T Minus 40

12-week Ultrasound

2008-09-29T17:35:00.001-04:00

That little sucker was MOVING today. I'm getting really, really excited!

Day 4 Pictures

2008-09-25T20:34:00.002-04:00

Sunday (Day 4) Pictures

Link To More Pictures

2008-09-19T10:10:00.001-04:00

Saturday (Day 3)

Photo Album Links

2008-09-18T11:21:00.004-04:00

Jen's working on getting full sets of captioned photos up. Here are the first two:

Day One (Caesarea, etc.)

Day Two (Various spots around Sea of Galilee)

Masada, Qumran, Floating In The Dead Sea, The Mountain Of Life vs The Mountain Of Death

2008-09-17T23:19:00.001-04:00

Masada--Fortress built by Herod The Great. After the Temple was destroyed in A.D. 70, this was the location of the "last stand" of some of the Zealots. They holed themselves up in this location, basically a mountain surrounded by walls overlooking the Dead Sea, and the Romans lay seige to the place. They ended up committing mass suicide before the Romans could capture the fortress.

Jen's mom, Susan, standing behind a model of Masada. On the front of the model is Herod's palace there. On top of the mountain is the fortress itself. Behind her are some of the original walls of Masada.

Qumran--Location where the Dead Sea Scrolls were found--a powerful reminder that God could and has preserved his Word. The scrolls proved that the Old Testament that we have today is the same as the Old Testament that they had before the days of Christ.

Here's a shot of one of the caves in which the Dead Sea Scrolls were found.

The Dead Sea--This was just a fun little side trip to the lowest spot on earth. The Dead Sea has so much salt and mineral content that it is incredibly buoyant. You can't really swim in it, but a human body floats on it almost as much as if wearing a life jacket.

Today's most significant moment spiritually for me came from Tony's comments about Masada, contrasting it to the Mount Of Beatitudes which we had visited. The Mount Of Beatitudes was a mountain of life, where Jesus spoke words of hope, instruction, love, and life. And many there heeded his words. The mountain at Masada was a mountain of death, because those hidden there thought that by hiding there, they would force God's hand and he would send the Messiah that *THEY* were awaiting. They had missed the real Messiah 40 or so years earlier because they had shaped him into to the image they wanted him to be. When God "failed" to deliver, they committed suicide in their despair.

How often do I walk down a similar path as the Zealots on Masada: shape God into the image I want him to be, and when he doesn't "deliver" based on that image, allow myself to sink into disappointment with him. May I "have ears to hear" and heed the words of Christ, such as spoken on the other mountain, instead.

--Ben

TUESDAY: Temple Mount, Pool Of Bethesda, Via Doloroso, Israel Musesum, House Of Caiaphas, The Upper Room

2008-09-17T23:16:00.001-04:00

Temple Mount—It is located on Mt. Moriah. Abraham went here to offer Isaac. Temples were built here by Solomon, Saul, and Herod the Great. Herod’s stood in the days of Jesus. It was destroyed in AD 70 . The Jews tried to rebuild it in AD 135, and the Romans viewed it as an act of rebellion and destroyed it, putting up a pagan temple. Byzantines conquered in AD 330 and knocked down the pagan temple, leaving nothing on the site for three centuries. The Muslim Arabs conquered in AD 640, and built the prominent structure which stands there now: The Dome Of The Rock.

Tony talked a bit about the politics of the area at this sight. The three statements he made in conclusion really resonated with me, based on what I've read in the past and what I've seen and heard this week:

"The Muslims fear that the Jews will blow up the Dome and rebuild the Temple. The Jews envy the Muslims for having a building at this sacred sight. Fear and envy create hatred."

Contrast that to...

"...perfect love drives out fear..."--I John 4:18

John spoke here about the Jewish sacrificial system at the temple, from Leviticus 1:1-5, how the people would bring a lamb, place their hands on it, and as it was slain, their sins would be transferred to the animal. And John The Baptizer said "Behold, the Lamb Of God who takes away the sins of the world!" He also referred to the Book Of Hebrews where it shows how Jesus fulfills the Old Testament prophecies and sacrificial system.

Pool Of Bethesda--Jesus healed a paralyzed man here in John 5:1-15. The remains of this pool have been found.

Via Doloroso--There are 14 Stations Of The Cross that were created by tradition--some not mentioned in the Bible. I won't go into all of the details of them here. Just check the Wikipedia Page if you want to know more. We walked the Via Doloroso, which goes through the streets of Jerusalem. It was, uh, kind of crowded.

Israel Museum--The two major things we looked at here were a Dead Sea Scrolls exhibit, and a very large (1:50) model of Jerusalem in the ancient times. Here's a shot of the model.

Caiaphas's House--The location where the High Priest questioned Jesus during that fateful last night before the crucifixion. The actual home is not there, but excavations have revealed the exact location.

Upper Room--The sight of the Last Supper. Also no remains, but the exact place.

Probably the biggest thing that stuck out today was a part of John's message at the Temple Mount. After teaching regarding the sacrificial system, he spoke powerfully about how when the Temple veil was split at the moment of Jesus's death, it was symbolic of the fact that now there is no barrier between man and God. Through Christ, we have direct access to God. Good stuff!

The Basic Geography Of The Trip To Date

2008-09-15T23:29:00.000-04:00

It occurred to me that many of those reading are probably like me before I got here: without a good idea of the basic geography of Israel. Here's a map and a quick explanation (partly for myself so I can remember it all).

The locations circled in red are the more well-known ones that we've visited so far. To give a quick recap of where we've been, we landed in Tel Aviv, and drove north along the Mediterranean. The first place we visited, Caesarea, is located near Hadera (not circled). We would eventually spend that night in Tiberias, which is not shown on this map, but is a town located on the western shores of the Sea Of Galilee. The next day was spent almost entirely with the Sea Of Galilee within sight. Everything in this post would be reflected there. On the next day, we went north and east from Galilee. We were within sight of both the Syrian and Lebanese borders at different times before returning back and having the baptism in the Jordan, which flows into and out of the Sea Of Galilee. (I'm not 100% certain, but I *THINK* the baptism was on the north side of Galilee. On Sunday morning we packed the bus and left the hotel in Tiberias. We went to Nazareth, and a couple of other places, then traveled south in the West Bank area, essentially right along the Jordan River, to Jericho, viewing the heavily-fortified border with Jordan for miles and miles along the way. We entered Jerusalem Sunday evening shortly before sunset. The rest of the trip will be spent in and around Jerusalem, with the exception of an excursion down to the Dead Sea, I believe. Hope that helps.

Palm Sunday Road, Bethphage, Mount Of Olives, Gethsemane, Bethlehem, West Bank....and Armed Soldiers On The Bus

2008-09-15T15:07:00.006-04:00

We spent all of Monday in and around Jerusalem. There’s just SO much to see here. A general recap:

Bethphage—The area where Jesus, in Luke 19:28-34, sent the disciples to get the colt for him to ride into Jerusalem.

Palm Sunday Road—From there, we walked the route that Jesus likely took into Jerusalem.

Mount Of Olives—A quick search reveals 14 references to the Mount Of Olives. Our guide reminded us that the week of the crucifixion was Passover, so many, many Jews would have come from the Galilee area to Jerusalem, and would have been camping out on the Mount Of Olives. Our guide’s comments matched up with little comments in several of these scriptures, the most direct one being Luke 21:37: “Each day Jesus was teaching at the temple, and each evening he went out to spend the night on the hill called the Mount of Olives.” The Mount of Olives overlooks most of the city of Jerusalem. Here's a shot of Jen's parents on the Mount Of Olives with the city behind them:

Gethsemane--Where Jesus prayed "not my will, but yours" before the Cross. (Matthew 26:36-56).

Bethlehem--The birthplace of Jesus, as you can see from the map in the last entry, is quite close to Jerusalem. In fact, there are places in Bethlehem where Jerusalem is in plain sight. We visited the Church Of The Nativity, which is built upon the sight where it's quite likely that Jesus was born. We also stopped for an hour in Bethlehem for shopping--the first time that we've done any of that. Our guide took us to a shop owned by Palestinian Christians. Near the Church Of the Nativity is located the room (essentially a cave) where St. Jerome translated the entire Bible into Latin for the first time from roughly AD 380 to 405.

Lost In The West Bank....and Armed Soldiers On The Bus--I don't want to get political at all here, but I can't leave out two significant events from yesterday. Bethlehem is in the West Bank--an area populated by Palestinians, with access in and out controlled entirely by Israel. One of our group members went to the rest room, and when he returned and couldn't find us, thought we had left the Church Of The Nativity area (we had actually gone down into Jerome's cave while he was gone) and went to look for us and the bus...in the West Bank...without his passport...alone. To say the least, he was a bit unsettled. Fortunately, a kind Palestinian who knew of Tony, our guide, helped him out of what was a very scary situation.

The other memorable moment from Bethlehem was leaving. As mentioned, access in and out is controlled by the Israeli army. Our tour bus was boarded by two Israeli soldiers brandishing M16s. They walked all the way down the aisle, front to back, to make sure that we weren't smuggling any Palestinians out of the West Bank. To say the least, it was a bit sobering.

Spiritually, the most significant part of the day for me was having a few quiet moments in Gethsemane. After John spoke to us there about the price Jesus paid for us on the Cross, we sang "When I Survey the Wondrous Cross," and then had a few minutes alone in the garden to reflect. I was reminded all over again of the depth and height and width and breadth of the love Christ has for me, and how it was demonstrated so powerfully.

--Ben

Nazareth, Jericho, West Bank, Jerusalem

2008-09-14T23:12:00.002-04:00

NAZARETH—boyhood home of Jesus---angel announced to Mary the impending birth of the Christ-child here---visited the Church Of The Annunciation. Inside the church, there’s the spring of the village, where Mary would have gone to draw water for the family and surely the boy Jesus went with her often.

MEGIDO—Important strategic crossroads location which will be the sight of the great final battle before Christ’s return. (Armageddon)

BEIT SHE’AN—I Samuel 31—death of Saul—city has been excavated and much of the original structures found

From Beit She’an, we drove southward along Israel’s Highway 90, which is essentially parallel to the Jordan River (the border with Jordan). We crossed a checkpoint just south of Beit She’an into the disputed West Bank territory. In the West Bank, Highway 90 comes very close to Jordan. We could see the heavily fortified border and several Jordanian villages as we drove along. Tony shared much of history and his thoughts regarding the situation in the Middle East. It was fascinating to hear a Middle Eastern believer’s perspective of how the situation isn’t remotely black and white, and that he feels that isn’t going to be solved before the battle at the place we had visited earlier in the day.

From there, it was on to…

JERICHO—Joshua led the conquering of this city. Jesus encountered Zaccheus and Bartimaeus (Luke 18:35-Luke 19:10) here. Many remains of the city have been excavated, including a watchtower that may be 9,000 years old.

From Jericho, we headed to our hotel in Jerusalem, where we will spend the remaining nights.

I can’t even begin to describe the scene as we headed into the majestic Holy City. It was shortly before sunset. The sun’s last remaining light shone over the mountain brightly onto the buildings of the city. John had great music playing over the PA proclaiming the city. The whole scene was just breathtaking.

I was struck by much yesterday. It’s hard to even attempt to pick out one thing. Here are a few bullets:

Nazareth wasn’t considered a great place to be from when Jesus was around. It still isn’t.

Tony made a neat comment there about how he could picture the boy Jesus splashing the water from the spring with the other children while their mothers drew the water.
The battle field at Armageddon is freaking huge.
I’d seen it on television, but it’s quite different to see a 19ish-year-old girl carrying an M16 up close and personal. Sure, she was a soldier, but to me she looked like she could have been any girl in the Tucker High School Class of 2007 or so. (Military service is required for all in Israel. If I recall correctly, it starts at age 18.)
I can’t imagine having to go through military checkpoints (manned by quite a few of the aforementioned rifle-toting young people), just to enter and leave my home city. Politics aside, it can’t be very much fun to be a rank and file Palestinian living in Jericho.
I knew that the gospel was for everyone. I didn’t realize how geographically strategic Jesus was in going to places that were heavily Gentile-inhabited to spread his message.
In Nazareth, a very poor town largely populated by Arab Muslims, among the graffiti we saw the following written: “TUPAC”, “JAY-Z”, and “FUCK POLICE.” Good ol’ American culture. Eazy-E would be proud, I guess. *shurg*
Tony got on a roll at Megido as he shared about some of the geography of the area. When God called Abraham to go to another place, it was a call to trust well beyond what I ever knew, because it was a call to go outside of an area known as the “fertile crescent”—the only places where food would grow consistently and dependable fresh water could be found. In other words, Abraham ended up in a place of complete dependency on God the likes of which he would not have experienced in the “comfort” of the fertile crescent.

Some pictures

2008-09-13T23:41:00.002-04:00

A view into Lebanon, seen from the city of Dan. (The hills in the distance are in Lebanon. According to our guard, we were standing roughly a mile and a half from the border.)

The white buildings are the UN installation that monitors the Israeli-Syria border. When we took this shot, we were just a few hundred yards away from that border.

Tony, our guide, sitting in the seat at the city gates of Dan where the King would be sitting to greet honored guests.

John Willett, our trip leader (white hair), baptizing a couple in the Jordan River.

Sacrificial altar at the excavated city of Dan in Northern Israel.

Jen and I at the Jordan River

Day 3 Recap/Thoughts (Hazor, Dan, Caesarea Philippi, Baptism In The Jordan River)

2008-09-13T14:09:00.004-04:00

HAZOR: Archeological excavation of a Canaanite city that the Bible talks about, and was probably built around 5000 B.C. Conquered by Joshua. Rebuilt by Solomon 960 B.C. (I Kings 9:15).

DAN: Capital of the northern kingdom. northernmost city in Israel. Also an archeological excavation

CAESAREA PHILIPPI: Gentile city where Peter's confession of Christ took place (Matthew 16:13-20).

JORDAN RIVER, JUST NORTH OF WHERE IT ENTERS THE SEA OF GALILEE: Several members of our group had never been baptized as believers, and were baptized in the Jordan River today.

HIGHLIGHT: I overheard a conversation in Spanish that really struck me. (Yeah, I can hablo a little Espanol when necessary...) There was a group from Spain that was finishing a worship service by the Jordan River right before we walked down for the baptism. Everyone in our group who was baptized was an adult, and based on the conversation, it was clear that this group practiced infant baptism. What I caught of their service was that the scripture was read about John The Baptiser baptizing many, and then of course Jesus. The group from Spain finished their service shortly before John began our baptisms, and several stuck around and watched. I'm pretty sure I heard one say to another that La Palabra de Dios (the Word Of God) that they'd just read said that everyone who was baptized was an adult. They were definitely agitated, and it seemed that the agitation came from a disconnect between what they had just heard from the scriptures, and the practice of their church.

(DISCLAIMER: I am NOT terribly hung up on when you baptize. Personally, I believe it's for adult believers, but if you believe differently, we can have fellowship just fine. ;) But whether or not baptism should be done as an infant or an adult is *NOT* the point of this.)

My point is best expressed here in Acts 17:11:

Now the Bereans were of more noble character than the Thessalonians, for they received the message with great eagerness and examined the Scriptures every day to see if what Paul said was true.

Did you catch it? *EVERY* day. The Bereans weren't content merely to be told the truth by Paul, but they tested what Paul said against the Scriptures. They looked for themselves. They studied. They dug into it. And, I believe, they applied it to their lives.

I want to be more like the Bereans...

Heading to bed now for our last night based out of the hotel in Tiberias. We head down toward Jerusalem tomorrow, stopping along the way in Nazareth and Jericho, among other places. Woot!!! Sorry no pictures today. I left the camera in our room, up on the 6th floor, and the only internet access is here in the lobby. Too lazy/tired to go up and get it. I'll try to get one or two up in the morning before we head down toward Jerusalem.)

RANDOM NEAT STUFF: A lady on the trip teared up as she shared with Jen how beautiful it was that our unborn baby is getting to be carried around the Holy Land.

--Ben

Day 2 Thoughts...

2008-09-12T13:52:00.002-04:00

Without question, the most moving and meaningful part of the day for me was being on the Sea Of Galilee in a boat. We looked out at the hillsides where Jesus taught. We saw from the sea the towns and villages in the distance that he went through teaching and preaching, seeing the crowds that were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shephard (Matt 9:36.) We rode in the very waters that he calmed after waking up from a nap in the boat, and that he walked on to get to the disciples during a storm. From one place, we could see the hometown of Mary Magdalene, the hometown of Peter, the "city on the hill," and so much more. It was truly overwhelming. As John taught about Jesus calming the sea, his power over the supernatural, and the faithfulness of a God who comes to us during the storms of life, I couldn't help but be overwhelmed at how again and again he has come to me during the roughest spots of my life.

After John finished teaching, the boat drivers turned off the engine, and we sang "Great Is Thy Faithfulness" as a group. What a moving hymn, and I'll close for the night with it.

Great is Thy faithfulness, O God my Father;
There is no shadow of turning with Thee;
Thou changest not, Thy compassions, they fail not;
As Thou hast been, Thou forever will be.

Refrain

Great is Thy faithfulness!
Great is Thy faithfulness!
Morning by morning new mercies I see.
All I have needed Thy hand hath provided;
Great is Thy faithfulness, Lord, unto me!

Summer and winter and springtime and harvest,
Sun, moon and stars in their courses above
Join with all nature in manifold witness
To Thy great faithfulness, mercy and love.

Refrain

Pardon for sin and a peace that endureth
Thine own dear presence to cheer and to guide;
Strength for today and bright hope for tomorrow,
Blessings all mine, with ten thousand beside!

Refrain

Day 2 Recap

2008-09-12T11:49:00.002-04:00

As mentioned previously, I'm not going to even try to give a bunch of detail from every single sight we visit. Instead, I'll do a quick recap of what we saw and the passages from the Bible related to it, and then highlight one thing. When I say that we visited these places, I mean we visited all of them, not just drove through. At each of these, we got off the bus, heard from Tony about the history, and heard from John from the Scriptures, too. Wow.

WHERE WE WENT TODAY
All of these places are around the Sea of Galilee, which is basically our headquarters right now. It's maybe a quarter mile or so from our hotel. We can see it from our room....

Mount Of Beatitudes (Matthew 4:18-7:29)--Incredible view overlooking the Sea Of Galilee
Korazin--"Woe to you, Korzin!" (Matthew 11:21)
Capernaum--Jesus's headquarters of a good bit of his ministry (Luke 17:1-10, Mark 2:1-12, John 4:46-54, Peter's home, Feeding of 5,000)
Tabgha--Church that's on the traditional sight where Peter's restoration by Jesus in John 21 took place ("Do you love me? Feed my sheep.")
region of Gerasenes--where Jesus cast the demons out of Legion (Luke 8:26-39)
Migdal (Magdala)--home of Mary Magdalene--had a lunch of fish from the Sea Of Galilee
Sea Of Galilee--much happened here...we took a boat ride on it. The teaching today was on the calming of the storm (Mark 4:35-41).

Here we are on the boat on the Sea Of Galilee.

Heading to dinner now, I'll post some thoughts about today's teaching after dinner.

--Ben

Quick Recap From First Day

2008-09-12T11:22:00.004-04:00

(I wrote this part early morning Israel time, but the internet connection acted the fool as I was trying to post it, so it didn't get posted.)

We left Charleston on a 6:30am flight, spent most of the day in the Newark Airport waiting for the rest of the group to arrive from Raleigh. We took off from Newark at around 4:30pm, and arrived in Tel-Aviv at around 9:45am local time (2:45am EDT). After going through customs and getting our luggage, we hopped on a bus and met our guide, Tony. (We have a pastor from Greensboro who is doing the Bible teaching, and Tony is point out the spots and history.)

From Tel-Aviv (which means "Spring Hill," we learned), we headed north to Caesarea, which is the town in Acts 10 and 11 where Peter shared Christ with the Gentiles. There in Caesarea, we stood on the site of palace on the Mediterranean where Paul was imprisoned. Caesarea was built by King Herod The Great, named for Caesar Augustus. Herod admired Roman culture and did not practice Judaism. He was appointed king by the Romans. At the time, Jerusalem was the political and economic center of Israel. Herod wanted a harbor to help the economy. Jews would not live in Caesarea. Parts of the original theater built by Herod are still there, and the Hippodrome, very much a Roman influence, is heavily in tact.

We sat in the outdoor theater (It has been restored), and John Willett taught to us from Acts 10 and 11, the main application being that the gospel is for everyone, including those who do not look, talk, act, or think like us. He also jumped to Acts 12, where Herod accepted worship and did not give glory to God. Do we deflect the praise??? Do we give glory to God for our achievements, or do we soak them in for ourselves??? Billy Graham once said about his 'achievements' that "I'm just a turtle on a fencepost." The meaning there being that a turtle on a fencepost was PLACED there by someone.

We did a bit of sightseeing in that area. It was easy walking distance to the palace once lived in by Pontius Pilate. There was an archeological excavation of a stone inscription bearing his name, making him the only Roman governor who has been uncovered as such. In the same walking distance area was the hippodrome. A couple of other notable facts about Caesarea are that Sunday worship started there, and that Paul's last missionary journey (to Rome) started there. Herod also held Olympics there once. Since it was so far from Greece, he had to figure out a way to get the best athletes to come to his games. Previously, only a gold medal had been given. Herod gave out gold, silver and bronze, thus starting that practice.

From there, we went a little farther north along the Mediterranean and saw the aqueduct that gave Caesarea its water, waded in the Mediterranean for a bit, then headed for Mount Carmel.

Lunch atop Mount Carmel, and John taught us regarding Elijah's encounter in I Kings 18 with the prophets of Baal.

Time to eat breakfast now. More later...

--Ben

(Further reflections, written after day 2...)

Well, it is clear as a bell already that there's simply no way to try to capture all of the spiritual thoughts running through my head on this trip. I'm going to try to do a quick recap of what we did, then just focus on one teaching that really stuck out to me. (We visited *SIX* different sites where some fairly intense encounters with Jesus took place today, for example...)

So from yesterday, I was really struck by the thought of being a turtle on a fencepost: of using any earthly achievement I may "earn," spiritual or not, to give glory to God. I was really struck by looking at everything in life as an opportunity to point people to Christ's love, rather than being like Herod and basking in the praise from others.

Here's a shot of John teaching us in the theater:

Quick Note From Tiberias

2008-09-11T14:38:00.002-04:00

Very tired. Didn't sleep well on the plane last night, and jumped on the tour bus straight from the airport. INCREDIBLE day, and to be frank, the stuff I'm more interested in comes later. Looking forward to all that God's going to do. Quick notes..

Hippodrome
Theatre – built by Herod the Great--Beautiful theater overlooking the Mediterranean. Saw the palace where Pontius Pilate lived.
Roman aqueduct--Incredible structure. Got to stick toes in the Mediterranean Sea
Drive to Muhraka (“burnt offering”) on Mt. Carmel with panoramic view of Plain of Jezreel (Esdraelon) Kings 18: confrontation between Elijzh and prophets of Baal--Overlooking Armageddon. Great teaching about the confrontation. Beautiful view from Mt. Carmel.
Cross country to Arbel cliff for view over Sea of Galilee--Can't even begin to describe this. Jen teared up. I was in awe. Overlooking Galilee, we were able to see several of the villages where Jesus ministered.

I'll try to write something more coherent tomorrow. Quick shot of ya boy Lou overlooking Galilee:

We'll get some pics up in the next day or two.

--Ben

We Leave Tomorrow.

2008-09-09T20:05:00.003-04:00

We leave the Lowcountry behind tomorrow morning, and head for the Holy Land. We'll post pics here, and also at Facebook. I don't anticipate having internet access from Thursday to Saturday, so don't expect any pictures until Sunday at the earliest. Thanks in advance for your prayers, and looking forward to talking with many of you when we return. Shalom, Chaverim!

--Ben

Day 01 Departure Wed 9/10/08

Leave from Charleston Airport at 6:30am.
We’ll be in the Newark airport with a very long layover most of the day.
Depart Newark 4:05 pm. Direct flight to Tel Aviv.

Day 02 Thu 9/11/08

Arrival Tel Aviv
Sharon Plain valley north to Caesarea by the Sea (Caesarea Maritima)
Sunken Harbor
Hippodrome
Theatre – built by Herod the Great
Roman aqueduct
Galilee
Drive to Muhraka (“burnt offering”) on Mt. Carmel with panoramic view of Plain of Jezreel (Esdraelon) Kings 18: confrontation between Elijzh and prophets of Baal
Drive on to Megiddo ~ background for Armageddon (Revelation 16)
Cross country to Arbel cliff for view over Sea of Galilee
Dinner and overnight in Tiberias (B, D)

Day 03 Fri 9/12/08 Sea of Galilee

Drive up Golan Heights for panoramic view of lake from the east.
Cross to the Mount of Beatitudes (Matthew 5-7)
May walk down hill to lake, meeting at Tabgha
On to Capernaum
One-hour wooden boat trip on lake modeled after one from Jesus’ time (Mt 14)
End day at place where Jordan River flows out of lake
Back to hotel in Tiberias overnight (B, L, D)

Day 04 Sat 9/13/08 Sources of the Jordan

To Hazor, the largest Canaanite city for brief visit and view of Mt. Hermon
Solomon rebuilt Hazor during his reign to guard the northern approach to Israel.
Inhabitants of Hazor taken into captivity by tiglath-Pileser, king of Assyria.
To Dan for nature walk beside Upper Jordan with views of ancient ruins including the Israelite high place that supported a golden calf (1 Kings 12)
To spring of Caesarea Philippi (Banias) where Peter confessed his recognition of Jesus as Christ (Mt 16).
Visit remains of 1st-century AD palace of Agrippa II.
Drive around Mt. Hermon to glimpse Damascus, 45 miles away.
Back over Golan Heights to hotel for dinner and overnight (B, D).

Day 05 Sun 9/14/08 – Lower Galilee and Jordan Valley / visit Nazareth, Beth Shean and Jericho.

Nazareth – We may choose a visit to the spring of the ancient village; a walk through the bazaar over the site of the ancient village to the Church of the Annunciation with a visit there; or a view from the “brow of the hill on which the city was built (Luke 4) looking toward Mt. Tabor in the Jezreel plain.
We will then cross the plain and descend through the Jezreel Valley to Beth Shan (aka Scythopolis). Here we will climb the tel and view the setting for the death of Saul (1 Samuel 28 – II Samuel 1). We will then survey the magnificent Roman and Byzantine ruins: theatre, bathhouses, ancient rest rooms, market areas, colonnaded streets.
We will then drive through the Jordan Valley south to Jericho. At Jericho we visit the tel of this oldest city and view the traditional mountain of Jesus’ temptation.
Ascending the Roman road along WadiQilt, we stop for a look at St. George’s Monastery Finally, atop Mt. Scopus, we behold majestic Jerusalem where we will have dinner and overnight.

Day 06 Mon 9/15/08 – O Jerusalem! and Bethlehem

Begin the day on the Mount of Olives, with the Old City tilted toward us.
After an orientation, we will descent the traditional Palm Sunday road to
Dominus Flevit (“The Lord weeps”), remembering Jesus’ entry. (Luke 19). We continue on down to Gethsemane.
Gethsemane – Visit to the garden and the church (quiet time).
Drive on to Mt. Zion to the grounds of a church called Peter in Gallicantu, which affords the best view of early Jerusalem from the west. Here, the Assumptionist Fathers propose was the house where the High Priest Caiaphas interrogated Jesus.)
Driving south, we visit Solomon’s Pools, Jersalem’s main source of water for almost 2000 years.
Passing the monastery of hortus Conclusus (“the sealed garden”) in Artas, we go to Shepherd’s Fields.
We conclude the day with a visit to Bethlehem, walking through its alleys and markets to the Church of the Nativity before returning to the hotel for dinner and overnight. (B,D)

Day 07 Tue 9/16/08 – Jerusalem – The Old City

We transfer to Dung Gate where we will walk up to the Western Wall, Judaism’s holiest site. We ascend to the Dome of the Rock and the al-Aqsa Mosque, the third holiest site of Islam, located on the traditional site of the ancient Temple Mount where it was once thought the Temple stood.
Just to the north we find the Pools of Bethesda (John 5) and St. Anne’s Church perfectly preserved from the Crusader period and with remarkable acoustics.
We then follow the Way of the Cross (Via Dolorosa) back as far as the Holy Sepulcher. From there we walk through the Christian Quarter through the Arab Souks past the Armenian Quarter and exit the Old City through the Mt Zion Gate to visit the Upper Room and King David’s Tomb on the grounds of Mt. Zion. We will then return to the hotel for dinner and overnight. (B, D)

Day 08 Wed 9/17/08 – The Rift Valley

Today we will drive to Bethany, the home of Martha and Lazarus.
From there we drive through the Judean desert to Qumran. Here we view Cave # 4, which contained the greatest quantity of Dead Sea scrolls
We continue south to Masada where we will take the cable car to the top, visiting Herod’s mountain bunker and the last stronghold of the Jewish revolt against Rome (66-73 AD).
We then enter the nature reserve of Ein Gedi, rich in flora and fauna, and walk to a lovely waterfall. Here we can also try to imagine a possible cave that brings to mind the biblical reference (1 Samuel 24: 1-3) “Now when Saul returned from pursuing the Philistines, he was told, saying, “Behold, David is in the wilderness of Engedi.” Then Saul took three thousand chosen men from all Israel and went to seek David and his men in front of the Rocks of the Wild Goats. He came to the sheepfolds on the way, where there was a cave; and Saul went in to relieve himself. Now David and his men were sitting in the inner recesses of the cave.”
We conclude the day with a float in the Dead Sea (at minus 1390 feet, as low as you’re ever likely to get) before we return to Jerusalem for dinner and overnight. (B, D)

Day 09 Thu 9/18/08 – The Archeology of Jerusalem and the New City

We begin with a modern tunnel that enables us to examine the length of the outer Herodian Temple wall -mostly preserved in mint condition - including two stone blocks each weighing about 600 tons
We then examine the ruins near the south side of the Temple complex, including steps where we may be certain that Jesus and the disciples walked.
We may then descend the slope of the first Jerusalem (“City of David”) to the Gihon spring, and view the knee-high water through Hezekiah’s tunnel, which led the water to a pool at a safe remove from Assyrian arrows.
We then motor to West Jerusalem passing by the Knesset to the Shrine of the Book, which houses the Dead Sea Scrolls, and the Israel Museum, including the outdoor model of Jerusalem as the city may have looked in 66 AD.
We close the day at the Garden Tomb for a special visit and the possibility of having a private communion on the grounds. We will return to our hotel for dinner and overnight. (B, D)

Day 10 Fri 9/19/08 - Free Day

Today we will have a day of leisure for personal interest and last minute shopping. In the early evening we will have our farewell dinner before a late departure back home on our flight from Tel Aviv.

40, Eh?

2008-09-07T11:46:00.002-04:00

God's just cool.

I started this blog 40 days from our scheduled arrival in Tel Aviv.
At the time, we didn't know that we were pregnant, and of course it's 40 weeks of human gestation.
If all goes according to plan, I will be 40 years old when my first child is born.

Such a biblical number. 40 days of Lent, to remember the 40 days Jesus spent in the wilderness. 40 days and 40 nights on the ark. Moses was on the mountain with God for 40 days. 40 years were the Israelites in the wilderness. Goliath talked smack 40 days before he met his match in David.

In many, many ways, I feel like my life's about to start again. An entirely new season. I will sing a new song.

Psalm 40

For the director of music. Of David. A psalm.

1 I waited patiently for the LORD;
he turned to me and heard my cry.

2 He lifted me out of the slimy pit,
out of the mud and mire;
he set my feet on a rock
and gave me a firm place to stand.

3 He put a new song in my mouth,
a hymn of praise to our God.
Many will see and fear
and put their trust in the LORD.

4 Blessed is the man
who makes the LORD his trust,
who does not look to the proud,
to those who turn aside to false gods.

5 Many, O LORD my God,
are the wonders you have done.
The things you planned for us
no one can recount to you;
were I to speak and tell of them,
they would be too many to declare.

6 Sacrifice and offering you did not desire,
but my ears you have pierced ^[b] , ^[c] ;
burnt offerings and sin offerings
you did not require.

7 Then I said, "Here I am, I have come—
it is written about me in the scroll. ^[d]

8 I desire to do your will, O my God;
your law is within my heart."

9 I proclaim righteousness in the great assembly;
I do not seal my lips,
as you know, O LORD.

10 I do not hide your righteousness in my heart;
I speak of your faithfulness and salvation.
I do not conceal your love and your truth
from the great assembly.

11 Do not withhold your mercy from me, O LORD;
may your love and your truth always protect me.

12 For troubles without number surround me;
my sins have overtaken me, and I cannot see.
They are more than the hairs of my head,
and my heart fails within me.

13 Be pleased, O LORD, to save me;
O LORD, come quickly to help me.

14 May all who seek to take my life
be put to shame and confusion;
may all who desire my ruin
be turned back in disgrace.

15 May those who say to me, "Aha! Aha!"
be appalled at their own shame.

16 But may all who seek you
rejoice and be glad in you;
may those who love your salvation always say,
"The LORD be exalted!"

17 Yet I am poor and needy;
may the Lord think of me.
You are my help and my deliverer;
O my God, do not delay.

What Do You Get When You Cross A Barnes With A Ewing?

2008-09-03T18:07:00.004-04:00

I've, uh, had other things on my mind the last couple of weeks.

April 12th.

Word.

So anyway, uh, Israel.

We are scheduled to leave one week from today, and I'm beyond thrilled to see what God is intending to do on this trip, especially as we now are getting our brains around becoming parents. We will post pictures of the trip in this blog, and also on our Facebook pages. We will not have internet access every single day we're on the trip, but expect to have it for most of the time we're gone. If you're a Facebook member, join the group T Minus 40 to receive an email as soon as something gets posted here while we're away.

More to come later tonight...

--Ben

Hanna

2008-09-02T05:24:00.004-04:00

I'm not going to beat myself up about not blogging for nearly a week. (I'll post more about that later.) For now, just a couple of prayer concerns regarding Hanna, and likely a blog entry later today...

1. Safety/Decisions. Hanna may be headed toward the Lowcountry. We'll need to decided whether to stay or leave, and what level of precautions to take. Never been near the coast in a hurricane...

2. Israel Preparations. We don't think it will affect the trip, as all indications are that it will be gone by the time we fly out on the 10th. We do think it will affect us right before the trip. Specifically, trip preparations may need to be speeded up since shopping this coming weekend may be, uh, problematic.

Jerusalem

2008-08-26T21:26:00.002-04:00

Jen and I did a very impromptu date night tonight (as in we decided to go out at around 5:00pm, and were in the car heading out by 5:30), hitting downtown Charleston for dinner and a comedy improv show. I'm very tired right now and probably can't string together a "full" entry, but I did have a quick thought from the next portion of the itinerary that jumped out at me, and I wanted to get it down on virtual paper before I lose it.

(From Day 5 Of The Itinerary) Finally, atop Mt. Scopus, we behold majestic Jerusalem where we will have dinner and overnight.

I don't know much about the lay of the land in Israel (although I suspect I'll know a lot more starting 16 days from now,) but in my mind's eye, Jerusalem is a majesty city that sits in a bit of a valley that one can look down into. I don't really know where I got that idea. Perhaps it's from some Scripture that I'm not connecting with right now, or from some long-forgotten geography lesson. At any rate, though, the thought of viewing Jerusalem reminded me of one of my favorite passages from Revelation, and I wanted to get that passage down to give myself something to meditate on a bit as I head to bed. I've bolded the section that I really, really love.

Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and there was no longer any sea. I saw the Holy City, the new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride beautifully dressed for her husband. And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, "Now the dwelling of God is with men, and he will live with them. They will be his people, and God himself will be with them and be their God. He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away."

Drowning In A Sea Of Fears

2008-08-25T18:37:00.003-04:00

When we last left the Israel trip itinerary, we were on day three, taking a boat on the Sea of Galilee. A fierce storm had come up, and the disciples, despite doing exactly what God had told them to do, were in the middle of it on the lake. Picking it back up...

25During the fourth watch of the night Jesus went out to them, walking on the lake. 26When the disciples saw him walking on the lake, they were terrified. "It's a ghost," they said, and cried out in fear.
27But Jesus immediately said to them: "Take courage! It is I. Don't be afraid."
28"Lord, if it's you," Peter replied, "tell me to come to you on the water."
29"Come," he said.
Then Peter got down out of the boat, walked on the water and came toward Jesus. 30But when he saw the wind, he was afraid and, beginning to sink, cried out, "Lord, save me!"

Man, lots of stuff jumps out at me here...

At their darkest, scariest time, God shows up. The storm is raging around them and the boat is starting to take on water. They've done exactly what Jesus told them to do and things aren't going the way they probably thought they should have been going. I've sure been there. Some of you reading know that the time I left YoungLife staff was an incredibly difficult and painful time. It was easily the roughest time of my life. But in the middle of that storm, I can't even begin to describe how powerfully God showed up, and has continued to show up. He turned what could have easily been a "period" in my life into a "comma." When we look and listen for him (and sometimes even when we don't,) he'll show up in the storms.
Jesus showing up was initially scarier than even the storm. Maybe it's just me, but I find part of this encounter pretty doggone funny. They're in a boat that's being hit hard by a storm. My understanding is that it is not uncommon for storms to come in on the Sea Of Galilee that are powerful enough to kill even experienced fishermen in modern times. Surely these guys knew what danger a storm could bring. But instead of being afraid of the storm, it seems that for a bit they're more worried about a "ghost." But in some ways, I guess they were right. One of the many things I loved about the movie Jen and I saw yesterday was an exchange early on between young rising politician William Wilberforce and his butler:
WILBERFORCE: The truth is, I've been even more strange than usual lately, haven't I? {Butler shrugs shoulders}. WILBERFORCE: It's God. I have 10,000 engagements of State today but I would prefer to spend the day out here getting a wet arse studying dandelions and marveling and bloody spiders' webs. BUTLER: You found God, sir? WILBERFORCE: I think he found me. Do you have ANY idea how inconvenient that is? How idiotic it will sound? I have a political career glittering ahead of me..."
When Peter focused on the storm, and not on Jesus, he began to sink. It's actually rather silly when you think about it--the way that we sometimes wring our hands, lose sleep, get ulcers, and otherwise focus on the power of the storms in our life, and somehow seem to forget the power of the one who, uh, MADE the freakin' storm.

Man, I'm really, really, really looking forward to seeing Galilee. But more than that, I'm exceedingly grateful for the lessons of it.

--Ben

DETOUR: Amazing Grace Movie

2008-08-24T20:25:00.003-04:00

No real entry tonight. Jen and I just finished watching the movie "Amazing Grace," the story of British abolitionist William Wilberforce's efforts to abolish the slave trade. A wonderful movie with tons of mini-messages for us all. If you haven't seen it. Go rent it.

Now.

Here's a link to the trailer.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7KLyEwv0dG8

I'm not really sure I can write just yet about my thoughts on the movie, and I know I can't move into other directions to try to write right now. So for now, here are a couple of sections in particular that really moved me:

Kite Surfing In A Tropical Storm.

2008-08-23T21:22:00.005-04:00

If you haven't seen what happened to Kevin Kearney on a beach in Fort Lauderdale a few days ago, take a look:

(Just so you know, according to CNN, Mr. Kearney's condition is improving and all reports I've seen indicate that he'll make a full recovery.)

On Day 3 of the Israel trip, we'll be taking a boat ride on the Sea Of Galilee, and I was immediately reminded of the incident above when I read the next portion of the passage I posted here yesterday about an event that happened in the time of Jesus on Galilee:

22Immediately Jesus made the disciples get into the boat and go on ahead of him to the other side, while he dismissed the crowd. 23After he had dismissed them, he went up on a mountainside by himself to pray. When evening came, he was there alone, 24but the boat was already a considerable distance^[a] from land, buffeted by the waves because the wind was against it.

Like Kevin Kearney, the disciples found themselves in a situation where a storm coming up caused considerable concern, perhaps even sheer terror. Perhaps the scariest thing about being in a storm is the complete lack of control that you feel; you're completely at the mercy of nature, and nothing you can do can slow it down.

I've been there, and I'm sure you have, too--maybe not from a literal storm, but definitely from the storms of life. Sometimes we get in stormy situations of our own creation: we make a bad decision and face the consequences. Pretty straightforward. I'm glad that Mr. Kearney is going to be ok, but let's be honest: kite-surfing in a tropical storm probably wasn't the best idea that he's ever had. (And that's not to pick on him; I've made some worse decisions than his. I'm just fortunate that none of mine have wound up on the national news and/or YouTube.) Other times, though, we end up in a storm that's not of our own doing. Someone at work doesn't take care of their end of the job, leaving you holding the bag and staring at a 16-hour day to clean up someone else's mess when you've got other pressing things going on at home. You find out that a person you love hasn't loved you the way you thought they should have. Any number of storms come up that aren't "our fault." We just stumble into them.

And then there's this one. It's a little uncomfortable for me, to be honest. Catch that first part again:

Jesus made the disciples get into the boat and go on ahead of him...

Yup. The disciples were doing exactly what God had told them to do. They were "in God's will," as some might call it. They were being obedient to their Master. And still, they found themselves right smack-dab in the middle of a storm. Sure, that matches up to the theology that I have in my heard, but sometimes in my heart, I want to think that if I "do right," God will bless me. And if I "do wrong," the storms will come up. That's simply not the case, though. It's clear as a bell here that all these guys were doing was what Jesus had told them to do.

So why were they in a storm?

For myself, I'm trying to live in just a little bit of this passage at a time, so I'm really going to try not to jump ahead, so I can try to make sense of this on a global level. And what makes sense to me here is the idea that storms cause us to grow, because they force us to a place of helplessness and dependency. (Hmmmm.....I wonder if God's trying to teach me that, eh? It seems to keep coming up...) God isn't about giving me a pain-free life. He's about changing me, (and goodness knows that I need to be changed.) He's about stretching me and growing me. It's in the storms of life that I learn to give up the illusion that I'm in control, and let God take over.

The Quiet Mountain

2008-08-22T20:51:00.003-04:00

Trash Talk And Tenochtitlan

2008-08-21T21:01:00.004-04:00

(From the itinerary) Drive to Muhraka (“burnt offering”) on Mt. Carmel with panoramic view of Plain of Jezreel (Esdraelon) Kings 18: confrontation between Elijzh and prophets of Baal

Elijah on Mount Carmel (From I Kings 18)
16 So Obadiah went to meet Ahab and told him, and Ahab went to meet Elijah. 17 When he saw Elijah, he said to him, "Is that you, you troubler of Israel?"
18 "I have not made trouble for Israel," Elijah replied. "But you and your father's family have. You have abandoned the LORD's commands and have followed the Baals. 19 Now summon the people from all over Israel to meet me on Mount Carmel. And bring the four hundred and fifty prophets of Baal and the four hundred prophets of Asherah, who eat at Jezebel's table."
20 So Ahab sent word throughout all Israel and assembled the prophets on Mount Carmel. 21 Elijah went before the people and said, "How long will you waver between two opinions? If the LORD is God, follow him; but if Baal is God, follow him."
But the people said nothing.
22 Then Elijah said to them, "I am the only one of the LORD's prophets left, but Baal has four hundred and fifty prophets. 23 Get two bulls for us. Let them choose one for themselves, and let them cut it into pieces and put it on the wood but not set fire to it. I will prepare the other bull and put it on the wood but not set fire to it. 24 Then you call on the name of your god, and I will call on the name of the LORD. The god who answers by fire—he is God."
Then all the people said, "What you say is good."
25 Elijah said to the prophets of Baal, "Choose one of the bulls and prepare it first, since there are so many of you. Call on the name of your god, but do not light the fire." 26 So they took the bull given them and prepared it.
Then they called on the name of Baal from morning till noon. "O Baal, answer us!" they shouted. But there was no response; no one answered. And they danced around the altar they had made.
27 At noon Elijah began to taunt them. "Shout louder!" he said. "Surely he is a god! Perhaps he is deep in thought, or busy, or traveling. Maybe he is sleeping and must be awakened." 28 So they shouted louder and slashed themselves with swords and spears, as was their custom, until their blood flowed. 29 Midday passed, and they continued their frantic prophesying until the time for the evening sacrifice. But there was no response, no one answered, no one paid attention.
30 Then Elijah said to all the people, "Come here to me." They came to him, and he repaired the altar of the LORD, which was in ruins. 31 Elijah took twelve stones, one for each of the tribes descended from Jacob, to whom the word of the LORD had come, saying, "Your name shall be Israel." 32 With the stones he built an altar in the name of the LORD, and he dug a trench around it large enough to hold two seahs ^[a] of seed. 33 He arranged the wood, cut the bull into pieces and laid it on the wood. Then he said to them, "Fill four large jars with water and pour it on the offering and on the wood."
34 "Do it again," he said, and they did it again.
"Do it a third time," he ordered, and they did it the third time. 35 The water ran down around the altar and even filled the trench.
36 At the time of sacrifice, the prophet Elijah stepped forward and prayed: "O LORD, God of Abraham, Isaac and Israel, let it be known today that you are God in Israel and that I am your servant and have done all these things at your command. 37 Answer me, O LORD, answer me, so these people will know that you, O LORD, are God, and that you are turning their hearts back again."
38 Then the fire of the LORD fell and burned up the sacrifice, the wood, the stones and the soil, and also licked up the water in the trench.
39 When all the people saw this, they fell prostrate and cried, "The LORD -he is God! The LORD -he is God!"

I've always enjoyed reading about this particular event. To be honest, it may not have been as much for "spiritual" reasons as for the smack talk in verse 27:

At noon Elijah began to taunt them. "Shout louder!" he said. "Surely he is a god! Perhaps he is deep in thought, or busy, or traveling. Maybe he is sleeping and must be awakened."

I've always found the above pretty freakin' hilarious--a prophet of God doing battle with false prophets of a false god and talkin' a little trash. However, in reading and thinking on it this evening, and thinking about being at the site where it took place a little over three weeks from now, I was struck by Elijah's great faith here. He stands alone. He stands against great odds. He stands in a place of utter and complete dependence--a place where only God can deliver him. I'm reminded of the story of Hernan Cortez, the conquistador who conquered the Aztec Empire. It is said that when he reached land, he burned his ships behind him, therefore committing everything he had and everyone with him to survival through conquest. There was to be no turning back.

What would it be like to have a faith in God like that, a level of trust and dependence on him to the point that I'd willing to put everything on the line, a faith where if God doesn't deliver, I risk utter humiliation, shame, even death?

Lord, I believe. Help my unbelief.

Trip Itinerary.

2008-08-17T21:08:00.002-04:00

I was reading over this. I'm pretty sleepy and don't have the mental energy to write something terribly coherent, particularly when confronted with the overwhelming nature of that which is below. All I can say right now is "WOW!" I've bolded and colored the things that stick out most to me. In the coming days, I intend to write about why I'm excited about those things (and maybe more).

Holy Land Trip Wednesday 9/10/08 – Friday, 9/19/08

Day 01 Departure Wed 9/10/08

Day 02 Thu 9/11/08

ð Arrival Tel Aviv

ð Sharon Plain valley north to Caesarea by the Sea (Caesarea Maritima)

o Sunken Harbor

o Hippodrome

o Theatre – built by Herod the Great

o Roman aqueduct

ð Galilee

Drive to Muhraka (“burnt offering”) on Mt. Carmel with panoramic view of Plain of Jezreel (Esdraelon) Kings 18: confrontation between Elijzh and prophets of Baal

Drive on to Megiddo ~ background for Armageddon (Revelation 16)

Cross country to Arbel cliff for view over Sea of Galilee

Dinner and overnight in Tiberias (B, D)

Day 03 Fri 9/12/08 Sea of Galilee

ð Drive up Golan Heights for panoramic view of lake from the east.

ð Cross to the Mount of Beatitudes (Matthew 5-7)

May walk down hill to lake, meeting at Tabgha

On to Capernaum

One-hour wooden boat trip on lake modeled after one from Jesus’ time (Mt 14)

End day at place where Jordan River flows out of lake

Back to hotel in Tiberias overnight (B, L, D)

Day 04 Sat 9/13/08 Sources of the Jordan

o To Hazor, the largest Canaanite city for brief visit and view of Mt. Hermon

o Solomon rebuilt Hazor during his reign to guard the northern approach to Israel.

o Inhabitants of Hazor taken into captivity by tiglath-Pileser, king of Assyria.

ð To Dan for nature walk beside Upper Jordan with views of ancient ruins including the Israelite high place that supported a golden calf (1 Kings 12)

o To spring of Caesarea Philippi (Banias) where Peter confessed his recognition of Jesus as Christ (Mt 16). Visit remains of 1^st-century AD palace of Agrippa II. Drive around Mt. Hermon to glimpse Damascus, 45 miles away.

Back over Golan Heights to hotel for dinner and overnight (B, D).

Day 05 Sun 9/14/08 – Lower Galilee and Jordan Valley / visit

Nazareth, Beth Shean and Jericho.

ð Nazareth – We may choose a visit to the spring of the ancient village; a walk through the bazaar over the site of the ancient village to the Church of the Annunciation with a visit there; or a view from the “brow of the hill on which the city was built (Luke 4) looking toward Mt. Tabor in the Jezreel plain.

ð We will then cross the plain and descend through the Jezreel Valley to Beth Shan (aka Scythopolis). Here we will climb the tel and view the setting for the death of Saul (1 Samuel 28 – II Samuel 1). We will then survey the magnificent Roman and Byzantine ruins: theatre, bathhouses, ancient rest rooms, market areas, colonnaded streets.

ð We will then drive through the Jordan Valley south to Jericho. At Jericho we visit the tel of this oldest city and view the traditional mountain of Jesus’ temptation.

ð Ascending the Roman road along WadiQilt, we stop for a look at St. George’s Monastery Finally, atop Mt. Scopus, we behold majestic Jerusalem where we will have dinner and overnight.

Day 06 Mon 9/15/08 – O Jerusalem! and Bethlehem

ð Begin the day on the Mount of Olives, with the Old City tilted toward us.

After an orientation, we will descent the traditional Palm Sunday road to

Dominus Flevit (“The Lord weeps”), remembering Jesus’ entry. (Luke 19). We continue on down to Gethsemane.

ð Gethsemane – Visit to the garden and the church (quiet time).

ð Drive on to Mt. Zion to the grounds of a church called Peter in Gallicantu, which affords the best view of early Jerusalem from the west. Here, the Assumptionist Fathers propose was the house where the High Priest Caiaphas interrogated Jesus.)

ð Driving south, we visit Solomon’s Pools, Jersalem’s main source of water for almost 2000 years.

ð Passing the monastery of hortus Conclusus (“the sealed garden”) in Artas, we go to Shepherd’s Fields.

ð We conclude the day with a visit to Bethlehem, walking through its alleys and markets to the Church of the Nativity before returning to the hotel for dinner and overnight. (B,D)

Day 07 Tue 9/16/08 – Jerusalem – The Old City

o We transfer to Dung Gate where we will walk up to the Western Wall, Judaism’s holiest site. We ascend to the Dome of the Rock and the al-Aqsa Mosque, the third holiest site of Islam, located on the traditional site of the ancient Temple Mount where it was once thought the Temple stood.

ð Just to the north we find the Pools of Bethesda (John 5) and St. Anne’s Church perfectly preserved from the Crusader period and with remarkable acoustics.

ð We then follow the Way of the Cross (Via Dolorosa) back as far as the Holy Sepulcher. From there we walk through the Christian Quarter through the Arab Souks past the Armenian Quarter and exit the Old City through the Mt Zion Gate to visit the Upper Room and King David’s Tomb on the grounds of Mt. Zion. We will then return to the hotel for dinner and overnight. (B, D)

Day 08 Wed 9/16/08 – The Rift Valley

ð Today we will drive to Bethany, the home of Martha and Lazarus.

ð From there we drive through the Judean desert to Qumran. Here we view Cave # 4, which contained the greatest quantity of Dead Sea scrolls

ð We continue south to Masada where we will take the cable car to the top, visiting Herod’s mountain bunker and the last stronghold of the Jewish revolt against Rome (66-73 AD).

ð We then enter the nature reserve of Ein Gedi, rich in flora and fauna, and walk to a lovely waterfall. Here we can also try to imagine a possible cave that brings to mind the biblical reference (1 Samuel 24: 1-3) “Now when Saul returned from pursuing the Philistines, he was told, saying, “Behold, David is in the wilderness of Engedi.” Then Saul took three thousand chosen men from all Israel and went to seek David and his men in front of the Rocks of the Wild Goats. He came to the sheepfolds on the way, where there was a cave; and Saul went in to relieve himself. Now David and his men were sitting in the inner recesses of the cave.”

ð We conclude the day with a float in the Dead Sea (at minus 1390 feet, as low as you’re ever likely to get) before we return to Jerusalem for dinner and overnight. (B, D)

Day 09 Thu 9/17/08 – The Archeology of Jerusalem and the New City

ð We begin with a modern tunnel that enables us to examine the length of the outer Herodian Temple wall -mostly preserved in mint condition - including two stone blocks each weighing about 600 tons

ð We then examine the ruins near the south side of the Temple complex, including steps where we may be certain that Jesus and the disciples walked.

ð We may then descend the slope of the first Jerusalem (“City of David”) to the Gihon spring, and view the knee-high water through Hezekiah’s tunnel, which led the water to a pool at a safe remove from Assyrian arrows.

ð We then motor to West Jerusalem passing by the Knesset to the Shrine of the Book, which houses the Dead Sea Scrolls, and the Israel Museum, including the outdoor model of Jerusalem as the city may have looked in 66 AD.

ð We close the day at the Garden Tomb for a special visit and the possibility of having a private communion on the grounds. We will return to our hotel for dinner and overnight. (B, D)

Day 10 Fri 9/18/08 - Free Day/ Return to the U.S.A.

Today we will have a day of leisure for personal interest and last minute shopping. In the early evening we will have our farewell dinner before a late departure back home on our flight from Tel Aviv to Raleigh-Durham. (B)

Exceedingly Abundantly Beyond All We Could Ask Or Imagine

2008-08-16T18:12:00.008-04:00

Ephesians 3:20
(The Message)
God can do anything, you know—far more than you could ever imagine or guess or request in your wildest dreams! He does it not by pushing us around but by working within us, his Spirit deeply and gently within us.

(New International Version)
Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us,

(Amplified Bible)
20Now to Him Who, by (in consequence of) the [action of His] power that is at work within us, is able to [carry out His purpose and] do superabundantly, far over and above all that we [dare] ask or think [infinitely beyond our highest prayers, desires, thoughts, hopes, or dreams]--

(King James Version)
Now unto him that is able to do exceeding abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that worketh in us,

I can't help but be reminded of the passage above today. Jen's parents are in town visiting us for the weekend. For those of you who know us, you know the journey that we've been on in healing in that relationship. Well, we've come an awfully long way over the years, and that can be credited to God doing what really should be characterized as a miracle in our midst. He has healed many wounds and brought us to a level of love, comfort and relationship that even I, the ever-optimistic one, had dismissed as impossible. I have to admit that at the time we got married, I never in my wildest dreams would have imagined us to be doing something as special as visiting the Holy Land together. It's exciting to see what God is going to do in our family through this trip. He has done so much already.

I would encourage everyone reading: if you're in an "impossible" situation, please don't give up. Don't be so faithless as to sell God short. Nothing is too big for him. No heart is too hard, no task too great, no evil too powerful, no will too strong. He can respond to the tiniest heart of faith, the smallest plea. Hang in there, give up control, seek him, follow him. He may not answer immediately, or in the way you want or expect. But he will answer. He will not turn away from a heart that seeks him.

Prepare to be amazed.

Michael Jordan, Nike, Isaiah 1, And Redemption.

2008-08-15T21:20:00.005-04:00

So I was looking at this classic Nike commercial with Michael Jordan this evening...

...and was reminded of the repeated failures of the Nation of Israel in the Old Testament--how they were continually blessed by God, got to see him at work in their midst, yet did not remain faithful. I don't say that with a hint of condemnation, though--moreso in the spirit of identifying with Israel because I can usually be found in that same cycle: receive blessing, fall away, wander into difficult places, receive discipline, receive restoration and acceptance, repent, rinse, repeat.

To my eyes, a great turning point in the Bible occurs in Isaiah 1:

Hear the word of the LORD,
you rulers of Sodom;
listen to the law of our God,
you people of Gomorrah!
"The multitude of your sacrifices—
what are they to me?" says the LORD.
"I have more than enough of burnt offerings,
of rams and the fat of fattened animals;
I have no pleasure
in the blood of bulls and lambs and goats.
When you come to appear before me,
who has asked this of you,
this trampling of my courts?
Stop bringing meaningless offerings!
Your incense is detestable to me.
New Moons, Sabbaths and convocations—
I cannot bear your evil assemblies.
Your New Moon festivals and your appointed feasts
my soul hates.
They have become a burden to me;
I am weary of bearing them.
When you spread out your hands in prayer,
I will hide my eyes from you;
even if you offer many prayers,
I will not listen.
Your hands are full of blood;
wash and make yourselves clean.
Take your evil deeds
out of my sight!
Stop doing wrong,
learn to do right!
Seek justice,
encourage the oppressed.
Defend the cause of the fatherless,
plead the case of the widow.
"Come now, let us reason together,"
says the LORD.
"Though your sins are like scarlet,
they shall be as white as snow;
though they are red as crimson,
they shall be like wool.

Up to this point, Israel had tried and failed, tried and failed, tried and failed. Over and over again their efforts to be a righteous people had come up short. I almost get a sense here of God saying with a bit of a chuckle: "You knuckleheads. You've tried to do it yourselves long enough. Can't you see by now that you need help? Let me do it for you. You need a Savior to get you out of the mess you've made for yourselves." God then lays out much of the plan of redemption through the coming Messiah in the rest of the book of Isaiah.

Thank you, Jesus, for making all of the shots that I've missed over the years, for never failing, for making every game-winning shot, for always hitting the mark. And most of all, for taking my imperfection on you, and transferring your perfection to me. I've failed over, and over, and over again in my life. And that is what makes your redemption so powerful.

Thoughts After A Conversation With An Atheist Friend

2008-08-14T22:45:00.002-04:00

I had a long conversation this evening with a friend who is an atheist. He's a nice guy and a smart guy; he just doesn't believe in any form of deity or creator. Without betraying any trusts by going into details, what was interesting about the conversation is that in part of it he was expressing remorse and guilt over a particular thing he had done. Now, this was an action that would be very easy to justify because of the circumstances involved (trust me, you'd understand if you knew the details), and it didn't really hurt anyone, either (except maybe himself). But he felt guilty nonetheless, because he felt that he had broken a moral code.

Here's my question, though: where does morality come from, if not from God? Who is to say that his action was "wrong" or "immoral," if there is no higher power, no creator, no deity? In the atheistic economy, who defines the standards of morality? Who defines "right" and "wrong?" Why was my friend even concerned that he had done something "wrong?" Who does he answer to (in his worldview, I mean)?

This it not to sound flippant, or critical of my friend (I'd be fine with him reading these thoughts), but I really have no idea how the concept of "guilt" can exist apart from deity declaring a right and a wrong. I'm reminded of the words of Sally Beth Roe, a character who journeys from atheism to faith in Frank Peretti's Piercing The Darkness:

Now, for the wrench in the works, first thrown in this morning: the possibility of guilt as a fact and not just a feeling. If--and I emphasize the word if--there is a fixed standard of right and wrong--a fence, as I've said--then it is possible to be guilty of an offense, all feelings of guilt aside. I can be on the wrong side of the fence and in the wrong no matter how I feel about it...Let's say I rob a bank. That makes me guilty of robbery. Let's say I don't feel guilty about it. If robbery can be established as wrong, then I'm still guilty of robbery, regardless of how I feel

The feeling--or lack of feeling--does not change the fact.

So what's the take-away from this entry? To be honest, I don't really know. Most (all?) of the people reading blog would declare firmly that they believe that there is a deity who defines morality, and that deity is the God of the Bible. So what's the purpose here?

I don't really know, but it's what was on my heart when I sat down to write. Not so much Israel-trip-related or typical "quiet time" type meditative thoughts, but just thoughts after a conversation with a friend.

--Ben

Forrest, Forrest Gump

2008-08-12T21:58:00.002-04:00

"The time is coming," declares the LORD, "when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah. It will not be like the covenant I made with their forefathers when I took them by the hand to lead them out of Egypt, because they broke my covenant, though I was a husband to them, declares the LORD."

Reading this passage about God's relationship with Israel, I can't help but be reminded of two things:

1. My own repeated failures--the times I've broken his covenant even though he has loved me perfectly and completely in spite of myself.

2. Forrest Gump.

OK, I probably should explain the second one, I guess. One of the many things I loved about that movie was Forrest's unwaivering love for Jenny--no matter what she did or didn't do to reciprocate. She ran away to other men, to drugs, to countless other "failures," yet through it all, Forrest was always there for her, always ready to take her back, no questions asked.

Remember this scene?

In a sense, God's love for me doesn't seem "smart." It's not rational. It doesn't make sense. It's crazy. I run away. And he pursues me. I spit in his face. And he pursues me. I pursue false gods. And he pursues me. I indulge my self. And he pursues me. That's insane, at least in our way of looking at things. Yeah, Forrest "got it" when it came to knowing what love is.

And so much more God loves me. I just wish I could really, truly, and honestly take hold of that. I know it intellectually. I've taught it to many. But is it real to me? Sometimes it is, sometimes it isn't. Is it real to you? Do you sense it? Do you live in it and bask in it? If you don't, join with me in asking God for a greater understanding and appreciation of how deep and wide and long and high and vast is the love of Christ--how un-smart and foolish it really is:

18For the message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God. 19For it is written:
"I will destroy the wisdom of the wise;
the intelligence of the intelligent I will frustrate."^[c]

20Where is the wise man? Where is the scholar? Where is the philosopher of this age? Has not God made foolish the wisdom of the world? 21For since in the wisdom of God the world through its wisdom did not know him, God was pleased through the foolishness of what was preached to save those who believe. 22Jews demand miraculous signs and Greeks look for wisdom, 23but we preach Christ crucified: a stumbling block to Jews and foolishness to Gentiles, 24but to those whom God has called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God. 25For the foolishness of God is wiser than man's wisdom, and the weakness of God is stronger than man's strength. (I Corinthians 1:18-25)

Thanks for reading. May we get in touch more and more each day with God's crazy, foolish love for us.

--Ben

T Minus One Month

2008-08-11T21:26:00.004-04:00

If all goes according to plan, one month from today we touch down in Tel Aviv. It is difficult to imagine seeing in person, with my own two eyes, the places that I have read about, pictured, and spoken about for years. I can't picture what it will be like to have the "right" view in my mind's eye. But my I be guarded this trip being just an intellectual exercise or history lesson. I want it to be a heart lesson. I don't need to be informed so much as I need to be transformed. May the sights, sounds, smells, images, and details of the Holy Land draw me closer to God, not just to a greater knowledge.

And really, that should be our goal at all times: not that we would seek to acquire knowledge, but that we would seek to connect with God on a daily basis and let him teach us. Please join me in praying that God will use this in my life and in Jen's to bring the scripture to life in ways beyond that which we've ever seen. It would be too easy to all into the trap of letting this excursion be like a field trip, rather than what it should be: a chance to encounter God more deeply.

Thanks for reading, and praying.

--Ben

One Solitary Life

2008-08-10T22:14:00.003-04:00

Today was a long day and I'm tired and not really up for writing much tonight. However, I was curious this evening about the size of Israel, and I found the comparison map above. I was aware that Israel was a small country, but I was not aware that in square mileage, it would rank between Hawaii (43rd) and Massachusetts (44th) among U.S. states. That size immediately reminded me of the following essay, which I'll leave you with tonight...

He was born in an obscure village
The child of a peasant woman
He grew up in another obscure village
Where he worked in a carpenter shop
Until he was thirty

He never wrote a book
He never held an office
He never went to college
He never visited a big city
He never travelled more than two hundred miles
From the place where he was born
He did none of the things
Usually associated with greatness
He had no credentials but himself

He was only thirty three

His friends ran away
One of them denied him
He was turned over to his enemies
And went through the mockery of a trial
He was nailed to a cross between two thieves
While dying, his executioners gambled for his clothing
The only property he had on earth

When he was dead
He was laid in a borrowed grave
Through the pity of a friend

Nineteen centuries have come and gone
And today Jesus is the central figure of the human race
And the leader of mankind's progress
All the armies that have ever marched
All the navies that have ever sailed
All the parliaments that have ever sat
All the kings that ever reigned put together
Have not affected the life of mankind on earth
As powerfully as that one solitary life

What Does "Isreal" Mean, Anyway?

2008-08-09T21:31:00.004-04:00

Then the man said, "Your name will no longer be Jacob, but Israel, because you have struggled with God..."

If you want to see a study in contrasts, just hand a set of 24 photographs to me, and then to my wife. I am not exaggerating when I estimate that it takes Jen a good 6 minutes (20 seconds per picture) to get through a roll that I would finish in less than a minute. She looks at a picture, notices whether or not it's a good or bad photo of every single individual in it, checks the lighting, the angles, the background, the foreground, and every other aspect you can think of. Me? "Hey, nice picture of Joe, Sally and Fred. Next. Picture of just Joe. Next. Picture of scenery (completely skip that one). Next...."

I'm guessing that, uh, maybe I miss a few details that way. *shurg*

Anyway, given how I normally doing things, it's really neat and different for me to focus on this trip in this way, for this long. It has forced me to stay in one place, examining the same thing from a number of angles. I've looked at a book on the Holy Land, pulled meaning from the trip itinerary, and even wrote for two days about an Israeli folk song, for goodness' sake. So today, I thought I'd find out the meaning of the word "Israel," and see what God might have to say to me through that.

Well, according to Bible Gateway, the word "Israel" means "he struggles with God." Now I'm quite sure that I could fill far more space than I'd care to write (and that you'd care to read) with research and pontification on what the passage in Genesis 32 about Jacob wrestling all night with God means. But frankly, what I'm sensing God speaking to me through that little tidbit is far simpler than that, yet perhaps profound.

Jacob struggled with God, and in so doing, was drawn closer to the heart of God. Do I? Do I struggle with God, or do I just put on a happy, spiritual-looking face? Am I honest with God when I don't understand things. Am I direct with him when things happen around me that don't seem right or just or fair. Do I allow myself to feel frustrated, angry, or impatient with him when it's what I'm really feeling?

To be perfectly honest, the answer to nearly all of those question is "no."

A few days ago, I included in an entry the lyrics from a song I'd written a while back. One line is appropriate for today: "I want to be real with you, but it's just so hard." God, I do want to be real with you. Help me move in my relationship with you from religiosity to realness. I don't really know what it is to struggle with you. Teach me.

--Ben

Independence Day Rant

2008-08-08T21:56:00.005-04:00

Earlier this evening, I was reading a bit in Wikipedia on modern-day Israel, and one line in particular really jumped out to me:

"Since its foundation, Israel's boundaries and even the State's very right to exist have been subject to dispute, especially among its Arab neighbors. "

As an American, I really have no idea what that's like--the thought that there are those out there who believe that my country should not exist at all, that might even question whether or not I have a right to live. I couldn't help but be reminded of one of my favorite scenes from one of my favorite movies...

In "Independence Day," a world under alien attack learns to work together. At one point we even see a scene of Arab and Israeli soldiers camped side by side in the desert, sharing communication tools, joined together under a common bond with a common purpose.

Why isn't the Body Of Christ that way more?

We are under attack. We have an enemy who seeks to kill us, to steal from us, and destroy us. To kill hope, steal joy, destroy life. To kill dreams, steal vision, destroy promise. But instead of uniting under one purpose and one banner to engage the enemy, we remain divided and get caught up in our petty differences. "You don't sing the right songs in church." "You sing the right songs, but they are (take your pick) too traditional/too contemporary." "You don't use enough water to baptize." "You use too much water to baptize." We can agree on, oh, 99% of what we claim to believe, but rather than unite around our commonalities, we choose to divide around our differences. For example, this article, published just a few days ago at CNN.com, talks about why many Americans prefer "segregated Sundays." In the article, Curtiss Paul DeYoung talks about the early church thusly: "People said that if Jews, Greeks, Africans, slaves, men and women - the huge divides of that time period -- could come together successfully, there must be something to this..."

Now there's a guy who gets it. Jesus said that people would know that we're his disciples by the way we love each other. He did NOT say that people would know that we're his disciples by how orthodox our theology is, or by how we raise our hands or don't raise our hands in church, or by how contemporary or traditional our music is, or by how wet we get 'em when we baptize 'em. No--by our love for each other. By our unity. DeYoung said it so well. When people see other people in a community loving each other, taking care of each other, bearing one another's burdens--just being the body of Christ, they'll sit up and take notice and say "I want to be a part of THAT!"

"Everyone will know that you are my disciples because of your love for each other."--John 13:35

"Help carry each other's burdens. In this way you will follow Christ's teachings."--Galatians 6:2

And please don't take my little mini-rant here tonight as being "preachy." That's the last thing I want it to be. I'm as guilty as anyone else of helping foster division within the body over things that are in the end pretty dadgum trivial. I need to learn to major on the majors. God, take me back to a view of the big picture. Sometimes I think I've lost that.

Snoop Dogg, Brooks and Dunn, L'Hitraot, and Commas.

2008-08-07T21:03:00.010-04:00

It is very telling that in Hebrew there is no word for goodbye. Shalom means peace and wholeness and is used as a greeting and a parting word – but it does not mean “hello” or “goodbye.” In Hebrew the word that comes closest to the English goodbye is the Hebrew word l’hitraot and is based on the Hebrew word that means, “to see.” Literally, l’hitraot means “til we see each other again” and expresses a much deeper reality.

--Rabbi Mark Goldfarb, Temple Israel of Long Beach, CA.

If you read yesterday's entry, you know that I focused on two words from an Israeli folk song, "Shalom, Chaverim." Well, there are only three different words used in the song, so this evening Jen asked me why I only focused on two of them and left off "L'Hitraot." The answer is that there was no real reason, other than that because of the song, I just link those two words together. But her question got me at least a bit curious, so I spent a bit of time this evening looking through many of the different tubes on the internets. The quote above really caught my eye, though. (And not just because it came straight outta the L-B-C, fo' shizzle.) In the language of the people whom God chose to bless the world, there are no goodbyes, no endings, but merely stories whose next chapters are waiting to be written. That speaks of a God who is about second chances, one who is not about periods, but about commas.

When I was on staff with YoungLife, we often spoke to adolescents of the scriptures that could have been written with periods, but instead have commas. For the wages of sin is death...COMMA...but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus. All have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God...COMMA...and are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus. We all like sheep have gone astray....COMMA...but the Lord has laid on him the iniquity of us all.

So what about me? What about us? It's clear that we have a God who is not about "goodbye" but about "L'Hitraot," not about periods, but about commas. Do I believe that? Do you believe that? Do we REALLY believe that???

Thank GOD that our stories do not have to end in that lust-filled moment of passion, in that time of willful and continual moral/ethical compromise, in the bottom of that bottle, in the depths of that utter depression and despair, in the stupor of that substance. Our stories don't even have to end in a slow ride in a hearse.* No, friend, no! God, through Jesus, wants to add a big, fat COMMA to each and every moment of lostness, loneliness, hurt, anguish, compromise, lust, anger, frustration, and the like that we experience--even those that we cause and bring on ourselves.

L'Hitraot. 'Til we see each other again. And until we do, may we allow God to add commas to the places in our lives that could end in tragic periods.

--Ben

*--Yes, I managed to reference both Snoop Doggy Dogg and Brooks and Dunn in the same blog entry, and I'm not ashamed to admit that I'm dadgum proud of that. He ain't through with me yet, I suppose. ;-)

Shalom, Chaverim

2008-08-06T21:32:00.004-04:00

Shalom, chaverim,
Shalom, chaverim,
Shalom! Shalom!
L'hitraot, l'hitraot,
Shalom, shalom.

Don't ask me. I have no idea how a tune that originated in the West Bank came to be known by a black man from the East Bank (of the Chattahoochee, that is). I don't recall where I learned it, but I found myself singing it out loud this afternoon after having picked up a book on the Holy Land in which the very first word written was "shalom." Until today, I didn't really know what the title meant.

Shalom: "Shalom (שָׁלוֹם) is a Hebrew word meaning peace, Nothing missing, Nothing broken, wellbeing, and complete,^[1]^[2]^[3] and used to mean hello, and goodbye."

Chaverim: pl. f riends

So that's it, "Peace, friends." Simple words, but powerful ones. Words Jesus spoke shortly before his death, and after his resurrection speak of peace, and of friends.

Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid.--John 14:27

On the evening of that first day of the week, when the disciples were together, with the doors locked for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood among them and said, "Peace be with you!"--John 20:19

Greater love has no one than this, that he lay down his life for his friends. You are my friends if you do what I command. I no longer call you servants, because a servant does not know his master's business. Instead, I have called you friends, for everything that I learned from my Father I have made known to you.--John 15:13-15

But what is peace? The absence of war? A symbol of the hippie movement? Something rappers say at the end of a song? What does it really mean? I wish I knew. To be perfectly honest, I'm not certain that I've ever known true and lasting peace. Contentment? You betcha. Temporary calm? Absolutely. Lack of "noise" in my life due to circumstances? Certainly!

But peace? I'm just not so sure.

I suspect that the lack of "shalom" may be tied to a lack of "chaverim." That's not a "whoa-is-me-I-have-no-friends" kind of statement, either. I know that people like me. I have the respect of many. I have felt loved. But I really, really struggle with allowing myself to be known, despite the fact that I know, in my head, that being known is the key to feeling the true touch of friends.

I want you to know me down to my deepest part.

I want you to understand the cry of my heart.

I want you to feel with me when I’m in great pain.

I want you to be with me in the sunshine and the rain.

I want you to see me. I want to let down my guard.

I want to be real with you, but it’s just so hard.

I want you to laugh with me when laughter’s in my heart.

I want to know what real love is, but I don’t know where to start.

But I want you to…

Look at me! See beyond my disguise.

Hear my confused voice. See my teary eyes.

Feel my pain. Walk a mile in my shoes.

I may look strong but I need love too.

Show me a place where I don’t have to hide

The secret longings of my soul I keep inside.

I want to be true to myself. Whoa, I long to be real,

I want you to know and understand the way I feel.

Yeah I want you to…

Look at me! See beyond my disguise.

Hear my confused voice. See my teary eyes.

Feel my pain. Walk a mile in my shoes.

I may look strong but I need love too.

Let’s walk down lonesome roads, see the dark parts of my soul.

Only when the broken pieces are exposed, can they be made whole.

I want to be touched in the place of my deepest, darkest sore.

I’m sick of these shallow friendships. I need something more.

I want you to cry with me, when tears are in my heart.

I want to know what true love is, and now I know where to start

‘Cause I want you to

Look at me! See beyond my disguise.

Hear my confused voice. See my teary eyes.

Feel my pain. Walk a mile in my shoes.

I may look strong but I need love too.

I need to be touched in the place of my darkest, deepest, most painful sore.

May the preparation, the trip, and the aftermath collectively lead to more peace, more vulnerability, and more life in me. And may all who read this experience the peace and the sense of connection with Jesus that he so desires us to have. Shalom, chaverim.

--Ben

J.R. Ewing, Br'er Rabbit, Jesus, and the Destruction of the One True Ring

2008-08-05T19:20:00.005-04:00

So what do you do when you sit down to write, you promised yourself you'd write every day, but you don't really feel inspired to write?

You write anyway, dadgummit.

I wonder if this feeling is the tiniest glimpse of what Jesus must have felt at the point in his life about which the following words were written:

"As the time approached for him to be taken up to heaven, Jesus resolutely set out for Jerusalem." (Luke 9:51)

"Resolutely." That's how the NIV version puts it. What about a couple of the others?

"he gathered up his courage and steeled himself for the journey to Jerusalem"--The Message

"He steadfastly and determinedly set His face to go to Jerusalem."--amplified Bible

Hmmmm...that seems like a bit of a theme is emerging there. "Gathered up his courage" and "steadfastly and determinedly" don't necessarily sound to me like terms that indicate that he was particularly fired up to be heading to his death in Jerusalem, but that he knew it was his destiny, so he determined that he would "suck it up" and go, regardless of how he felt about it. "Not my will, but yours," he said later on about the Cross.

I was watching an episode of Dallas this afternoon. (If you weren't around in the 80s to see J.R. Ewing scheme and scam his brother, wife, other family members, close friends, casual acquaintances, enemies, and--most of all--ol' Cliff Barnes, then you were missing out, friend.) Anyway, in this particular episode, J.R. was trying to manipulate his hated ex-sister-in-law Pamela Barnes Ewing into going down on a wild goose chase looking for emeralds in the jungles of South America. So in standard Br'er Rabbit fashion, he told her how much he didn't want her to go. As a result, Pam resolutely set out for South America, and J.R. got his way once again. Pam became resolute in her desire to go to South America only because of deception--she had no idea what she was going to face down there. Had she known, she would not have gone under any circumstances. Jesus, on the other hand, was resolute to go to Jerusalem, despite his full and complete knowledge of what he would face there.

I have no real knowledge of what awaits me in Jerusalem, but the circumstances that led me to be going there, combined with the tuggings in my heart of hearts, strongly indicate that I'm supposed to be there--that God has something in store for me there. So may I resolutely set my face there. And along the way, if I learn a little something about doing things I don't feel like doing (like writing in this blog tonight), I reckon that's a good thing, too.

I am too selfish to regularly gravitate toward doing things that I don't feel like doing. May I learn to do them anyway. Perhaps writing in this blog tonight was a step in that direction. I didn't feel like writing. I didn't feel like I'd learned anything worth putting to (virtual) paper in my devotional reading today. But for some reason, God saw fit to see me through to the other side. And in getting a little inspired, looking up a few verses, I actually grabbed hold of some truth that may well draw me closer to the heart of God.

It's a mark of maturity when a kid stops just doing what he wants to do, and starts doing what needs to be done in spite of his feelings about it. I reckon the same is true with regard to maturing spiritually, too. Time to grow up, Ben. Samwise Gamgee didn't feel like carrying Frodo up the slopes of Mount Doom to destroy the Ring, either.

But it needed to be done.

Arise, Ben. Kill and eat.

2008-08-04T18:49:00.006-04:00

As I write this, I'm looking out onto my back patio at hickory smoke rising from my grill. In a short while, I'll be partaking of smoked pork and grilled vegetables. Mmmmmmm. And appropriate, too. I really don't know much about this trip. I should probably explain for the readers how I came to be going on it.

It is being led by the pastor of a church that my wife Jennifer attended while growing up in Greensboro, NC. He no longer pastors a church but he continues to serve in a pastoral role as he leads many community Bible studies around that area. Jen's parents planned to go on the trip, and generously offered to pay the way for one of their children to go with them. Jen and I talked briefly about me going as well, but dismissed the idea fairly quickly due to not having planned financially to take a trip of this magnitude this year.

But then, out of nowhere, God showed up.

And he showed up in one of the most unlikely of places. I've run an online sports computer game message board community for 6+ years--a place to discuss the games you'll never find in retail stores, the ones where there are no little players running around on a field, games about the management aspect of running a sports franchise. (Yes, I am a geek and dadgum proud of it!!!) At any rate, a sizable sports gaming web site approached me with an offer to purchase my site's content--enough of an offer to cover the cost of this trip. However, the trip was full and for one of this magnitude, it was the 11th hour. And I didn't have the vacation time to pull it off. But once again, it was fairly clear that His plan all along was for me to go. The vacation schedule worked itself out, and there were cancellations on the trip. So here I am.

So, back to the smoke rising from my grill and not knowing much about the trip...

I've really barely looked over the itinerary for the trip before now. But sitting here looking at it while watching the smoke rise certainly made me chuckle at the appropriateness. The very first line of the agenda for September 11th is as follows: "We arrive at approximately 9:30 am in Tel-Aviv where we meet our guide, Tony, board our own bus and drive through the Valley of Sharon to Caesarea by the Sea where Peter brought the message of Christ to the Gentiles (Acts 10)." So as I cook my pork, I read that the trip begins in the place where Peter first delivered the message to the swine-eating heathen Gentiles--people like me, in other words. What a delicious (ha, ha) irony!

28He said to them: "You are well aware that it is against our law for a Jew to associate with a Gentile or visit him. But God has shown me that I should not call any man impure or unclean.

I am SO thankful that God chose to associate with people like me: the unclean, the desperate, the searching, the lost, the lonely, the hurting, the outcast, the Gentile. I look forward to seeing the very place where Peter brought that message of hope. Even as I eat this pork tenderloin in a few minutes, may I be reminded of my great need for rescue, and of the One who rescued me.

Thanks for reading.

--Ben

9About noon the following day as they were on their journey and approaching the city, Peter went up on the roof to pray. 10He became hungry and wanted something to eat, and while the meal was being prepared, he fell into a trance. 11He saw heaven opened and something like a large sheet being let down to earth by its four corners. 12It contained all kinds of four-footed animals, as well as reptiles of the earth and birds of the air. 13Then a voice told him, "Get up, Peter. Kill and eat."

14"Surely not, Lord!" Peter replied. "I have never eaten anything impure or unclean."

15The voice spoke to him a second time, "Do not call anything impure that God has made clean."

T Minus 40

2008-08-03T21:49:00.002-04:00

Bethany. Jerusalem. Jericho. The Jordan River. Capernaum. The Sea Of Galilee. The Mount of Olives. Names in an ancient Book. I've long heard those names. I've long been able to tell you some information about them. But until now, I haven't experienced them, but if all goes according to plan, that will change soon.

I don't really know where this blog is heading, or if I'll keep it up. I just know that 40 days hence, on September 11th (heh), the plan is that Jen and I will touch down in Tel Aviv, Israel, and for a little over a week, we'll see the Holy Land close-up for the first time in our lives. (Her parents and others will also be with us.) My goal here is to use this blog to help prepare me for what God has in store for me. But part of me thinks that it's absurd to even begin to write this and to have a goal to write every day. I've never journaled for more than maybe 10 days in a row, and I'm going to do 40??? Ha!

Well anyway, today...

I started a devotional reading today that has 40 days of Lent readings. I thought it appropriate since Lent is intended to be a season of preparation and reflection, since my heart needs to be prepared. One writer called it "a 40 day period to prepare to celebrate Jesus and to let His Death and Resurrection be central in our lives." So today marks the beginning of my 40 day period of preparation to see where Jesus lived, died, ministered, and was resurrected. May the journey lead to His Death and Resurrection becoming more central in my life.

Thanks for joining me on this journey. If I fail miserably at writing (which is a definite possibility here), at least pray for Jen and me, and for her parents, who will also be on the trip with us.

--Ben

T Minus 40

12-week Ultrasound

Day 4 Pictures

Link To More Pictures

Photo Album Links

Masada, Qumran, Floating In The Dead Sea, The Mountain Of Life vs The Mountain Of Death

TUESDAY: Temple Mount, Pool Of Bethesda, Via Doloroso, Israel Musesum, House Of Caiaphas, The Upper Room

The Basic Geography Of The Trip To Date

Palm Sunday Road, Bethphage, Mount Of Olives, Gethsemane, Bethlehem, West Bank....and Armed Soldiers On The Bus

Nazareth, Jericho, West Bank, Jerusalem

Some pictures

Day 3 Recap/Thoughts (Hazor, Dan, Caesarea Philippi, Baptism In The Jordan River)

Day 2 Thoughts...

Day 2 Recap

Quick Recap From First Day

Quick Note From Tiberias

We Leave Tomorrow.

40, Eh?

Psalm 40

For the director of music. Of David. A psalm.

What Do You Get When You Cross A Barnes With A Ewing?

Hanna

Jerusalem

Drowning In A Sea Of Fears

DETOUR: Amazing Grace Movie

Kite Surfing In A Tropical Storm.

The Quiet Mountain

Jesus Walks on the Water

Trash Talk And Tenochtitlan

Elijah on Mount Carmel (From I Kings 18)

Trip Itinerary.

Exceedingly Abundantly Beyond All We Could Ask Or Imagine

Michael Jordan, Nike, Isaiah 1, And Redemption.

Thoughts After A Conversation With An Atheist Friend

Forrest, Forrest Gump

T Minus One Month

One Solitary Life

What Does "Isreal" Mean, Anyway?

Independence Day Rant

Snoop Dogg, Brooks and Dunn, L'Hitraot, and Commas.

Shalom, Chaverim

Show me a place where I don’t have to hide

J.R. Ewing, Br'er Rabbit, Jesus, and the Destruction of the One True Ring

Arise, Ben. Kill and eat.

T Minus 40