Israel: Trip of a Lifetime (Day One)

Denise and I toured Israel for eight days in February 2014. I'll devote the next eight blog posts to the trip. It'll be kind of a journal/slideshow of our experience. Lots of photos.

From old Joppa, modern Tel Aviv is visible to the north. Who's that girl?

Visiting Israel was a pilgrimage, I suppose, but not in the usual sense. I didn't visit Israel to find God, because I'd already found Him (or should I say, He found me). Certainly it was an inspirational journey, but in the end it was a rational confirmation that the places and things in the Bible existed and exist in space and time. We saw cities, towns, mountains, valleys, a river, lakes and oceans -- all mentioned in the Bible. We saw the ruins of an ancient synagogue where Jesus preached. We saw a pagan altar specifically mentioned in the Old Testament. The list goes on and you will see photos of these places.

Red lines mark our bus route. Green lines mark national boundaries. 

During the tour, I was constantly assessing the Biblical authenticity of places and things. I asked myself, What is the likelihood that this is the actual place or thing that was mentioned in the Bible? For example, many believe that the Church of the Holy Sepulcher in Jerusalem is built over the exact spot where Jesus died, was entombed and resurrected. How valid is this claim? Is it impossible, unlikely, possible, plausible, probable or 100% certain? We do know that He was crucified and raised from the dead in the outskirts of Jerusalem. At this juncture, I think it's only plausible it happened at the precise location of the Church of the Holy Sepulcher. I'll explain the arguments when we get to Jerusalem on day seven. And since I'm no expert, I'm open to new information that could sway my opinion.

So, let's begin day one.

Ben Gurion Airport, Tel Aviv. We made it!

We flew into Tel Aviv's Ben Gurion Airport after a grueling (20 hour?) intercontinental flight (Portland-Chicago-Frankfurt-Tel Aviv). Our group of 28 gathered at the terminal and met our tour guide, Harrison Cohen, an Israeli native. Pastor Paul Glazner (the guy who married my wife and me) of Sutherlin, OR, hosted the tour. He and two young pastors gave short Bible messages during most stops throughout the trip.

We had an afternoon to kill and boarded a Volvo bus, driven skillfully by a man named Isaac. He drove us to the scenic town of Joppa on the shores of the Mediterranean.

Joppa by the Great Sea

Isaac: bus driver extraordinaire

Joppa is where Jonah set sail en route to being swallowed by the great fish. In Acts 9, Joppa is where Tabitha (Dorcas) was raised from the dead, after Peter prayed. And it is where where Peter saw the vision of unclean animals, which he was told to kill and eat -- a lesson preparing him for the conversion of Gentiles to Christ. “And the voice came to him again a second time, ‘What God has made clean, do not call common.’” (Acts 10:15 ESV).

The group congregated on a cobble-stone street, where Pastor Glazner gave a 10-minute devotional. Modern Joppa has an old look to it, virtually all the buildings are made of stone. We enjoyed a relaxing, scenic walk through this beautiful town. Though we didn't see any 1st century ruins, the town itself is quite significant.

Tour guide Harrison Cohen (arms crossed) and host Paul Glazner (w/Bible)

We watched the sun set over the Mediterranean and drove north to Natanya by the sea. There we ate a yummy buffet dinner at the Ramada Inn, where we stayed the night. Due to the effects of the time change, most of the group awoke in the middle of the night and couldn't get back to sleep. Would jet lag and lack of sleep take the joy out of day two? Find out next week. See ya.

Joppa at sunset with the Mediterranean Sea in the background. What a way to end a busy first day!