Close to the water

Our morning began with a beautiful view of the Dead Sea. We arrived to this area last night so we were not able to get a good view until today. We hopped on the bus in the morning and traveled to the Wilderness of Zin. On the way, our tour guide, Ronen, showed us the different types of deserts. One of the types is tzeeya (like 'see ya', that's my attempt to spell it). We saw this in the Wilderness of Zin and this type is one in which a water source can be found within a day's journey (considered to be 22-26 miles). We did find a water source and there were trees growing near it and other plants. We stopped there and reflected on Psalm 1. In verse 3 it describes a righteous man: "That person is like a tree planted by streams of water, which yields its fruit in season and whose leaf does not wither-- whatever they do prospers". As we read this, we also watched our environment. An observation I heard from a person in our group was that there is less vegetation further from the water, it is drier. It was a great comparison of our relationship with the Lord. When we are abiding in Him, we are those trees close to the water.

Once we finished there, we made the steep climb up to the top. At the top we were soon greeted with a herd?/pack? ...group of camels and went for a camel ride!

Fast forward and we made it back to the Dead Sea, where we found out what it felt like to be a human buoy. This trip keeps getting better and better, and I'm so enjoying matching the stories in the Bible to these sites we visit. It makes it so real in my mind and encourages and increases my faith.

Emily Bonefant