Living Stones

We enjoyed our first full day of touring. I am amazed that we are able to get so many sites in each day.

We packed up our bags and headed to the Sea of Galilee. That’s our final stop for the night. On the way we took a bus tour through Tel Aviv. We also enjoyed a devotion on the bus about why we should love Israel. The first is because God loves Israel. Then because of the promise of the land, God’s land, in Genesis 15. Rabbi Heschel said, “To abandon the land would be to repudiate the Bible.” And last, because God’s presence is in Jerusalem. It was a great reminder as we set off for the day.

Driving through Tel Aviv, our guide pointed out all of the awnings. This is because it’s so hot in the city. It’s hard to imagine that 100 years ago much of where we were driving was sand. Now it’s as metropolitan as New York City. We learned that in Ezekiel Tel Abib is mentioned. Our guide said that is actually Tel Aviv where the Jews were deported.

We made our way to Caesarea Maritime. Caesarea is absolutely gorgeous. The sky is blue, the sea is blue and green with the crashing waves of the Mediterranean Sea, and it all stands out with the sand color on the shore. It’s no wonder Harod loved this place.  After watching a video on the history of Caesarea we went to the amphitheater. Reading from Acts 10 we learned that because Peter obeyed God, the Gospel was brought to the Gentiles! The stones here at Caesarea are dead but we as believers are living stones. We have the duty and privilege to come back as possessors of the Gospel.

Our guide explained that Caesarea is where they had lots of games and theater. They were able to desensitize the people that way. He drew a parallel to our culture today. He also pointed out that this was where Paul stood before Agrippa in Acts 25.

We visited the beautiful Roman Aqueduct a few miles aways. Wish we could’ve stayed longer but we had too many stops! I have a feeling I’m going to feel this way the whole trip. I’m understanding why people visit Israel multiple times.

We stopped for lunch at a great restaurant and enjoyed falafel and schnitzel. Many of us ate outside. It’s warm with clear skies today.

Next stop: Mount Carmel. We heard from 1 Kings 18, one of my favorite Bible stories! The story of Elijah displays the awesome work of God and it happened right here! Our guide mentioned that he believes 1 Kings was written by a priest because of the details a priest would know is written in the text. The mountain has a wonderful view that makes it feel you can see all of Israel. You can see the Valley of Jezreel and Nazareth in the distance.

We stopped at Tel Megiddo next. This high point is where the nations will gather and Messiah will strike them. We learned from Revelation 16 and Zechariah 12 about what will take place here. Nazareth was pointed out in the distance and Jim, our director, mentioned that Jesus could see Tel Megiddo growing up and probably thought often of His future there.

Archaeologist have found 25 layers under Tel Megiddo. That means it was captured 25 times and it was actually abandoned for 500 years when John wrote Revelation. We also learned that this is where King Josiah brought his army to protect against the Egyptians and where he died.

Some of us braved the 190 steps to see the water tunnel built underground. It’s mind-blowing to think of people carving the tunnels out with hammers and picks thousands of years ago! It’s a steep descent and ascent - which was hard for those of us who are afraid of heights but we did it!

Our next stop was our final stop - our beautiful hotel on the Sea of Galilee! It was pointed out as we drove, 50 years ago up above, in the Golan Heights the Syrians were in those hills shooting down on the very road we were on! It was quite sobering to imagine the danger people were in.

The Sea of Galilee (it’s actually a large lake) and the hills around it were very clear tonight. Many of us stood on our balcony taking pictures of the sunset and FaceTiming friends and family to show off the view. It was spectacular!