Home!

November 5 (posted November 7 9am)

I was picked up outside the Gloria Hotel by the sherut (shared taxi) at 6:30 a.m.  I was the first passenger to be picked up. The  sherut went about town picking up the other 7 passengers and I was able to see many parts of the city where we had not been. We arrived at the airport in Tel Aviv at 8am.  After about 5 security checks, they decided that I was truly a harmless middle-aged woman and they let me proceed to the United Airlines gate. All that took about 2 hours, but I must say, throughout the security process everyone I encountered was polite and professional (even the ones with big guns strapped across their body).  I had about an hour before boarding and enjoyed the down time to just sit and do nothing. The past 16 days have been a whirlwind and I needed a little break. On boarding, I found that once again, I was blessed with 2 great seat mates. They were a retired couple from South Carolina (people who speak my native tongue with a lot of "you alls" and "bless your hearts"). They own a second home in Israel and spend several months there each year. It was a long flight and we arrived in Newark, NJ around 4:30 pm EST. It was so good to see a great big US flag as I entered the US customs area. It took about an hour to retrieve my luggage, recheck it, take the air train to a different terminal, go through TSASecurity (sad to say they were not as polite or professional as the Israelis), and find my gate. I had about 1hour before my flight left for Knoxville which I spent trying in vain to find a diet Mountain Dew. No luck :(  My flight left Newark on time and the last thing I remember after getting on the plane was taxiing toward the runway. The next thing I know, the pilot is announcing that we are beginning our decent into Knoxville. I actually slept all the way through take off and the beverage cart!  Melvin and Megan were there to pick me up at the the airport in Knoxville (with a cold diet Mountain Dew). Home sure looked good.

My trip was everything and more than I ever dreamed it could be. I have learned so much and been so blessed by the places and people I encountered during my journey. However, this journey did not begin on October 20, 2013; it began in 2011when The Lord began to speak to my heart. There were many more people that influenced and blessed me well before I left  a little over two weeks ago. These include my husband, Melvin, who encouraged me to follow the Lord and to become prepared to meet  the physical challenges necessary for my trip;  my children Travis and Megan who told me how proud they were of me for following my dream; my Mom and family who were supportive despite reservations about my safety (and lack of common sense and my propensity for of trips, falls, etc...); my friends and church family who prayed and worried about me while I was gone; my  management and co-workers who have carried extra workload while I was gone; and all of you who have taken the time to read about my journey.

This was my journey of faith and it may appear to have been extraordinary to you, but each time The Lord speaks to any of our hearts, isn't that always extraordinary? A walk with The Lord is a very personal walk and the step of faith The Lord is asking you to take is just as special as mine.  I encourage you to read  Daniel 10:12 and substitute your name for Daniel's; also read  Proverbs 2: 1-6 and  open your hearts and minds. The Lord has much to show you.

Tel Aviv Airport waiting for boarding pass

Home Sweet Home!

(Jordan) Amman, Medeba, Mt. Nebo

November 4 (9:39p.m.)

We began today in Amman with a really nice breakfast at the hotel and a little later start of 8a.m.  We toured The Citadel ruins and museum. The Citadel is the name for the fortified city that was the capital of the Ammonites. It is called Rabbah in Old Testament times. The city sat high on a hill with valleys on three sides and high fortified wall surrounding it. Israel defeated the Ammonites  here when David was king. It was in Rabbah that David had Uriah killed by ordering the army to pull back from Uriah when the fighting was the fiercest (II Samuel 11) so he would be killed.  The archers shot from the top of the wall and Uriah was killed. David did this in order to marry Uriah's  wife, Bathsheba. Because of Rabbah's positioning, there is only one place where the city can be attacked. There are archer's boxes present in the city  wall at that location. That means Uriah was killed right below where we stood and the archers would have been exactly where we were standing. We left the big, bustling city of Amman which is growing extremely fast and is a study in contradiction,  There were many places with very big expensive homes and there would be a Bedouim tent right in front of the home with all his goats, sheep and family. We left Amman and headed for Medeba. We viewed the Medeba Map at The Church of Saint George. The map was found in 1896 when the site was being prepared to build a new building. The mosaic contains 2.8 million tiles and was designed to direct travelers who were making a pilgrimage to  the Holy sites Palestine and the Nile Delta. It dates to 566 AD. We had lunch at a local restaurant which serves the entire table with shared bowls of food. They also have water pipes and shisha  (flavored tobacco)  you can order. There was a group of young Muslim  women sitting around, talking and sharing the water pipe. It was a very odd sight. Last stop of the day was Mount Nebo. It was here that God allowed Moses to see the promised land. Even though Moses would not get to enter the land, he was able to view it from a far place. But, as surely as he was able to see it from afar, it was there; out in the distance, real. We need to remember that each of us has that same promise of a land  full of good things from God. It is real and just out  there waiting for us.  All we need to do is to look out and claim it. It was a really special experience for all our group to see the same view as Moses did so long ago. Time to return to Israel and this time, we went to the King Hussein border crossing and went through border control. Guess who was chosen for s random search of their person by the guards? That's right, me, and on top of that, she was training a new agent. I felt like a whirling Dervish before they got through spinning me around, checking me from every angle. Then back to Jerusalem and the Gloria Hotel. I have packed up my suitcase and look forward to coming home tomorrow. I will wrap up this blog with a final entry after I get home.

             
                         Fiona demonstrating  how and from where the archers fired on Uriah

Lunch at  a Jordanian restaurant

Atop Mt. Nebo where Moses viewed the Promised Land

(Jordan), Jerash, Dibon, Petra, Bozrah, Amman

November 3 (11:00 p.m.)

This entry will cover 2 days November 2 and November 3

We left Jerusalem very early on Friday. We met the bus at 6:30. Dr. Paul Wright, President of Jerusalem University College will be with us on this part of the trip. There are 7 of us going on the Jordan extension. We were given our  breakfast on the bus. We had 2 muffins, meat, cheese, pita bread (still warm), boiled egg, yogurt, orange, banana, and can drink. More than enough and I saved some for later. They are taking very good care of us. We headed East out of Jerusalem and turned  North when we reached the Dead Sea area. We crossed into the West Bank and were stopped at this check point. That is the first time we have been stopped. The Israeli soldiers came on the bus and gave us a look over and waved us on through. The West Bank is called the West Bank because it used to be part of Jordan and this part of the country was across the Jordan River on it's West Bank.  Thus, the name, even  though this area is now in the Eastern part of Israel.  We crossed into Jordan at the Sheik Hussein border crossing. That was a really strange experience. We had to get off the bus and leave all our things in it except for our passport; show our passport and exit Israel; find our cleared bus and retrieve our things; get on a shared  bus with our bags; get off that bus and go through security; go through Jordan passport control; have our picture taken and be cleared for entry; meet  our Jordanian tour guide; and get on a smaller bus. Finally, we were underway. There is a lot of Old Testament history here in Jordan. Some examples; in the area of Gilead, where we entered Jordan, the event of Jacob wrestling with the angel,   Absalom getting his long hair caught in the oak tree causing him to be so entangled that his pursuers overtook and killed him,  Elijah was fed by the angel here, and John the Baptist was baptizing near here. Our first stop was Jerash, the best preserved Roman city (outside of Rome). This is a huge place and loaded with history. There are elaborate temples of Zeus and Artemis (aka Diana). An earthquake in 749 AD caused major damage to the city causing many of the structures to collapse or be damaged. However, there is a lot still standing. We ate lunch at the Temple of Artemis restaurant. The food was very good and the bread is made outside in a clay  oven where they throw the dough into the side of the oven where it sticks there and bakes. It was delicious.Then off again and headed South to Petra with one stop on the way at an archeological site in Dibon which was the capital of  ancient Moab. It was in Moab that the story of Ruth and Naomi takes place.  A  shepherd boy came right by us while we were discussing Bible events related to Dibon. He had  his shepherd stick  in hand and lead  his goats and sheep, with bells clanging, right by us. We drove several hours South down the King's Highway and the Desert Highway to Petra. We arrived there around 9p.m. And after a late dinner, went straight to bed.  Up early and after breakfast, we headed to Petra, the city of the Nabeteans. These were desert people who built this great city out of the sandstone rock and controlled the camel caravan travel from the East. The camel caravans carried goods from the Far East to the Mediterranean and had to pass by here on their way. The Nabateans taxed them as they came through and also sold them provisions for the rest of their journey. The Nabateans became very wealthy. They were very smart people and these buildings are evidence of just how extraordinarily smart they were.  Petra was the filming site for the movie Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade and this place is truly like something out of  a movie. Words can't describe it adequately. The city went ou of business with the decline of the camel caravans. The citydisappeared  and Petra was lost for about 1,000 years. It was rediscovered in the 1800's.  In 1984, it became a UNESCO protected site and one of the Seven Wonders of the World.  We spent about 6 hours there and left for lunch at a nice local restaurant arranged by our guide. Next, we headed North toward Amman with one stop at Bozrah. There is an archaeological site there that is  thought to be the capital city of  ancient Edom. Edom was the land given to Esau after he sold his birthright to Jacob.  No one has worked on this site for over 30 years but it us hoped that someone will get funding and get working on it again. We made it to Amman around 7p.m. We are staying at a very nice hotel and someone important must be here tonight because we had to go through security before we came into the hotel lobby. I'll keep my eyes out for whomever it is. We had a very nice dinner at the hotel and are now settled into our rooms for  much needed  good night's sleep. Amman is a very big modern city as
opposed to the other places we have been in Jordan.

The colonnade at Jerash

                                                           The Treasury at Petra
                                                      (That's.me with the camels)

Masada, En Gedi Nature Preserve, Caves of Qumran, Dead Sea

November 1 (11:00 pm)

The day started earlier than usual today. We boarded the bus at 6:30a.m. instead of our usual 7:30a.m. We left Jerusalem and headed East toward the Dead Sea. At modern Jericho, we turned South and traveled down the Jordan River Valley toward Masada. As we traveled toward Masada, the Dead Sea was to our left and the barren hills of the Judean Wilderness was to our right. The Dead Sea has a salt content of  30 - 35% and is unfit for drinking, but it is beautifully blue.  We arrived at Masada before the temperature and the crowds got too bad. We all rode the cable car up the mountain. Masada is 1400 feet high and flat on top. Herod the Great (who else) built this place as a fortress and of course he built a beautiful palace there for himself. Also, zealots  who  resisted  Roman rule  held out at Masada for over one year while the Romans laid siege to the stronghold. There were 967 resisters, and 15,000 Romans. Rome did eventually take the city in 72AD only to find that the residents had committed mass suicide rather than be taken by Rome. A very tragic story. Some of our group elected to walk the "serpentine path back down while myself and several others decided to "save our knees. The walk down winds down with steep steps, step, steps, and takes about 50 minutes. Those who chose to ride down decided that we needed our knees for the next stop. Next, we turned North and traveled  to En Gedi  Nature Reserve. We enjoyed a nice but steep and sometimes wet walk up to a waterfall where David  and his men spent time hiding out when Saul was pursuing David. In one of these caves near here, David had the perfect opportunity to kill Saul, but David decided not  to kill him since he did not a clear word from God to do so. We should consider David's example when confronted with opportunity, but not having clear  direction from God.  Dr. Beck gave us a demonstration of why there is so much water here and how it flows into this oasis. We saw several Nubian Ibexes and other wildlife. Dr. Beck told us that this land used to be home to many leopards and other large predators. We ate our picnic lunch quickly and hit the road again. Next stop was at the Caves of Qumran.  The Dead Sea scrolls were found in 1947 in a cave on this site.  Archeologists believe a large community of people were living there and apparently making copies of the Bible. I wonder if  today, we would be as dedicated as they were  about preserving the Word for future generations. Last stop was at the Dead Sea for a float in the salt water.  I did not expect to sink into mud up to my thighs. Paula, Nancy, and I had to pull each other out when we got stuck.  Bruce (husband of Paula and clearly smarter than we were) snapped a picture for us and rather quickly we ended our float in the Dead Sea. The three if us agrees, that we can say, "been there done that ". We came back to Jerusalem and had dinner together. After dinner, we had our departure meeting where the logistics of our departure were discussed. Some of us are off to Jordan for 3 more days and some are departing for home tomorrow. At our meeting, we also had a chance to say our goodbyes and to share with one another what this trip and group of Christian brothers and sisters has meant to us during the past 2 weeks. We are all agreed that we are so thankful for having had Jack shepherding us through this land where the Great Shepherd  walked.

Dr. Jack Beck and our group studying atop Masada

The spring at En Gedi where David and his men were hiding out from Saul.