Blind Faith

Before Jesus healed Bartimaeus the blind beggar, he cried out repeatedly, “Jesus, son of David, have mercy on me,” even though he was told to be quiet by the crowd. The man’s confidence in Jesus – his faith in the Rabbi’s healing power – was what Jesus claimed restored his sight.

                Patti and I have too been crying out, trying not to let the critics influence us, trying not to “worry”, believing – even without knowing how or from where – the resources to allow us to travel to Israel would come. And of course, out of the unseen, God provides. We received an unexpected check from a land investment sale and it was enough to cover the remainder of our ticket costs.

                Praise You, God from whom all blessings flow! Now we only need be concerned with saving funds for travel while in the Holy Land. And isn’t that odd, I’ve already moved on to the next “worry” whose outcome I can’t see.  You’re right, Lord, I shouldn’t worry about tomorrow.  You have shown, over and over again, that You will provide exactly what we need when we need it, if we just will have faith – even a little faith will do the trick.

                Lord, I confess that there are many things I can’t see.  How do we afford to pay our bills during the journey, how is our presence in Your land going to glorify You? What is our purpose in this venture and what if we totally misread Your desire?  How much must we pay in baggage fees?? LOL Lord, I know, I know, don’t worry about tomorrow…

                So now Lord, help me to look forward to Your blessings – a great one I know awaits us when we encounter the people of Israel.  Let me be influenced and impassioned by the faith displayed in the people of the land that You first promised. Let Patti and I, and all of those who plan to experience this journey with us, be transformed by Your Spirit. Use us as Your tools, in whatever way pleases You, so that Your purpose for us is fulfilled.

                Patti and I started studying and compiling notes on references to the places we’ll be visiting – Bethlehem, The Herodian, Samaria, Mt. Gerizim, Sebastia, Shiloh, Scythopolis, Tiberius, Caesarea Maritime, Tel Meggido, Nazareth, Sepphoris, The Sea of Galilee, the Valley of the Winds & Doves, Capernaum,  Jerusalem (with ALL its historical wonders), Bethany, Tabgha, Qumran, The Dead Sea…to make things more interesting, we are also going to bring needed supplies to a struggling school and are trying to squeeze in a visit to an incredible ministry called HaYovel (translated: The Jubilee) www.hayovel.com that serves the people of Israel – Lord give us strength to take this all in!

There is so much so see and absorb – we want to offer a morning devotional with anyone on the tour (and anyone traveling with us via the blogsite), preparing for each day…how do we prepare for such wonders of Spiritual history? The key word is Spirit and we ask Lord for Your guidance as we experience Your ancient plan.

                Adonai, keep us alert to Your desire as we draw nearer to You and to Your land. Amen

PS Any of you who have questions about our journey or suggestions/prayers for our time in the Holy Land (and beyond), please contact us @ markc91754@comcast.net.  Blessings & Shalom!

Reclaiming The Land

Reclaiming the Land

 
Reading the prophet Jeremiah, I wonder at how the people of God could go so astray - worshiping other gods, bowing to other cultures. Even the kings of the Northern Kingdom and Judah forgot how they were brought to their great fortune. Could they not see how this would lead to their destruction? Couldn't they remember God's promise, that if they strayed from His path, their heritage would be given to others?

   And am I so different? I look at the great land in which I live - a land blessed by God and given to a people He honored because of their initial devotion to him. Look at us now. Not only are we not devoted to God, but we insist that His name cannot be mentioned, His commandments cannot be proclaimed or honored in the halls of our own government.

   I'm more anxious than ever, to visit the ancient land, to go back and see the place where God shaped and loved and offered redemption to a people undeserved. I want to experience His grace from the perspective of a place where God said a savior would be (and was) provided. A child born to be sacrificed and resurrected for a people who did not even understand their need for such a miracle.

   Maybe, just maybe, as I walk the holy land, I'll catch a vision for my own land which God has provided. Maybe, just maybe, we can all learn from the past, what God intends for our future, if only we will recognize our Savior and reclaim our love for a God who would offer so great a gift.

   Please pray with Patti and I, for a journey that will lead us all to a greater understanding of, and longing for God's love for His people and His land.

Blessings and Shalom,

Mark C.

Signs and Wonders

As we prepare for our trip to Israel at the beginning of next year, I have a building sense of anticipation...but for what? Each day I study the language and the culture and history and find myself questioning: Is it the land? Is it the people? Why do they call this the Holy Land? What is the significance and for than matter, what is my significance in traveling thousands of miles to find out?

And as I ask silly questions, God waits patiently and reveals. In my Hebrew alphabet studies, I came across the letter ot (אוֹת), which literally means letter, but more specifically is translated as Sign or Wonder. So what I'm reading into this is that the very letters and words created spoken into existence by The Creator, which have then been lived out in this land and by these people since...the beginning,.are Signs and Wonders.

Now that's something I can get exicited about wanting to be immersed in, to dwell in. Something most certainly worthy of a trip!

The land is holy, and the people are special, not because of anything they've achieved, but because God spoke them into existence that way. It is God who brought the two together - He is the Holy One and so my excitement stems from learning more of and experiencing Him in the place where His Signs and wonders began and continue.

Let the letter ot (אוֹת) of my mouth and the meditation of my heart, be acceptable in Your sight, Oh Lord, my rock and my redeemer. Psalm 19

Got to be carefull with this - could get very, VERY immersed and forget the original purpose! To what am I referring? In preparation for our trip, I've decided to study the Hebrew language, starting with the alphabet. Quickly I'm realizing how dimensional and deep is this ancient script - like the land itself, rich with hidden meaning and value.

Isn't it interesting that, so long ago, God could inspire a a people to seek Him out and provide a language to help them in that quest. Yet today we still struggle, with our simple words, to explain our relationship with The Eternal.

Patti and I hunger to learn from the perspective of God's ancient plan, which amazingly remains unchanged yet relevant today. Our journey to Zion becomes more exciting each day. We hope you too are blessed by the discoveries along the way.

And a highway shall be there, and it shall be called the Way of Holiness; the unclean shall not pass over it. It shall belong to those who walk on the way; even if they are fools, they shall not go astray. No lion shall be there, nor shall any ravenous beast come up on it; they shall not be found there, but the redeemed shall walk there.

And the ransomed of the LORD shall return and come to Zion with singing; everlasting joy shall be upon their heads; they shall obtain gladness and joy, and sorrow and sighing shall flee away. Isa 35:8-10

In The Beginning

Interesting how making a commitment shapes your lifestyle. In order to raise the funds for our trip, we've cut back on lots of other things: Eating out, buying "stuff", going to movies... but more interesting is our efforts to sell off things we once thought crucial to us - family heirlooms, collectibles and such. These are things - just things - that we now realize are less important now that we are fueled by a desire to search for deeper meaning in a place rich with deep meaning.

Now there is a clear path and nothing stands in our way. Isaiah was right. When God plans, better get out of the way. Is He calling you? Do you hear Him or ignore Him?

Faith is blind? I think not.

There is so much that paves the road ahead, much of it, the miracles behind us - if we'll only open our eyes to what God has already done. Join us to seek a new perspective from ancient origins.

Go to https://www.forms.travelwithus.com/web/studyguide.nsf/1b8b65f176afe054052574ff00579e30/54430c38313619e58525757f006a0f31/$FILE/EOT%20Holy%20Land%20Study%20Guide.pdf to learn more about where we'll be going and what awaits us.

Then come back and give us your thoughts and prays at this blog site.

Blessings and Shalom,

Mark & Patti C.