Moving Toward the Promise Land

Jennifer led us this morning with Psalm 8 as we gathered near the buses.

“Lord, our Lord, how majestic is your name in all the earth!
You have set your glory in the heavens.
Through the praise of children and infants
You have established a stronghold against your enemies,
To silence the foe and the avenger.
When I consider your heavens, the work of your fingers,
The moon and the stars, which you have set in place,
What is mankind that you are mindful of them,
Human beings that you care for them?
You have made them a little lower than the angels
And crowned them with glory and honor...”

This Psalm had been on my mind from the night before as we had seen an dazzling array of stars from the Wadi Rum desert. Jennifer then expressed gratitude for everything God had done in our individual lives as well as to get us to this point in the trip. We all prayed together and gave thanks, then headed on our way toward Madaba, Jordan.

Our first stop was a delightful shop called “Tree of Life Mosaics and Handcrafts.” Mosaic art is the signature style of the city of Madaba. At this particular shop, the artwork is hand-crafted by individuals with a disability. The large shop held a vast array of every size and style mosaic you could imagine from magnets to large tables! They also sold carpets and jewelry. The design they are known for is, fittingly, the “Tree of Life” which depicts a pomegranate tree with animals below. My particular favorite were the ostrich eggs with “micro-mosaic” designs, done by hand with a tool the size of a needle!

We then made our way to Mount Nebo. In case you are unfamiliar with the location, Mount Nebo was the place where God led Moses to see the Promise Land, even though he was not permitted to enter it. Deuteronomy 34 says, “Then Moses climbed Mount Nebo… there the Lord showed him the whole land – from Gilead to Dan, all of Naphtali, the territory of Ephraim and Manasseh, all the land of Judah as far as the Mediterranean Sea, the Negev and the whole region from the Valley of Jericho, the City of Palms, as far as Zoar. Then the Lord said to him, ‘This is the land I promised on oath to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob when I said, “I will give it to your descendants.” I have let you see it with your eyes, but you will not cross over into it.’” Jonathan led a sharing time with this passage, reminding us that there is “pain in the promise.” Even though Moses’ feet would not touch the land of Canaan, God was still faithful. He not only knows our pain and suffering, but walks with us through every moment of it, even before He uses it for good. Our group took some individual time to mediate and pray at this very special site.

Here at Mt. Nebo there is a church, a monument to Moses built atop the ruins of a 5th century Byzantine church. We had the opportunity to walk through it and see some stunning mosaics which were recovered from various periods of the church.

A serpentine path down the mountain gave our buses a captivating view of the sun setting over the Dead Sea. We checked into the Ramada Deas Sea Resort and had a delicious buffet dinner.

“Lord, our Lord, how majestic is your name in all the earth! “