Day 04 - Lessons from the Desert: Masada, Ein Gedi, Qumran

We started our morning with a devotional on the beach of the Dead Sea. The chorus of “it is well with my soul” resonated with the tranquil water and pastel colors in front of us. After we sang, our attention to was brought to the reality of the Dead Sea, for all its external beauty, internally it is dead. We left with the challenge to not be stagnant in our lives before God, to receive and give, grow and change. Avoid beauty without life.

From the Dead Sea we traveled to Masada, a high vacation fortress built by Herod and location of the final stand of the great Jewish revolt. Walking the heights of this fortress we saw the wonders of ancient innovation both Roman and Jewish. Before we departed, our guide recounted the story of the siege of Masada and the fate the last Jewish rebels holding out inside. It was somber and powerful moment. There was felt sense of honor, purpose, and sacrifice at Masada, but it was another place marked by death and not life.

These first two places made our third and fourth more significant. From Masada moved to the springs of Engedi, springs of living water. Here there was life. Life that has sustained all that relied on it for thousands of years. Here miles and miles of rocky tan deserts are invaded green plants, blue waters, and the motion and sounds of life. It was a welcome reminder that the life we have in God not only can survive, but flourish in even the hardest seasons.

Lastly, we visited the site where the Dead Sea scrolls were found, scrolls that illustrate the timeless nature of Gods word and how he has protected and preserved it throughout history.

We saw and heard a lot today, but the only things we could talk about in the present tense, the only things that lasted was the Word of God and the life of God within us. Like everyone in the stories we’ve heard today, we get to choose whether to orient our lives around what is passing or what is lasting.