamps,
    and I will punish the men
who are complacent,^[d]
    those who say in their hearts,
‘The Lord will not do good,
    nor will he do ill.’
¹³ Their goods shall be plundered,
    and their houses laid waste.
Though they build houses,
    they shall not inhabit them;
though they plant vineyards,
    they shall not drink wine from them.”

First thing I thought as we reflected on this is HOW COOL!  Our Wednesday night bible study had just finished Joshua.  God's Word is never studied in vain.  It also brought me fear to think of God's judgement and how he used other nations to bring it.  I felt an urgency for our nation.  We need a revival of faithful believers! We ended the day climbing back up to the Old City through an underground tunnel that was probably how sewage filtered down the hill under Herodian Road.  It was so stinkin' awesome! (pun intended) 

Today was FABULOUS!  We went to my favorite places.  The 1st century road, temple steps, and the Church of the Holy Seplecher.  Mark and I sat in awe as we thought about the fact that we are sitting where God in flesh walked and sat.  Where He emptied himself for mankind to save us.  To think that everyone in His time thought that God's presence was in the temple but He was standing right in front of them.  Fully God. Fully human.  Mark and I standing where the creator of all things once stood. There are no words to describe it. I am more emotional this trip.  Maybe because I'm not as worried about where we are going or getting separated from the group and just enjoying the moment.  Our time at the church left us astonished.  We touched the actual rock that Jesus was crucified on and saw the empty grave He left behind.  It is just the most magnificent experience!   We ended the day on the roof top of the upper room where Jesus ate his last supper and likely appeared to the apostles after his resurrection.  This is where the first church gathered, the day of pentecost occurred, and possibly the Jerusalem counsel met.  OVERWHELMING!!!  In a good way!  We are so blessed to be on this journey together.  I cherish the memories we are making!  I can't wait to come back with Otto ;-) 

Beyond Excited!

I've had a couple of people ask if I was going to blog while Mark and I spend 2 weeks in Israel.  I have too!  There is no way I can rely on my memory. Just want you to know that my entries will be full of grammatical and spelling errors.  I was embarrassed after reading my entries after the last trip.  The blog I did in 2012 helped me keep track of all the places we visited and some of my thoughts and feelings at the sites. I am planning on rereading it before we board the plane on Sunday.  How did this second trip come about? First let me say I can't believe I am blessed to go again!   I am beyond excited to walk through the Holy Land with the love of my life.  Mark and I decided a couple of years ago that we wanted to take a special trip for our 25th wedding anniversary.  We both love to travel.   We had a lot of fun talking about all the places we could go see. Mark's family is originally from Germany so we had talked about riding the rail through Europe.  We sponsor a small boy named Kledis in Albania and have always wanted to meet him so that was also high on our list.   I remember talking about going Italy which led to us maybe going Greece too, and then Mark saying you know what I really want to do?  I want to go to Israel with you!  I honestly cannot think of a more intimate vacation than walking around together hand in hand where are Savior walked!  Sunday we will board our plane and start this journey together.  We will be not only celebrating our love for each other but also our love for Jesus.  Our marriage is not just a man and a woman in love with each other. Our marriage is a man and a woman trying to love each other like Jesus loves.  We ask Him to give us patience, kindness, forgiveness, peace, joy, self control and grace with each other.  He is in every decision, in every meal and bed time prayer, in every act of kindness, and even in every argument.  He is what makes our marriage full of love.    Jesus is an intricate part of our marriage and I am beyond excited to reflect on His life on our anniversary trip.  

Free Day

Tina Huber

Reflections~free day

January 21, 2012

My last exam was yesterday. I had a free morning yesterday but used it to study. If you are not aware this trip is more than a tour of the holy land. This is an in-term class worth 4 credit hours from JUC. I had romanticized this trip so much to be a spiritual tour of the holy land that when it first started I was disappointed with the amount of geology I had to learn! I now appreciate it because I really do feel that I have gotten a better look into how people where formed based on the environment and culture they group in. Middle eastern culture is very different from the west. One thing I appreciate about the eastern culture is their hospitality. They offer you tea and food all the time. This is something I have really appreciated. The men who serve us our food at JUC will give us double portions because we are their guest. (and they get offended if you stop them from doing it!) It brings them honor to be generous. I feel like this is a quality that us westerners need to embrace. It would bring God honor if we were more hospitable and generous. Not just in our time and money to our church but inviting others into our homes! I have enjoyed my time here in Israel but I have also been homesick. I miss the rest of my family. Mark and I have never been away from each other this long in our 21 years of marriage. I am used to talking with him everyday, even if he is out of town on business. I really missed sharing this experience with Mark and Otto too. I guess we’ll just have to come back! I had 3 goals when I came to Jerusalem. One, to learn about the holy land and have a deeper understanding that will strengthen my faith in God. I can say I accomplished this. This has been an amazing experience. I never feel like I am fully able to communicate with you all that I have seen or thought on a trip even tho I want to! Two, to get an A in the class. After my first week of class I thought I would be happy with a C! I got a B on my first exam and an A on my second so I am still hopeful I will be able to get an A. Three, to not fall and hurt myself. Two out of three ain’t bad! I have been so careful at these sites. Everything is rocky uneven ground and it has been a conscious effort placing each foot at some of these sites. The stairs are the worst. They are uneven. I had just said to one of the professors on the trip how I hated these stairs because they aren’t consistent in height or width. So coming off an archeological site in Galilee I miss judged a stair and went flying down. This was a very steep set of stairs that took you to a synagogue. I missed stepped on about step 8, was able to touch a foot on step 6 to push myself away from hitting the stairs head first and flew over steps 1-5 to land on the gravel below. I tried to roll but my back pack stopped me. It also is what propelled me forward. It weighs at least 10 lbs. most days. I have been sore for a few days now and have some lovely bruises on my right hip. I didn’t have to admit to this! I figure someone along the way will make a smart aleck comment about me not getting injured on my trip and I’ll have to confess anyway =) So, this has truely been a day off and was spent just relaxing, having some quiet time, and taking motrin.

Galilee day 4

Tina Huber

Reflection Day 13

Galilee 4

January 19, 2012

What a start to the day! We boarded a fishing boat and crossed the Sea of Galilee! It was the highlight of my day. The air was crisp and the clouds were a little low which added a little haze to the hills that surrounded us. It was an absolutely beautiful morning! The sea is actually a lake. It is a fresh water lake and has over 30 different types of fish in it. We learned today that almost half of the species would not have been kosher. So, the question was raised, would Peter and Andrew have thrown these fish back or sell them to the gentiles? Zebedee was thought to have a successful fishing business, so most believe that they had many dealings with gentile merchants. I’ve always just thought that Jesus picked the fishermen because they were faithful Jewish men who were just common folk. That by using men who weren’t highly educated God’s greatness would be magnified in their weakness. I still believe that is one element of why he chose them, but maybe he also chose them because God’s salvation needed to go to the other nations. He would need men who understand how to deal with gentiles. If Jesus had picked men who came from isolated, strict Jewish communities maybe it would have been more difficult for them to carry out the great commission. The Sea of Galilee has an international highway that runs right along it. This area would be a mixed culture for sure. I think it makes sense and gives a better understanding of who the apostles were. We leave the boat and head to the ‘cliffs of insanity’! The proper name is the Cliffs of Arbel but I couldn’t stop thinking of The Princess Bride when I would look at it! My first thought was that is insane. It is a straight down drop. I am not scared of heights but I have to say I was feeling a little uneasy trying to peak down the side. My husband would not have liked it! Since it had rained all day yesterday it would have been too dangerous to hike down. So we sat up top and read the great commission. Some believe that this is where Jesus gave the great commission. As I sat there watching the clouds engulf the hill next to us I started to imagine the ascension as well. It gave me chills to think about it. We had an amazing view over the city Magdala and the Sea of Galilee. I think I could have sat up there for hours. I have felt that about many of our sites and when I come back with my hubby we will make a point to do that. I really want to share these experiences with him! Can you tell I’m getting home sick? We had lunch and I ate my first pitaless falafel. Eating hasn’t been too bad but I hadn’t felt like I had yet had Israeli cuisine until today. I was told that this restaurant is the fast food version of it but I thought it was yummy. We stopped just long enough for the rain to come through and leave us with some sunshine as we drove to Caesarea. This is another place I could have spent some more time exploring. It is a city that Herod The Great made into a port city. He made a harbor. It is amazing to me that he was able to accomplish this 2,000 yrs ago! He made underwater cement out of volcanic dust to build a harbor and marina for the ships to come too. If that wasn’t extravagant enough he also built a temple to Caesar and of course a palace. Our last lesson was here. We sat next to the hearing room. This is where Paul would pleaded his case before Felix and Festus and appealed to Caesar. It was suggested that because Paul was a Roman citizen that he probably didn’t die in Rome when he was sent there. His citizenship would have protected him from the Jewish accusations and that he might have done a fourth and fifth missionary trip to Spain. I’ve never heard that before. I have really enjoyed taking this class. I had romanticized this trip into being a purely spiritual journey. It has been much more than that and I am thankful. I have learned a heck of a lot about a heck of a lot! Does that make any sense? I would like to thank Caesarea for a wonderful cup of coffee. I will cherish the memories of the sites that I have seen, the scriptures I have read, and the time I have spent with Olivia. Our Greenville group was paired with another college from the states as we toured Israel. I would like to leave you with a few things that I will not miss.

1. The word ‘like’ being used in a way that does not describe something you are fond of
2. Cold showers
3. No toilet paper! I’m going to start a mission group to send TP to Israel
4. Having unidentifiable stuff on your hotel bedding
5. Nescafe instant coffee
6. Steps
7. people whining about being in Israel!
8. trips to the emergency room
9. Eggs
10. taking tests

Here are few things I will miss..

1. Sharing new insights of old bible verses
2. Exploring exciting ancient sites
3. Making memories with my daughter
4. JUC rice...mmmm good
5. Date honey
6. making fun of Nescafe coffee
7. Sitting on the beach
8. Sacred places
9. walking as means of transportation
10. lack of internet and television

I have a test tomorrow and then a few free days. I think I will continue my reflection papers till I get on the plane.

Galilee Day 3

Tina Huber

Refleciton day 12

Galilee 3

January 18, 2012

I really enjoyed today. We are focusing much more on the life of Jesus and the apostles. This is what I have been looking forward to the most. Deeper insights to my Saviour. We started our day with a trip to a hillside. It was a city called Gergesa. As we sat on the hill that looked out to the Sea of Galilee we discussed the scripture of Jesus calming the storm. I’ve always wondered what kind of storm would freak out a fisherman? Apparently this sea can whip up 8ft waves! Their tiny fishing boat would have been no match. Their boat ended up where we sat today. A man who was demon possessed came to Jesus for healing. I never have thought much about the man’s perspective in this story but at the end of the verse it says that he wanted to go with them but Jesus said he had to stay behind. Why would Jesus do that? A few thoughts were offered. One, Jesus told him to tell everyone the good things that God has done. From the text and this location we can assume that this man was a gentile. There is a group of pigs that end up in the sea. There are not many pig farms in a Jewish settlement. Jesus wanted this man be a witness to the gentiles. To stay behind and tell them of God’s faithfulness. He was laying the ground work for the apostles who later had great success in this area. Second, why would this man want to leave his hometown after being healed? Someone obviously has helped care for him since he was put into chains during his times of madness. I’m sure it wouldn’t be easy to try and fit back into that community. Maybe this man wanted to just start a new life and get away? Or maybe he wasn’t convinced that he was truley healed and wanted to stay with Jesus in case it came back? What a lesson here. I can see so many parrellels to our current journy of faith. How many of us want to just sit along side Jesus instead of getting out there and doing the hard work of mending relationships and living a life that will make us say to others, “look what good things God has done!” How many of us make Jesus heal us over and over for the same thing? I had two cups of coffee so my mind was racing with all kinds of thoughts. How many different applications one little lesson can have. Our next stop was at Qasrin. The purpose of stopping here was to see a reconstructed first century home. A home like what Jesus would have stayed at or lived in. We sat in the home and retold the story of the paralytic coming in through the roof. The house was full from all of us who are taking this class. I can just imagine sitting there listening to Jesus teaching and have roof debri start falling down! I would have been saying ‘what the heck!? Walking through Israel the past couple of weeks there has been one constant. Rocks. These homes would have all been made of stone. The tools are made of stone, the streets are made of stone, everything is stone. You get the picture. So I now picture Jesus as a stone mason instead of a carpenter. He most likely built homes which would require a great deal of strength and a mind for mathematics. I love this image. He was strong, smart, and wise. It was also suggested that He probably was the one who patched up the roof after the paralytic took up his mat and left. Our next stop was Chorazim. I had never heard of it but in Luke 10 Jesus ‘woes’ this city. Jesus had obviously did some signs and wonders and the people didn’t repent. We sat in the synagogue that was still largely intact. Jesus was faithful at going to the synagogue every Sabboth. Paul seemed to model this too. Take the word to God’s people first and then to the gentiles. God was being faithful to his word even when he knew his people wouldn’t respond. I love being reminded of this. We can trust God. He is truth! He is faithful.

Galilee Day 2

Tina Huber

Reflection Day 11

Galilee day 2

January 17, 2012

I almost stayed in bed today. I have had a stomach ache and was a little worried about traveling on a bus all day. It didn’t help that it was cold and rainy. I could have stayed snuggled up in my bed and drank tea all day. But, I didn’t. I hate to miss anything. I’m glad I went, not only for the lessons and the insights, but as a nurse too. I ususally write my reflections the same day. This day ended on a scary note that left me too exhausted to do my homework. Stay tuned. I think our first stop was Hazor. This is a city that was important because it sits along an international trade route. This cities main income was from trading tin. It was a huge city. Over 200 acres. It is mentioned in Joshua as a city that they burned. This site did have a burn layer, but the biblical timeline and the archeology timeline are off by a couple of centuries. This one of those, we don’t know what to do with that, sites. I am no expert in either. So, who knows? It was cool to see but I wasn’t going to lose sleep over it. We left and went to Dan. This was an awesome stop. It was a nature reserve park and had the coolest hiking trails. A spring feeds this area and I have several cool pictures of it gushing along the trail. There was a ton of greenery and even flowers blooming. Which is a weird site for January. It really made me forget about feeling kind of icky and focus on God’s beautiful creation. Sometimes I will drop back from the group just to have some quiet time. This was one of those times. We hiked several trails that would lead us to different archeological sites. I saw the oldest arch gate in the world that Abraham himself likely walked through! Another trail took us to a city gate that had benches along the walls and a throne seat. This is where legal matters would take place. An example of Boaz redeeming Ruth was discussed. Tours were passing through during our lesson and I could see why people would choose this area to do their legal business. There are many witnesses and it settles the ‘drama’ before you enter the city. Our last trail took us to the ruins of a sacred precinct in the time of Jeroboam. I just need to give a shout out here for my church. I have on many occassions studied a lot of the stories that we have discussed on this trip. We are a small church and we believe in studying the actual word of God and not just topics. I have appreciated this from the first time I visited Chatham Christian Church nearly 20 years ago. My trip to Israel has made me proud to be apart of a church family that cherishes God’s Word! So, back to Jeroboam. Jeroboam comes into power as Israel becomes a divided kingdom. Rehoboam is the idiot son of Solomon in the south and Jeroboam, not of any worthy bloodline, becomes the King in the north. This scacred precinct ruins is referenced in 1 Kings. Jeroboam is worried that everyone will travel to the south to worship in Jerusalem and revert their loyalty to King Rehoboam. To solve the dilema he decides to build a temple here in Dan. How cool to see something from so long ago. I always think of my son, Otto, when we reference kings in the old testament. He has always been fascinated with those stories. Just a homesick thought. The rain continued throughout the day that led to some cancellations, which is the downside, but also seemed to give us more time at each site, which is the bright side. Caesarea Philippi was our next stop. The side of the hill is remarkable. It has brown and black striped rocked all along it and at the base is a cave that (before a disasterous earthquake) had a huge spring coming out of its entrance. This was such a pagan place. It had temples set up for every false god imaginable. Dancing goats, Nemesis- the goddess of revenge, Nymph -no explanation needed here, and Zeus to name a few. It was common practice to take your sacrifice and throw it into the cave waters that swirled around. If it was taken into what they called the ‘chaos‘ (the water in the cave) then if your prayer was answered it would suck it into the abyss, but if it was spit it back out then your prayer was rejected. This was often viewed as the gate of hades among the worshippers. Walking along looking at all the places for these false idols was eerie. I didn’t like it. I volunteered and read Matthew 16 aloud to the group. This bedrock along the side of the hill was a land marker. When Caesarea Philipi is mentioned here by Jesus this hill would come to mind. The author makes a point of pointing out the geographical location in these verses, so maybe Jesus is referencing this place when he says the gates of hades will not overcome it. The gates of hades was thought you can get in but can’t get out. I wonder if seeing this hill and the deceived worshipping in vain led to this discussion with his disciples? Jesus is constantly using his surroundings to give illustrations. I will always have that in my mind now when I read those verses! We did a small hike that led us to King Aggrippa’s place. The same king that Paul preached to! Just a little side trip. I found a sketchy bone that looked human. I kept going. We also took a fun trip to see a water fall. It was lovely! Because of the rain it was pouring over the side of the hill with a ton of force. I love waterfalls! It was just another fun side trip. We left and went to see the peak of Mt Hermon. The professor who has been to this place 4 times has never seen the top because clouds are always in the way. We were expecting the same. It had been raining all day. We got to a look out point and the clouds cleared long enough for us to “ooo” and “ahh” and take pictures. Keeping busy helped take my mind of my nausea. I wasn’t the only one with stomach issues today. Several of us had been feeling pretty icky. When we got back on the bus, one of the sick had such bad stomach pains that he was moaning and flenching. I did a quick exam and thought it was best to head to the hospital. The closest hospital was about an hour away. This was the longest trip. His pain kept getting worse and worse. He was in such severe pain that he passed out a couple of times. I was getting very concerned for him. I thought he had appendicitis and that it might burst. It was quite an experience getting him to the emergency room. Once there they too were suspecting appendicitis and had him scheduled for some tests. There was some differences in patient care but overall the hospital staff was good, the hospital was clean, had the latest technology, and they spoke English well enough that I felt comfortable leaving. Ross spent the night at the hospital and it was determined that he had a bad viral infection in his intestines that was causing severe spasms. We all thought he would need to have surgery. I am very thankful that he is feeling better and out of the hospital. I have so far been to prompt care with a girl who fell down the stairs, help clean and bandage those injured by the Dead Sea, and spent the evening in the ER. Maybe having a nurse on the trip is bad luck?

Galilee Day 1

Tina Huber

Reflection Day 10

Galilee 1

January 16, 2012

We are off for a four day stay in Galilee. I am so excited for a couple reasons. One, our resort is THE best place I have slept at in over 2 weeks! The En Giev Resort is on the Sea of Galilee. Our room has heat, two bedrooms, a shower with a door on it, no nari crust on my bed linen, and EXTRA toilet paper in the bathroom! This is luxury! I have had to deal with some germ-a-phobic issues on this trip. My worst germodramitic moment was the first youth hostel we stayed in. When I opened the door of the room I actually thought... this is kind of cute. It had two low lying single beds in the room. I opened the bathroom and it was the weirdest thing I’ve ever seen. There was a drain in the middle of the bathroom and no shower curtain for the shower. In the middle of the shower lay a giant squeagy. The bathroom was just big enough for a sink and toilet and showerhead. When you shower water just sprays everywhere. Everything got drenched the toilet, the sink, and the whole floor. It was crazy in my mind but tolerable. I walked over to my bed to put my bag down and there was this large yellow, nasty, crust on the top of my blanket. At first, I just took it off and layed it on the floor but after inspecting Olivia’s linens too I ended up going to the front desk for fresh linens. I knew I wouldn’t be able to sleep if we kept those blankets. So, that is why I LOVE the luxury of this resort. Second, I am ready to start moving from Old Testament to New Testament. I have really enjoyed digging deeper into the Old Testament. That is the foundation of our faith and I do think it is overlooked and under taught in the Christian churches. However, I am super excited to take a deeper look into the land that Jesus grew up in and ministered in. Our first stop was Beth-shean. If you are like me, you might be thinking, never heard of it. I thought that when we walked up to the site but after reading the accounts in 1 Samuel I remembered the story linked to this city. This is where Saul, after being wounded in battle and falling on his own sword, had his body tied to the wall of this city. The Philistines were showing off their victory. The city below it was a little more fascinating to me. It was called Scythopolis and was built by the Romans. It apparently was destroyed in a huge earthquake in 747 AD. As I looked down the first thing I noticed was the huge theater seating. The Romans were trying to entice the people of this area. They wanted them to believe having Rome on your side is a good thing. All the luxuries were here. A temple, a bath house, and the theater. The Romans would slowing integrate into a culture or I should say the people of the area they occupied would integrate into a Roman lifestyle. When our instructor pointed out the theater area she said, “media has always been a mean of indocurination.” Nothing new under the sun! It is still true today! So, our first stop was a two in one. Our second stop was Meggido. We drove by the place that Jezebel got thrown off of on our way to Meggido. It was a drive by but I was glad to see it. I thought Meggido had an amazing view over the valley below. There is a ton of history in these valleys. We talked about several stories that took place within our view. Debra and Barak, King Josiah recieving his fatal wound, and Gibeon’s battle to name a few. Meggido was an important city because of its location along an international route that connected the Mediterranean coast to Damascus. The archeological site had 20 layers to it and 10 destruction layers were from the Iron Age alone. So this was a popular site to capture. A pretty cool site overall. We hop on our bus and toodle on over to Mt Carmel. Here we hiked to an area that overlooks the site where Elijah challenged Baal’s prophets. It was so cool. Just sit there and imagine witnessing God proving that He alone is God and no other god exists. That is what I pictured this trip being about. Reading scripture in places where they occured. I have not been disappointed! I love it. We read to the point that Elijah flees in fear of Jezebel and hikes to Mt Sanai. It was suggested that Elijah after this huge display of boldness, has a struggle of faith here. At Mt Sanai God reveals himself as “the sound of thinnest silence” or whisper in the wind to Elijah. I love that verse. God is not in the big and flashy moments. He is more often in the quiet, reflective moments. How can we hear our shepherd if we aren’t listening. Our last stop was on Nazareth. Finally! Jesus territory! This small village sat up in a secluded hillside. Below them the international road ran through the valley. This area was a conservative people who believed in the one true God and were looking for their messiah. Jesus would have grown up in this village with it huge cliffs overlooking the valley below. The history of his people would be present in his daily life because so many stories happened within his view. We read Luke 4. Jesus reads the passage of Isaiah in the synagogue. We discussed how the crowd went from being in awe to wanting to throw him over a cliff with in a few short sentences. Jesus was telling this heavily taxed and Roman controlled people that they were not the oppressed. The Romans were the ones oppressed and suffering because they didn’t know God. Basically that God loves the Romans too. They were ready to stone Jesus for saying this! We sat along the edge that they would have brought him to throw him over. This cliff is named the flying cliff because some say he flew over the people and escaped. I’ve never heard that part before. I enjoyed imagining Jesus just being a boy and playing on these hills.

Masada/En Gedi/ Dead Sea

Tina Huber

Reflection Day 9

January 13, 2012

Masada/Dead Sea

The day started off lovely. An overcast day but no rain for our hike up Masada. Masada is best known for its last stand against the Roman army. A commune was formed out at this fortress that used to belong to Herod the Great. Oh, Herod and his many homes! This one over looks the Dead Sea. It had a swimming pool on top of it and a georgous view. Herod loved extravagance and linked it to how he wanted to be viewed by the world. Wether you are approaching Masada, or standing on top of it overlooking the valley, you can tell Herod was making a statement. This group that took its last stand here benefited from Herod excessiveness. The palace had store rooms full of food and plenty of water sources too. This community could live years in comfort and had even started to cultivate some land on top of this huge rock. The Romans, however, were masters at buildning seige ramps. We hiked up this siege ramp to get to the top. I can barely carry the extra weight of my back pack! I can’t imagine trying to roll anything up this ramp with enough force to break down the wall. The walls were built with wood reinforcements so everytime they would hit the wall with their ramming cart it just made it stronger. It didn’t take the Romans long to think they would just burn it down. Josephus was cited a few times as a historical reference. It was offered that Josephus was an exagerator in his writing. He did this to give a positive view of Jewish people, that they were a worthy adversary, to his Roman audiance. I know nothing of Josephus except that he was a historian and is sited a lot, even in this class, so he has to have some credibility in his recall of events. Archeology findings and some of his writings didn’t add up at this site. There is always two sides of a story and two perspectives. I don’t think we can claim to know exactly what happened here. Only that it was tragic. This group chose to commit mass murder and then suicide over letting the Romans take them captive. Over 900 were killed and only 2 women and 5 children survived. They survived by hiding in a cistern from the men who decided they should all die. It is a very sad event in the history of this country. I was so looking forward to En Gedi when we left Masada. I often associate En Gedi as a time of rest. We were going to hike there but the canyon was closed due to flash flooding. I would go to a desert on the one day there is flash flooding! We kept hearing "it nevers rain at the dead sea." We had to skip this site and went to the Dead Sea just across the road. Let me set the scene. It is cold and rainy outside. Maybe a high of 50 degrees and super windy. We decide this is our one chance to get in the Dead Sea and put on our swimsuits. I kept thinking, “what in the heck am I doing?” I was SO cold and the sea didn’t look pleasant! We hurried down to the “beach”... I put that in quotations because it consisted of hard large rocks and jagged mineral stone. This wall of mineral stone wasn’t exposed last year. The Dead Sea is literally dying. The country needs every bit of water that drains into this sea, so it is evaporating approximately 1 meter every year. It was very difficult to get over the mineral wall and into the water because the waves were crashing in. I tried to time it just right so the wave would carry me away from the wall. My timing worked but a wave smacked me in the face and I was blinded. The ocean is three percent salt and the Dead Sea is something like thirty percent. The sea also makes you boyant which is a very weird feeling. This feeling, along with the waves and being blinded, left me feeling very scared and vulnerable. I then did a very stupid thing and tried to wipe the salt from my eyes with my hand. That just left me with more salt. I was in some severe pain. I clenched my eyes shut as hard as I could over and over to try to get some vision. I could feel the waves carrying me towards the hard mineral wall. I was about 10 feet from the wall when I was able to open my eyes long enough to orient myself. One of the guys from our group was getting out onto shore so I yelled for him to help me out of the water. It wasn’t until the wounded started showing up in the changing room, that I realized he had saved me from some serious injuries. At least half of our group got smacked into the salt wall as they tried to get out of the Dead Sea. Our changing room was like a Red Cross station after a disaster. Thankfully, most were minor abrasions, but there was about 5 or 6 that had pretty significant cuts to bandage. That I continue to monitor We were all a little shaken. Remember, I started this story with the thoughts, “what the heck am I doing?” Sometimes it is smart to listen to that cautious voice. Yesterday the voice was telling me I COULDN’T do something, today the voice was saying I SHOULDN’T do something. There is a big difference! I will be more in tune the rest of this trip with the latter of the two! Our last stop was in Qumran. This is where the famous Dead Sea Scrolls were discovered. We were able to view the “Library” cave from the landing. This is where most of the maunscripts were found. What’s the big deal about finding all these scrolls? They prove that the preservation techinique for our Bible is accurate. We have the same Old Testament that Jesus would quote. Mark and I were just teaching our Sunday School class about this. This very question came up. How can we trust that the bible has remained accurate all this time? We mentioned the Dead Sea Scrolls to them and now I have some more insights to share. God is so good!