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Greetings, WLBC Family,

Another great day in the
land Jesus walked.  I started the day off with a float in the Dead Sea.
 One does not truly swim in the Dead Sea, as you are asking for major
problems if the water gets in your eyes.  The tour guide strongly
emphasized how dangerous it is to drink the water (as in a trip to the
hospital). Naturally, I had to taste it… but while being careful not to
swallow it.  Well?  Let’s just say the rumors about the saltiness of
the Dead Sea are true (8 times saltier than the ocean).  It starts off
tasting like the saltiest thing you have ever tasted… and then the salty
taste turns to a bitter taste… and then the bitter taste becomes very
bitter… which becomes extremely bitter… which then becomes a burning bitter
taste.  Definitely not something you would want to drink!
 Disturbingly, I also discovered that a current pushes you out to sea as
you are floating. It is difficult to “row” against it while lying on
your back floating.  I started to get a little concerned, but God was
gracious in seeing to it that I made it back to shore. 

Next up was Ein Gedi, an
oasis in the Judean desert along the shore of the Dead Sea.  David hid
from Saul here and refused to touch the Lord’s anointed.  Instead, he
chose to wait on the LORD and let Him deal with Saul (1 Samuel 24).

We then went to the top
of Masada.  Wow!  A powerful place in Jewish history… and it also
happens to give terrific views of the Judean desert and the Dead Sea.  It
was here that a last contingent of Jewish rebels were defeated by the Romans in
AD 73.  It’s an amazing, and terribly tragic, story.  Google it, or
wait for me to get home to tell it. 

Finally, we head out
into the desert to an authentic Bedouin village where I had the pleasure of
taking a camel ride.  It’s liking riding a horse except that the camel
seems to sway a bit more to the left and the right than does a horse.  I
was fascinated by how the camels stand up and lie down.  Their legs are
like transformers that send you first one direction, then another, then back
and finally straight up or down.  We also had a rather tasty dinner in
their village.

Tomorrow we will head
out to Beer Sheva, the southernmost city in Old Testament Israel.  Abraham
made it his home.  Isaac was born and lived there.  Jacob had his
dream about a stairwell near there and then made it his home.  From there
we we begin our journey up to Jerusalem (both in the sense of going north, and
biblically, in the sense of going up in elevation).  We will see the
shepherds’ fields outside Bethlehem and gaze upon the village in which our Lord
Yeshua (Jesus) was born.  Finally, we arrive in Jerusalem and will visit
the Israel Museum where we will see a large model of the Second Temple from the
time of Yeshua.

Grace and peace,

Pastor Dan

Hi, Rick,

Another great day in the
land where Jesus walked.  We left Tiberias this morning and headed to Beat
Shean just south south of the Sea of Galilee.  There is an amazing
excavation of a Roman city located there. Nearby, on a hill, is the biblical
city of Beat Shean.  This is where the bodies of Saul and Jonathan were
brought from the battlefield of Mount Gilboa (nearby) and hung on its walls (1
Samuel 31).

We entered the West Bank
territory and drove south through the Jordan Valley.  I noted a great
disparity between Israeli towns and Arab towns in terms of cleanliness.
 We drove past Jericho and then arrived at the spot which is believed to
be where the Israelites crossed the Jordan into the Promised Land, Elijah was
taken up in a chariot of fire and Jesus was baptized by John the Baptist.
 I stood in the Jordan River, but was not dunked.  Also, the Spirit
in the form of a dove did not come down upon me.  The Heavenly Father,
however, is pleased that I am His son (but only because I am united by faith
with His Son, Jesus).

Next, we headed to
Qumran, home of the Dead Sea scrolls.  There is a beautiful view of the
Dead Sea and the Judean desert from Qumran.  Speaking of beautiful views, we
will head for Masada tomorrow morning after a dip, er, float, in the Dead Sea.
 Trust me- you do not want to “dip” in the Dead Sea.  The
salt content will burn your eyes, and if you swallow any water, you have to be
taken to a hospital.  Also, while picture of the Dead Sea area are
beautiful, what they do not reveal is that it stinks.  The whole area
smells like sulphur.

I am currently holed up
in my room at the David Dead Sea Resort and Spa.  We will be gathering
soon to celebrate a Shabbat (Sabbath) dinner together.  Hopefully, my new
system of a combination of emails with text pictures from my iPhone will solve
the report home problems.  That is, of course, assuming I always remember
to snap photos with my iPhone too.

I will text you a couple
of photos from the Jordan River site.  [Those pictures follow this message. – Rick] I forgot to take iPhone pics at
Qumran.

I guess that just means
you’re all going to have to wait for the full report when I get back home.

Grace and peace,

PD