Day 02 - Negev: Makhtesh Ramon, Ein Avdat, Camel Ride, Bedouin Hospitality, Dead Sea

Our day began on the shores of the Dead Sea. Josh led us through a devotional on Psalm 23. Such a great challenge for us to continually remember God is enough and he is our ultimate satisfaction. He provides for us, he sustains us, he restores us, he leads us…ah, The Perfect Shepherd!

Shortly after we journeyed to Wadi Argot near the region of En Gedi. After a long, hot fairly grueling hike following a winding path, we ended up at a beautiful spot with a waterfall…water from the rock. It was beautiful to see a stream like this in the desert region. At this place, we quickly visited two Bible stories. The first involved David and Saul. David often hid in the region of En Gedi when Saul was pursuing Him to kill him. There is one such story where David had ample opportunity to take matters into his own hand and take his position as king by killing Saul, but he stayed his hand and used his influence to keep his companions at bay (1 Samuel 23:16-24:22). The other story featured Jesus at the temple on the last day of the feast of booths crying out in a loud voice, “If anyone thirsts, let him come to me and drink.” (John 7). Jesus continues to share this message that HE IS LIVING WATER!

We hopped on the bus after the hike and journeyed to a park for lunch. We had a nice break enjoying a bite to eat and some shade in the desert.

Shortly after we journeyed to the last stop for the day…Qumran, the place where the Dead Sea Scrolls were discovered. This particular biblical site has had a recent major impact on the scholarship of our time because the scrolls discovered here were older manuscripts than any previously discovered but complexly consistent. Thanks to a shepherd in the region who was throwing rocks into a nearby cave we now have the Dead Sea Scrolls. God preserves His word! A group called the Essenes lived in this region. They were zealous for God and zealous for God’s word. They carefully and meticulously copied the manuscripts preserving the “very words of God” for the future generations. Though they missed opportunities to be gospel influencers because they separated themselves from all others, God used them lightly in His story.

It was a Big, Big Day!!! For tomorrow, we know will see a different region of Israel and we are all eager to see what God has in store.