Never have I longed more for the feel of my children's arms about my neck. Never have I craved more the comfort of my own home, surrounded by familiar sights, sounds, and smells. Never have I desired more a simple slice of pizza fit for an Italian, a cup of tea fit for an Englishman, and a cheesburger fit for an American. For Adventure and Danger are sweet, And against them we may test our mettle; But the wine by the fireside is sweeter, And knowing one's place. I hope you have enjoyed reading this blog as much as I have [View Full Entry]

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This is the lowest I have ever been. Consider, when you are swimming in the ocean, you are, at most, a few feet below sea level. Well the surface of the Dead Sea is 1,378 feet below sea level. It is more than 8 times more salty than ocean water. and it tastes terrible. I mean, really really bad. You bob in it like a cork, which is fun for about 15 minutes. Then the salt begins to burn your eyes, burn your nose, and mildly sting your skin. You get out thinking 'That was fun, and I feel great, but [View Full Entry]

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The Sea of Galilee is not a large lake. From most places on the shore, you can see all the way around it. But during our visit we observed a sudden storm descend on the lake, whipping the placid water into angry whitecaps. We imagined a storm so sudden and violent that it could swamp a small fishing boat. It was on such an occasion that Jesus commanded the wind to be quiet. Another time he walked across the surface of the water to reach his disciples. They were headed for the village of Geneseret, so our boat is floating about [View Full Entry]

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Imagine the widow's grief when her only son dies. To be left with no husband and no son, this was devastating. The townsfolk carry her son's body outside the city to be buried at the graveyard pictured here. But the funeral procession did not complete its journey that day. While we may imagine the widow's grief, we cannot imagine her joy at what happens next. A Teacher is approaching the city with some of his followers. He approaches the widow, and kindly tells her to stop weeping. Then, addressing the dead boy, he commands in a firm voice "Get Up!" At [View Full Entry]

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The city of Megiddo controls several vital land routes for travelers between Europe, Asia, and Africa. By one estimate, a city has been built here, destroyed, and rebuilt 25 times! Although no city exists here now, the plain is still a strategic battlefield. Genghis Khan's army marched all the way here from Mongolia in an attempt to reach North Africa, but here they were defeated by the Mamelukes. As recently as 1948, the final defeat of the Arabs by the Jews took place here. Indeed a fitting symbol for God's final war on his enemies. On our drive through the valley, [View Full Entry]

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This is the furthest I have ever been from my home, and the longest I have been away from family and friends. I greatly enjoy the comments from those who visit this page, it helps ease the loneliness I feel. Please, if you are reading this, leave a comment! [View Full Entry]

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Today we embarked on a day long tour of Galilee. A few highlights: 1.) Many of the Bethel family came out onto the sidewalk to greet us. There are 30 members, serving about 1,300 Witnesses, but they had 2,800 at the Memorial. They gave us back issues in Hebrew. 2.) In Caesarea, we saw the Hippodrome, Herod's Palace, and the very room where Paul appealed his detention to Caesar. 3.) Elijah challenged the prophets of Baal to a contest on Mount Carmel. After they failed to arouse Baal to accept their sacrifice, Elijah drenched his altar with fire. Then, with a [View Full Entry]

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(The following is slightly tongue-in-cheek, so spare me the aggrieved comments.) Why do so many American travelers feel the need to denigrate their own country? "I'm sorry, I'm just a dumb American, I don't speak your language or understand your culture." Translation: "I'm sorry, American's are just a bunch of beer drinking rednecks who watch NASCAR all day. Not ME, of course, I speak 3 languages (not yours) and am highly civilized. But for the rest of them, I deeply apologize." Now, I am not exactly a world traveler (Canada, Mexico, Italy, Jordan, Israel, and the Caribbean), [View Full Entry]

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The Canaanite kings were worried. The Israelites, led by General Joshua, were defeating one Canaanite city after another. Their only hope was to unite and fight Israel together. The people of Gibeon had a better idea. Why not trick Israel into making peace? Joshua signed a treaty with Gibeon, but the Canaanites viewed the Gibeonites as traitors. Unitedly, they attacked. Israel came to the aid of Gibeon, and the victory was so great, that Joshua feared that the day would end and the Canaanites would escape into the night. So he prayed to Jehovah, and then cried out "Sun! Stand still [View Full Entry]

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Today we were up with the dawn, passing through security, and before we knew it, we were standing on the Temple Mount. In the sky above our heads, 3,000 years ago, a pillar of cloud by day and a pillar of fire by night indicated the presence of Jehovah. Under the Golden Dome lies the peak of Mount Moriah, the rock where the Ark of the Covenant lay within the Most Holy, where Abraham likely bound Isaac for the sacrifice, and where tradition says Adam was created at the very center of the Universe. Ok, I don't know about all that, [View Full Entry]

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