Full and Overflowing

“...that you may be filled with all the fullness of God.” Ephesians 3:19b

Thursday in Israel began with a gondola ride up to the top of a plateau overlooking the Dead Sea where Herod the Great built Masada in 31BC. The fortress now lies in ruins, but the base of most of the structure remains in tact and outlines Herod’s royal palace and Roman-style bathhouse. Herod lived in opulence enjoying two palaces on this site and it remained a Jewish palace until the Romans overthrew Jerusalem and her surrounding land in 70AD. Josephus recounts a tale of 960 Jewish rebels who reclaimed Masada from the Romans only to be met with Roman backlash. The rebels committed suicide rather than be taken as slaves by the Romans when they besieged the fortress in 74AD. After walking down the opposite side of the cliff, we got back on the bus and traveled to a Bedouin re-enactment camp. We were treated to a 30-minute camel ride. We hopped on, two to a camel, while the camel was sitting. Things get exciting when the camel has to stand. You hear a sort of barking, growling, Wookie sound and then the camel stands up. I think we only traveled about a quarter of a mile in the half hour we were riding. I can’t imagine having a camel as my regular mode of transportation; the slow and bumpy gate made me especially thankful for the speedy, smooth ride of my VW Jetta. But then, we were tethered in groups of five, being led by a walking Bedouin youth. So it’s safe to assume we didn’t really push our camels to the limit. Camels are beautiful creatures and riding on one is something I’ll never forget.

After the camel ride, we were treated to Bedouin hospitality at a re-enactment camp where Yehuda, our very learned tour guide, taught us about the rules of the Bedouin tent. The tent is divided into two sections. If a guest wants to enter, he must stand outside and clear his throat (as a signal) until the male goes out and brings him inside. The woman must stay on the other side of the tent and slide food under the sheet that divides the two rooms for her husband and guest. There are three cups of coffee the Bedouin will then offer his guest. The first is to welcome his guest to his tent, the second is a cup of pleasure that means the owner is pleased to have the guest and hopes the guest enjoys being there, and the third is a promise to keep the guest safe. The Bedouin will not ask his guest questions until the third day. After that he’ll want to know why his guest is there. If he doesn’t like his guest’s answer, the Bedouin will likely fill his guest’s coffee to the brim which means: it’s time for you to leave!

Pastor Bill Foote of Grace Springs Bible Church recounted Genesis 18 for us as he encouraged us to have a heart that is fully obedient to Christ so that we can be fully in fellowship with Christ. We then enjoyed a nice lunch before driving over to Tel Arad where we saw an early Canaanite city- with walls, cistern, and gates- dating back to 5500-4750BC. Centuries later, and higher up, the Israelis built a military center that doubled as a place of sacrifice for idols. It was one of the many structures destroyed by Hezekiah when he worked to turn Israel back to God and away from idolatry.

It was then back to our hotel which is situated on the Dead Sea for a devotion from Pastor Rob, worship songs with Brooke, and a lot of floating on the Dead Sea. Everyone who went out was amazed that they could instantly float in the dense water. The “rocks” that you step on as you wade out further from the shore are actually balls of salt and the water itself feels more like olive oil than water. What an incredible (and in some cases burning) experience! How excited we are to travel on to Galilee as we approach Day 3 of the tour!