Day 4:
Today we went to Tel Arad and observed a Bedouin Shepard boy. I learned that the Bedouin culture is that of hospitality. The question that I ponder on throughout the day was how I can be hospitable in a culture that has such abundance? At this point I am not sure what it looks like. The other question I was pondering is: How do I fully depend on God when I live in such a culture that is full of abundance? As of right now, for me to fully depend on God, I have to be less selfish with my stuff.
Day 5:
Today I climbed Masada. A Fortress Palace built by Herod the Great which is atop a 1000 foot mountain. The trail up was step with a lot and I mean a lot of stairs (700 to be exact, and no I did not count them all). For me this was the hardest hike I have every done. I was only quarter of the way up and my heart was pounding and my lungs trying to take in every bit of oxygen they could. At about the half way point, my legs were jelly, I was alone and ready to give up. In that moment God provided Andrew as a source of encouragement. We together continue to climb up, Andrew being a constant source of encouragement. God gave me the strength and grace to make it to the top. The other two spots was En Gedi and Qumran. More on those when I get home.
Day 6:
Our fist day in Galilee. We began by climbing Mt. Arbell, near the sea. The trail was a challenge but compared to Masada was easier. The end of the tail required me to do some vertical rock climbing (with metal hand holds of course). At the top the view of Galilee was amazing. We spent time in worship. The next stop was the Mountain of Beatitudes. I wouldn't call it a mountain but rather a hill. Being on there and listening to the sermon on the mount gave me a new sense of the words of Jesus. Our next stop was Korzen one of the cities Jesus visited. Here I learned how important family and community are to the Jewish person. Living in community offers support and countability. When a son went to marry, he would build a room off his parents house, eventually creating a community. How can I promote community at home? How can I minister to the family in a culture where the family is fading?
Day 7:
Today we went to a Zealot town and had a synagogue service. What really struck me was how important the word of God is to the Jews. It is the center of the service. When it came out everyone would touch the scroll. The question I asked myself is how important is the living words of God to me? I know that they are important but so often they lose their meaning and I forget their importance. The Bible becomes just another book. The service also made me appreciate the Jewish heritage that Christianity grew out of. I hope to bring some of the elements of this service into my own personal worship. We then went to Caesarea Philippi and Tel Dan.
Well that is all for now!
Thursday, May 9, 2013
Saturday, May 4, 2013
Exploring the Land of the Text: Days 1-3
Day 1:
Greetings from Israel! After traveling for a little less than 24 hours we arrived safely in Israel. Our first stop was Tel Gezer! What is a tel? A “Tel” is actually a specific archaeological feature which is very common in Israel, a place that has been inhabited by people for thousands and thousands of years. Basically a “Tel” is a mound underneath which lay the ruins of previous settlements that once stood on the same spot (Hebrew Today). How do you tell a tel? There are three criteria for a tell. First it has to be able to get water where that was through a spring or collected in a cistern. Secondly, it had to be in a strategic spot such as nearby stream or near a road. Thirdly it had to be defendable. Tel Gezer is located on the south side of the Aijaion Valley. Here a branch of the Kings highway that ran through Israel and connected Egypt and Mesopotamia. This branch went to Jerusalem and Jerico.
Day 2:
Today we visted several tels. The first tel was Bet Shemesh which means house of the sun. It with in a couple of miles that Samson was born and lived. Next we visited Tel Azekah. Here we over looked the Elah valley where the story of David and Goliath took place. Our next stop was Maresha. Here we saw several caves and an olive press. While in the olive press we learned about the process of making olive oil and how Jesus might have prayed in an olive press when praying in the Garden of Gethsemane. Finally we visited Tel Lakish, a military fort that was was conquered by the Assyrians and allowed them to siege Jerusalem.
Day 3:
Today our text of focus was on Psalm 23. We are exploring the wilderness. The biggest thing I did today was hike down a wadi. A wadi is place that water runs durning the rainy season. Hiking down the wadi was difficult because the the path was so rocky that one miss step could have terrible consequences. We descended 700 meters or roughly 2000ft and walked the wadi out to the Dead Sea. We ended our day by floating in the Dead Sea.
Greetings from Israel! After traveling for a little less than 24 hours we arrived safely in Israel. Our first stop was Tel Gezer! What is a tel? A “Tel” is actually a specific archaeological feature which is very common in Israel, a place that has been inhabited by people for thousands and thousands of years. Basically a “Tel” is a mound underneath which lay the ruins of previous settlements that once stood on the same spot (Hebrew Today). How do you tell a tel? There are three criteria for a tell. First it has to be able to get water where that was through a spring or collected in a cistern. Secondly, it had to be in a strategic spot such as nearby stream or near a road. Thirdly it had to be defendable. Tel Gezer is located on the south side of the Aijaion Valley. Here a branch of the Kings highway that ran through Israel and connected Egypt and Mesopotamia. This branch went to Jerusalem and Jerico.
Day 2:
Today we visted several tels. The first tel was Bet Shemesh which means house of the sun. It with in a couple of miles that Samson was born and lived. Next we visited Tel Azekah. Here we over looked the Elah valley where the story of David and Goliath took place. Our next stop was Maresha. Here we saw several caves and an olive press. While in the olive press we learned about the process of making olive oil and how Jesus might have prayed in an olive press when praying in the Garden of Gethsemane. Finally we visited Tel Lakish, a military fort that was was conquered by the Assyrians and allowed them to siege Jerusalem.
Day 3:
Today our text of focus was on Psalm 23. We are exploring the wilderness. The biggest thing I did today was hike down a wadi. A wadi is place that water runs durning the rainy season. Hiking down the wadi was difficult because the the path was so rocky that one miss step could have terrible consequences. We descended 700 meters or roughly 2000ft and walked the wadi out to the Dead Sea. We ended our day by floating in the Dead Sea.
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