Israel Study Tour - Joshua Wilderness Institute

April 22 - May 4, 2014

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Compromise, Forgiveness, and Victory!

Shalom! Today was our first day exploring the rich country of Israel! After a delicious and healthy Israeli breakfast, which included 15 inch long bagels and other bizarre treats, we headed out to the Soreq Valley and Beth Shemesh to see the place of Samson’s roots, as well as an old cistern where water was kept. While in the cool cistern we talked about the differences between stagnant cistern water and living water (“Mayim Kayim”) and how God was frustrated with His people for trying to provide for their own by digging out their own cisterns, rather than relying on God’s promised provision (referenced in Jeremiah). Afterwards, we hiked up quite a ways to get to a viewpoint overlooking Azekah in the Elah valley where David defeated Goliath! We read through 1 Samuel together and listened to Dave speak about the victory of the Israelites over the Philistines through God’s use of David and his boldness. We talked about some of the numbers and measurements associated with Goliath, which was interesting because him and his battle armor are all assumed to weigh somewhere starting with a 6. It was crazy getting to observe the rich, full, green land below us and imagining the impact that Goliath would’ve made stomping around terrorizing the Israelites with his large size and massive pride. We got to imagine the Philistine and Israelite encampment and envision the battle taking place. We even got to pick our own stones from the same stream David collected his!

Beth Shemesh

A border city between Judah and Dan, Beth Shemesh was given to the Levites. Beth Shemesh was the most important Israelite city in the Sorek Valley as it watched both east-west traffic through the Sorek Valley and north-south traffic along the “Diagonal Route.” Recent excavations have shown a thriving city here from the Middle Bronze Age through the Iron II period.

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Afterwards we drove to Maresha, which is a place where many underground caves and basements have been excavated within the last few decades, and are still digging because there are many more that have yet to be found! It’s crazy to think that there’s a large possibility that we could be walking around town above old cisterns, homes and city gathering places.

Beth Guvrin (Maresha)

Beit Guvrin-Maresha National Park is a national park in central Israel, 13 kilometers from Kiryat Gat, encompassing the ruins of Maresha, one of the important towns of Judah during the time of the First Temple,[1] and Beit Guvrin, an important town in the Roman era, when it was known as Eleutheropolis.

Archaeological artifacts unearthed at the site include a large Jewish cemetery, a Roman-Byzantine amphitheater, a Byzantine church, public baths, mosaics and burial caves.

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“Something I’ve taken away from the sites we’ve seen today is how forgiving our God is. Samson had compromised his actions so much during his life that at the end when his secret was finally revealed ‘he didn’t even realize he lost The Lord’ (Judges 13-16). This is so sad to me…the fact that someone could justify their actions and compromise with the world so much that they don’t even realize how far lost they’ve become. It’s so easy to become trapped in my head fixing my eyes on what kind of success story I want for myself, as well as what I think the world wants of me, that I can easily lose sight of God. I never want that! Those are not my intentions, but good news is that God already knows my wandering heart and He constantly forgives me when I disobey Him. After this trip I’ll always remember the dirt and rubble of this humble land because it’s where God reminds His people to fixate their eyes on Him.” –Evie Cheek

 

“It was sweet for me to pay attention to the fact that through each and every one of Israel’s unlikely victories, it was God who ultimately brought them through. God alone is worthy of the glory and praise. The Israelites were entering into a foreign land where nothing was theirs to begin with, a land where only through God’s provision can a people group survive. I loved getting to hear from our tour guide Ronan, how this land has been planted with trees by the generations of the past. Ronan’s grandfather was among many who chose to plant trees not for themselves, but for the generations to follow. The selflessness behind an act like that really challenged me to ponder how I am going to impact this world for the benefit of my children and even my grandchildren. This is just one of many lessons that I know I’m going to glean from during this trip. Spending an entire year getting to learn about this holy country and now finally getting to explore it for the next ten days is just one of countless blessings we get as Joshua students. Every day, God is giving me new reasons to be thankful. I am restless to experience all that He has in store for us on this trip.” – Levi Dulay

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