Monday, April 30, 2012
Wow....
Today we traveled North from Tel Aviv visiting Caesarea. This is an excavated site that sits on the shore line. A beautiful amphitheater with seating for up to 5000 and faces the Mediterranean Sea. The acoustics were incredible. David Moore and Carolyn Chapman sang "How great Thou art". It was a beautiful offering. Tour groups from different countries applauded their performance.
Caesarea was where Herod Agrippa I was eaten by worms after allowing his subjects to praise him as a god. 'On the appointed day Herod, wearing his royal robes, sat on his throne and delivered a public address to the people. They shouted,"This is the voice of a god, not of a man." Immediately, because Herod did not give praise to God, an angel of the Lord struck him down, and he was eaten by worms and died.' (Acts 12:19-23) We saw the exact location this happened in the Theater.
Caesarea is an important site in Christian history. It was the place where Pontius Pilate governed during the time of Jesus. This was where Peter converted Cornelius, a Roman, the first non-Jew to believe in Jesus. Paul was also a prisoner for two years in Caesarea.
We left these beautiful ruins and headed North for Mt. Carmel, only miles from Lebanon, just west of the Golan Heights. We visited Mt. Carmel, a place of significant old testament history. On top of the Mountain is the Carmelite monastery where there is a statue representing the Lord's victory through Elijah over the prophets of Baal. From the top of the monastery, you can look out over the valley of Armageddon. The guide referred to this valley as "God's Playing Ground". From this view, you could see Nazareth. A really awesome view.
Nazareth was interesting. As we entered The Nazareth Church of the Annunciation, I heard a loud speaker over the entire town....It was Islamic Prayer hour. This was surreal to hear. This church was beautiful and the cave which is purported to be the home of Mary and Joseph reminded me of primitive cave like dwelling.
We visited Megidda, an ancient strategic fort along the Via Maris (Road to the Sea) This site dated back to King Solomon.
Our last stop was at Cana of Galilee. Elizabeth & I recommitted our marriage to each other at the reported site that Jesus turned water into wine. Twenty three years earlier, I committed my life to liz, now twenty three years later, I am more in love and more committed.
One of the notes that I took today made me think of Bonnie Logan & Jennifer Fogle at Salem Pregnancy Care Center in Winston Salem. The word "womb" in Hebrew...Rehem means mercy. The bible, when using the original language, gives new meaning to so many things.
We are now located on the Sea of Galilee in Tiberas. It is dark now and we can look across the water at the lights of Jordan.
What a day..........
Caesarea was where Herod Agrippa I was eaten by worms after allowing his subjects to praise him as a god. 'On the appointed day Herod, wearing his royal robes, sat on his throne and delivered a public address to the people. They shouted,"This is the voice of a god, not of a man." Immediately, because Herod did not give praise to God, an angel of the Lord struck him down, and he was eaten by worms and died.' (Acts 12:19-23) We saw the exact location this happened in the Theater.
Caesarea is an important site in Christian history. It was the place where Pontius Pilate governed during the time of Jesus. This was where Peter converted Cornelius, a Roman, the first non-Jew to believe in Jesus. Paul was also a prisoner for two years in Caesarea.
We left these beautiful ruins and headed North for Mt. Carmel, only miles from Lebanon, just west of the Golan Heights. We visited Mt. Carmel, a place of significant old testament history. On top of the Mountain is the Carmelite monastery where there is a statue representing the Lord's victory through Elijah over the prophets of Baal. From the top of the monastery, you can look out over the valley of Armageddon. The guide referred to this valley as "God's Playing Ground". From this view, you could see Nazareth. A really awesome view.
Nazareth was interesting. As we entered The Nazareth Church of the Annunciation, I heard a loud speaker over the entire town....It was Islamic Prayer hour. This was surreal to hear. This church was beautiful and the cave which is purported to be the home of Mary and Joseph reminded me of primitive cave like dwelling.
We visited Megidda, an ancient strategic fort along the Via Maris (Road to the Sea) This site dated back to King Solomon.
Our last stop was at Cana of Galilee. Elizabeth & I recommitted our marriage to each other at the reported site that Jesus turned water into wine. Twenty three years earlier, I committed my life to liz, now twenty three years later, I am more in love and more committed.
One of the notes that I took today made me think of Bonnie Logan & Jennifer Fogle at Salem Pregnancy Care Center in Winston Salem. The word "womb" in Hebrew...Rehem means mercy. The bible, when using the original language, gives new meaning to so many things.
We are now located on the Sea of Galilee in Tiberas. It is dark now and we can look across the water at the lights of Jordan.
What a day..........
Sunday, April 29, 2012
Leaving Joffa
It's early morning is Joffa. I've been up since 4. I have already Skyped Ashton(daughter), Lewis (son),mom, dad, Todd (brother), Lee and Melissa Rollins and Mackie McDaniel. This is what happens when your internal clock says good morning but the world you're in says good night.
We had a great breakfast. We are leaving the Mediterian coastline and heading for Tiberias which is by the Sea of Galilee.
We had a great breakfast. We are leaving the Mediterian coastline and heading for Tiberias which is by the Sea of Galilee.
Day One, We have entered the Holy Land
We arrived in Tel Aviv after an eventless flight. Thanks to Ambien, we both got ample rest. On the descent, we were able to see the boats in the Mediterranean Sea. In customs, we saw Orthodox Jews with their hair locks and black rimmed hats.
The weather was 75 degrees. As we entered the tour bus, Gary Chapman prayed for our tour and also prayed for those back home that were probably entering worship at 930 - 1000 EST.
Our tour began immediately with our guide Saliba, who speaks english, but whose native tongues is Aramaic, which is the language Jesus spoke.
Our first stop was Joppa. The Architecture was what I expected. Beautiful stone buildings overlooking the the port. Joppa has some very significant biblical history. In the time of Joshua, it was known as Japho. It was part of the original inheritance of the tribe of Dan (Joshua 19:46). In Solomon's time, Joppa became a chief seaport (II Chronicles 2:16). More notably, Joffa is the town where Jonah, trying to escape God's will, boarded a ship for Tarshish (Jonah 1:3)- not a good idea. In the New Testament, Dorcas (Acts 9:36) lived in this seaside town. Peter came to Joppa and stayed at Simon the tanner (Act 9:43). It was here that peter, while praying on the housetop, received a vision of the great sheets containing all kinds of animals. This was the official entrance of Gentiles into God's family.
Our tour guide was truly awesome today. Every turn we would make, there would be some factoid of the Christian faith. He shared with us about the 5th Gospel. Im sure you bible students are scratching your head like I was. Saliba said that this land and its geology is the 5th gospel. Seeing the places written about in the testaments, he's right!!! This area is a validation to scripture.
We walked the boardwalk of Joppa and ended up dinner and watching the sun fading slowly into the west over the Med. What a sunset! For supper, my favorite was the hummus and the roast peppers!!
We have some serious jet lag going on so I will cut it short tonight! Attached you'll find see Dr. Gary Chapman guiding our group with God's word pointing out all the "Joppa" points in the word. Also, our a photo of Liz and I in front of the Mediterranean Sea.
The weather was 75 degrees. As we entered the tour bus, Gary Chapman prayed for our tour and also prayed for those back home that were probably entering worship at 930 - 1000 EST.
Our tour began immediately with our guide Saliba, who speaks english, but whose native tongues is Aramaic, which is the language Jesus spoke.
Our first stop was Joppa. The Architecture was what I expected. Beautiful stone buildings overlooking the the port. Joppa has some very significant biblical history. In the time of Joshua, it was known as Japho. It was part of the original inheritance of the tribe of Dan (Joshua 19:46). In Solomon's time, Joppa became a chief seaport (II Chronicles 2:16). More notably, Joffa is the town where Jonah, trying to escape God's will, boarded a ship for Tarshish (Jonah 1:3)- not a good idea. In the New Testament, Dorcas (Acts 9:36) lived in this seaside town. Peter came to Joppa and stayed at Simon the tanner (Act 9:43). It was here that peter, while praying on the housetop, received a vision of the great sheets containing all kinds of animals. This was the official entrance of Gentiles into God's family.
Our tour guide was truly awesome today. Every turn we would make, there would be some factoid of the Christian faith. He shared with us about the 5th Gospel. Im sure you bible students are scratching your head like I was. Saliba said that this land and its geology is the 5th gospel. Seeing the places written about in the testaments, he's right!!! This area is a validation to scripture.
We walked the boardwalk of Joppa and ended up dinner and watching the sun fading slowly into the west over the Med. What a sunset! For supper, my favorite was the hummus and the roast peppers!!
We have some serious jet lag going on so I will cut it short tonight! Attached you'll find see Dr. Gary Chapman guiding our group with God's word pointing out all the "Joppa" points in the word. Also, our a photo of Liz and I in front of the Mediterranean Sea.
Saturday, April 28, 2012
And so the journey begins.....
We have a five hour lay over in Philly. Elizabeth & I are finally feeling the excitement of visiting The "Holy Lands". Since I was a kid in vacation bible school, I was taught about Jesus Christ and his time on earth in this distant far away land. Now, in less than 12 hours we will be landing in Tel Aviv.
Tel Aviv was begun by a small group of Jews who migrated from the long established area of Jaffa. The city dates back to 1470 BC. An Egyptian pharaoh mentioned it in letters he wrote. The area is also mentioned in the bible, the book of Jonah. According to some readings, the name of the city was given in 1910. In the book of Ezekiel it says, " Then I came to them of captivity at Tel-Abib, that dwelt by the river of Chebar". Abib or Aviv means "spring" in Hebrew. The city population is only 392,500, however the metropolitan population is 3.268 million people. It is only 33 miles northwest of the Biblically significant area of Jerusalem. It is the second largest city in Israel and is situated along the Mediterranean Sea.
We will only be in Tel Aviv for one night and then The Holy City.
Tel Aviv was begun by a small group of Jews who migrated from the long established area of Jaffa. The city dates back to 1470 BC. An Egyptian pharaoh mentioned it in letters he wrote. The area is also mentioned in the bible, the book of Jonah. According to some readings, the name of the city was given in 1910. In the book of Ezekiel it says, " Then I came to them of captivity at Tel-Abib, that dwelt by the river of Chebar". Abib or Aviv means "spring" in Hebrew. The city population is only 392,500, however the metropolitan population is 3.268 million people. It is only 33 miles northwest of the Biblically significant area of Jerusalem. It is the second largest city in Israel and is situated along the Mediterranean Sea.
We will only be in Tel Aviv for one night and then The Holy City.
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