To obey, to act, to devote oneself entirely

The Bible comes to life in Israel. Never can you read the story of David and Goliath or the story of Samson the same way after seeing with your own eyes the places these events occurred.

Our wonderful and knowledgeable tour guide has in his own way taught us a bit about the scriptures through his actions. I imagine following him could have been like following a rabbi in Jesus’ day. When Yehuda says “Let’s go, please,” don’t let that last word fool you, because—whether or not you come—he’s moving. There’s no lagging. We move because there is much to see in such a small land.

At the beginning of our morning—first thought of our trip—Pastor Steve challenges us to remember why we came on this trip.

We choose to come to know more about Israel but also to realize who walked this land, this faith, before us. This time in Israel allows us to see the blessing of the Lord firsthand as long as we aren’t distracted. We must remember to be focused and wise.

Pastor Steve also quoted a rabbi from a previous trip to Israel who said “To a Jew, wisdom was what you did, not what you knew.” And in reviewing one of our required Bible readings (from Deuteronomy), there is the concept that “Hear, O Israel” (or Shema, Yisrael) was not just to “hear” but to obey, to act, to devote oneself entirely.

We observed many things today about Israel. Here is one: The places we visited today were unexpectedly green and lush. Yehuda informed us that two million trees are planted in Israel each year and 1.2 million are planted in one week’s time. Every child in Israel plants at least two trees that week. This truly is a beautiful land, a land of promise. As Rev Bob Ely gave the devotion about Samson at Bet Shemesh this morning, my heart yearned for a peaceful and prosperous Israel. Brother Ely gave a moving word about the life of Samson and at the end he reminded us of the God of second chances. Samson’s destiny was still inside of him even after his failures. And I believe the land and people of Israel have as much promise today as they did when God called Abraham to “Go to the land I show you.” Pray with me for Israel—for peace, for prosperity, and for God’s presence to be as alive today as in the days of Abraham, Moses and Jesus. Pray that the presentness of God today would not be overshadowed by the historical surroundings.

Isaiah 43:18-19 says
““Do not remember the former things, Nor consider the things of old. Behold, I will do a new thing, Now it shall spring forth; Shall you not know it? I will even make a road in the wilderness And rivers in the desert.”
Isaiah 43:18-19 NKJV

When I read this passage from Isaiah and think of all the history in this land, I’m reminded of an archaeological term we have been studying and have finally seen with our own eyes today. That term is tel. A tel is a large hill with a flat top that is made of multiple civilizations piled on top of each other. One city would be destroyed and another civilization would build directly on top of the destroyed town until you had the large hill you can see today. “Do not remember the former things; I will do something new!”

At Bet Shemesh, we saw the excavated remains of one location that had two different time periods of Canaanite settlement and an Israelite settlement from biblical times. It is absolutely fascinating to see the things of old in front of your eyes as they have been told to you or as you have read your entire life. Pastor Steve spoke to us while we overlooked The Valley of Elah, where David defeated Goliath, saying, it is good to have testimony from those who have gone before you, but in times of great challenge it is when you can recall your own personal testimonies of how God is the God of (——insert your name——) and not just the God of your family member or mentor or pastor. When you can say “I killed the lion and the bear,” you can trust that God will deliver the “uncircumcised Philistine” into your hands like He had before.

God is doing a NEW thing. Whether you have failure behind you or great success, you have a choice: choose this day whom you will serve/obey/follow—today. When we choose, we are not just choosing which religion to which we want to be affiliated. We are choosing who we will serve. Servitude involves action, obedience, putting the Master’s plans above your own—or rather, making the Master’s plans your own.

Today was life changing. We could write so much more!

Shalom and Erev Tov from The Dead Sea.

Written by Teresa and Keisha