February 12: Today we woke up refreshed, and left the beach at Netanya to visit the ruins of an older city up the coast. Caesarea on the Sea was our first stop, and it was powerful experience. It was a place that King Herod ruled, and where Paul was held prisoner for a couple years before being taken to Rome. We got to stand right on the spot where Paul made his arguments to Agrippa concerning his faith in Acts 26. There’s something special when you can visualize the space in which the Bible stories unfolded. When you look around and see the contour of Herod’s palace by the ocean, or the breakwaters that were part of the old harbor, or sit in the theatre overlooking the Mediterranean – your imagination runs wild for what this city was like when 1000 ships a day were coming into the harbor.
After Caesarea, we travelled about 40 miles inland and found out where the word Armageddon comes from. In Revelation, it is prophesied that the battle for the end times will occur at Har Meggido. We travelled inland to see the ruins on this small mountain which overlooks the Jezreel Valley. Many rulers built forts here, and the archaeological record is rife with layers of history. King Solomon had 500 horses stationed here with some men always on hand because the vantage point in every direction was so good. We learned a lot about roads, and why civilizations chose certain locations to build strongholds – and why this region of Israel has been fought over for four thousand plus years. It’s basically the connector of four continents, and has access to the ocean. From an economy standpoint, what more could a ruler want?
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It was a long couple days of travel for 37 excited and tired adventurers who finally linked up at Tel Aviv International Airport. Some in the group have taken prior trips with Church of the Resurrection and Shoresh Tours, but many of us on this trip are here for the first time.
Once the last flight came in, and we had gathered everyone together, we got on the Shoresh Bus to leave Tel Aviv and go to our hotel in Netanya. Israel from the viewpoint of Tel Aviv doesn’t look much different from the United States. You see malls and recognizable signs like ‘Toys-R-Us’ and ‘Ikea’. But Tel Aviv is known to have more of a secular feel than some of the sites we are scheduled to see tomorrow. After getting a great meal at the hotel, we broke into groups that we will remain in for the duration of the trip, and discussed our schedule tomorrow. We’ll see Caesarea, Mount Carmel, Sipphoris, Nazareth, and Galilee. Everyone’s excited about getting started bright and early tomorrow, but we’re all looking forward to getting a good night’s sleep tonight too. Please keep our group in your prayers as we experience the homeland of our Lord and Savior. Pray for stamina and health, especially as our bodies acclimate to a dryer climate as we tour many Biblical sites. Pray that we encounter Jesus, in a way that will speak specifically to our individual hearts. Our church's fifth trip to Israel departs this evening and the excitement is building among our 37 travelers. The group looks forward with great anticipation to how the Lord will be revealing himself to us and through us during the next two weeks. We ask for your prayers for the participants as we embark on this amazing journey in the following areas:
Be sure and check back here often throughout the next two weeks to follow along with our group and read about the work that God is doing on and through this trip to Israel! |