Day 2 – An Amazing Way to Start Sep 19
We have made aliyah safely and have begun our trek of the promised land. All of our flights were uneventful and no bags were lost. Travel went very well, but was ,of course, very long.
Off of the plane and on to Gezer for our first hike and faith lessons of the trip. We learned of silent standing stones, with a story long forgotten. Peter calls us to be living stones, such that the stories we tell are stories of G-d’s amazing work for us and through us.
Day two began at Tel Tzorah, birth and burial place of an peculiar hero. Samson’s violence and insolence led him to take advantage of hos anointing and wreak havoc on the countryside of the Soreq Valley. However, after a life of sin and abandonment of the anointing of G-d, Samson lets out one final faithful prayer. And G-d answers in an amazing way.
Next we travel to Azekah. This tel overlooks Socoh and the valley of Elah. We hear a story of a shepherd boy, again given G-d’s anointing. he carries this promise in his mind as he faces the giant champion of the Plishtim, the personification of evil itself, Goliath. All he has to do to make the uncircumcised monster fall on his face to G-d, with his very word on his forehead, is the same thing he does every day. He throws his stone.
The afternoon begins in Maresha. This is a Hellenist ruin in the midst of the shephalah, birthplace of Herod the Great. In Maresha, we find an olive press, or gat shemanin. We learn of the process of squeezing oil from the fruit and the striking similarity to the story of Jesus’ last night.
For the last faith lesson of the day, we head to Lachish. This was the last fortified city before reaching Jerusalem for any invading army. In particular, Sennacharib laid siege to and absolutely destroyed thos place. His violence is disgusting. However, upon reaching Jerusalem and insulting it’s people and especially their G-d. Sennacharib wakes to find his army of 185,000 all dead. A faithful response from King Hezekiah saves Israel.
This day was the first full day of our journey and an amazing way to start. We look forward now to our time in the desert, the land that belongs fully to G-d alone, and pray that we may come to know and rely solely on him for our sustenance and safety.
—Ryan Jacobson
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