ISRAEL: HOME OF EGYPTIAN GOVERNOR

This was a home of the Egyptian governor Ramses-Weser-Khepesh in the 12 Century BCE on the lintel of its door an inscription attests to his rank: "The King's Scribe. Appointed Chief of the House." The lintel bears the image of the governor kneeling before the name and attribures of the Egyptian King Pharaoh Ramses

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This blog is a learning experience for me and probably for some of you. If you hit 2009 it should show the whole blog. I may have solved that problem for now.
The beginning of the blog starts at the bottom which is the first posting (Caesarea), that was our first stop. I did not learned to do pictures until I started working on Megiddo.
So the beginning starts on the left side and than later you will have to match the left to the right to follow the journey that we traveled in Israel, and to see some of our 2500 pictures.
I have also included web sites, that I thought was interesting on the different biblical sites. The web sites, that I have choosen will actually explain the area and what the pictures are that you are looking at.
I will be adding to this blog as I continue to relive our journey day by day in Israel.
I hope you enjoy and as always God Bless

Day Five Monday March 16, 2009

This is the day of our journey to Jerusalem. We leave our hotel looking back at the Dead Sea. So many thoughts of the Dead Sea, Ein Gedi, and Masada, was going through my mind.
The one memory that will always stand out is the friendliness of the people. Thinking of how I did not look forward to meal time at the Hotel and how our friend Kristy got stabbed with a
fork. I believe these people were from Jordan. I really am not up on all of that, but I know they all act the same with no manners and they really dont wait there turn in line, and if you are in front of them look out.
On our journey to Jerusalem we saw lots of Shepherds in the fields, flocks of sheep and camels.
The first stop for the trip was Tel Arad, located in the eastern Negev basin, the road from the hill country of Judah to Edom.
The most remarkable discovery at the site was a complete temple patterned after God's temple in Jerusalem.
Beersheba the southernmost city of Israel in the Old Testament, is where Isaac and Jacob lived and Abraham gave it its name - The Well of the Oath.
Beersheva has a large history dating back to the 3rd millennium before Christ.
Lachish our next stop guarded a major road through Judah's footills from the coast to the city of Hebron. The city of Lachish became second in importance only to Jerusalem during the latter part of the kingdom of Judah.
Taking a break for lunch near Tel Maresha, we
took in a little extra site seeing, of an old ruins of where the Gladiators would fight the Lions. This site brought a lot of
shows that I have saw to life. I always said seeing is believing.
Viewing an oil press and seeing all the work that they would do to press olives and seeing how brilliant the people was in those days.
A visit to Bet Guvrin and exploring the unique caverns carved beneath the earth, looking at the work to get out the chalk that once was beneath the earth surface. The echo sounds and a friend singing, will always remind me of these caverns, like no other cavern I have ever saw.
The journey for this day is quickly comming to an end. We are now in the Elah Valley, where one of my most memorable stories is comming to life. The story of David and Goliath. Looking over the valley and searching for our three stones to take home with us and thinking of how David, the shepherd boy became so powerful.
The last stop of the day was Beth Shemesh located in the Sorek Valley and the place the ark of the covenant returned to the Israelites from the land of the Philistines where Samson lived.
This is it, the road into Jerusalem, heading east, everyone is at full excitement, watching as the highway number 1 goes into Jerusalem, it is nothing like I ever imaged Jerusalem to be like.
"If I forget thee, O Jerusalem, let my right hand forget her cunning. If I do not remember thee, let my tongue cleave to the roof of my mouth: if I prefer not Jerusalem above my chief joy." Psalm 137:5-6

DAY FOUR SUNDAY, MARCH 15, 2009

This day begins our big journey to the South end of the Dead Sea, where we stayed at the LeMeridien Hotel in Ein Bokek.
Leaving the Sea of Galilee and going South this day was like perfect timing or a blessing for our group, because the rain was moving in and was in the North moving East to West and our journey to the South was where we had a few sprinkles and cloud cover, but we quickly left the rain behind and moved on into the sunny warm weather.
Our first stop was the Spring of Harod, where Gideon chose his 300 men for a battle that only God could win for them. These 300 men where chosen according to how they drank water from the river. Interesting story, click on side blog addresses to read stories.
Continuing on to Bet She'an and exploring the remarkable restoration of the Roman ruins, where the Philistine's once displayed the bodies of King Saul and his son Jonathan.
I could not help but to take a lot of pictures of this ancient ruins and to show a lot of these remarkable images to you.
We than enjoyed a long journey south looking at sheep and shepherds and little villages and the beautiful rolling mountain sides. We past through several check points and saw the check points well gaurded with security holding guns.
We arrived after our interesting journey to Jericho, an ancient Canaanite city, where the "walls came tumbling down." We had lunch here at Jericho and than explored the old city Jericho ruins and history. Close to Jericho is the Judean Wilderness, is where Jesus was tempted by the devil.
We went into the wilderness and viewed the beautiful grandcanyon like mountains. The colors and the view was perfect on this day, with the clouds passing by overheard, like a eagle soaring above. Isaiah Chapter 40 refers to these beautiful mountains. Let every valley lift up and every mountain lower.
Qumran our last stop of our exciting day, is where the Dead Sea Scrolls where discovered. Look at the picture of the cave that the scrolls where in. To wonder how many scrolls could still be in caves undiscovered.
At last the lowest point on the face of the earth, the Dead Sea.
We had arrived in time to charge our batteries and get rest and enjoy our beautiful hotel and scenery. A hike that evening to the stores along the dead sea and a view of the night life.

DAY THREE SATURDAY, MARCH 14TH

We just spent two wonderful days in Israel and just when you think it does not get any better than this, it just keeps getting better.
We start this day with a journey to the north of the Sea of Galilee. We travel past Hazor a ancient site along side of the International Highway between Egypt and Mesopotamia. Sitting on the rocks along side of the road are these little conies, they are like rock badgers. The conies are but feeble folk, yet make they their holmes in the rocks. Proverbs 30:26.
The ancient sites along the highway were destroyed by warfare or earthquake.
We continue are journey North to the Dan Nature Preserve, this nature preserve was a wonderful start of our day, as we hiked on the trail past all the beauty of nature around us. We stopped at a spot where King Jeroboam set up a golden calf. Viewing the northernmost city of ancient Israel . I stoped to gather ancient rocks and pieces of wood for a friend back home.
Banias Waterfall where a Psalmist may have written Psalm 42.
This breathtaking spot where the headwaters of the Jordan River spill over is one area of beauty everyone enjoyed pictured taking and you can see why.
Deep calleth unto deep at the noise of thy waterspouts: all thy waves and thy billows are gone over me.
I pushed my empty water bottle down into the rushing water,
I brought home the cleanest, sparkliest water you could find in the Jordan River.
Caesarea Philippi, located at the foot of Mount Herman, this is where Peter made his great confession "You are the Christ, the Son of the Living God." Look at the picture of what the area looked like before and the niches in the Temple of Pan.
We continue our journey with the Isralite lady making bread, gave us an opportunity to understand modern Israel and our travel through the Golan Heights and seeing the region with Syria and Lebanon and to discover the bunkers and the struggles of years of battles. Looking over the valleys below and playing in the underground tunnels was more than you thought you would find on top of Mt. Avital - Mt. Bental Nature Reserve .
Finishing our journey home looking at the rolling mountains along side the road and the cows of the north, which is an important part to see the northern cows, another reference in the bible. We returned again for our last night in Guy Hotel Tiberias.

DAY TWO

The start of day two began with an ancient style boat ride on the Sea of Galilee, after the wonderful morning on the sea of Galilee we viewed an ancient fishing boat dated back to the time of christ. Capernaum was are next stop ,where we walked the city of Jesus, that witnessed so many of Jesus miracles, and viewed Peters house and the temple. The next stop was the Mount of Beatitudes on the side of a mountain over looking the Sea of Galilee, this is where Jesus delivered one of his most powerful teachings. Leaving for Chorazin which is the city condemned by Jesus for its lack of faith and Kusi where Jesus cast out the demons that entered the swine after being cast out and the hillside to where the swine ran off of, into the Sea of Galilee. View the pictures of lunch and than our baptism on the Jordan River. This left us to a wonderful end of day two

DAY ONE

On Thursday March 12th 2009, we started our day at Caesarea, enjoying our morning, as the first gathering with our group to adventure the holy land, to follow in Jesus foot steps. The joy of sitting in the Roman theater still brings a freshness of adventure to my memory. Sitting in the Roman theater and hearing the story of King Herod and remembering all that I had studied of Caesarea, was all coming together.
My mind and body was full of new energy to explore and see what I have studied and to vision what it was
really like in the day of King Herod and what it was like where Peter was held prisoner for two years.

The Roman theater, the harbor, newly excavated hippodrome, and palace and than the aquaducts, was all the start of our adventure in Caesarea.
As I cherished my time in this area, I gathered some old pottery and some shells.

Leaving the area ,we headed for Mount Carmel, the traditional place where Elijah confronted the prophets of Baal. A very interesting story, see my attached web site.

Meggido the Chariot City of King Solomon and its excavations and journey into the old well was an eye opening experience and looking out over the valley of Jezreal and thinking of the future gathering of the nations at Armageddon. To see this area and the story that this valley holds, comes to my mind again and again.
The last battle between Good and Evil (Revelation 16,12-16).

Passing through Nazareth, the town where the Angel Gabriel appeared before Mary and told her she would give birth to a son. Thinking of Mary and Joseph who was a carpenter and wondering what Nazareth look liked on that day and thinking where the mountain was, that they wanted to push Jesus off of, left my mind quickly as we took in the breathtaking panoramaic view of the Sea of Galilee and the warm wind blowing through my hair on that sunny day on top of Mount Arbel.
I sat thier on Mt. Arbel, overlooking a cliff ,and listening to Dr Dyer talk and I visioned below the city of Mary Magdelin and just wished I could sit thier all afternoon and enjoy the scenery and watch the sunset. All quickly I left with a poppy flower and was nearly last to arrive to the bus to leave for our hotel stay for three nights in Tiberias.

ISRAEL

HOME OF EGYPTIAN GOVERNOR

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Day Five Monday March 16, 2009

EIN GEDI

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HOTEL VIEW and DEAD SEA

DEAD SEA

QUMRAN SCROLLS

QUMRAN CAVES

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DAY FOUR SUNDAY, MARCH 15, 2009

GOLAN HEIGHTS

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CAESAREA PHILIPPI

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BANIAS WATERFALL

BANIAS WATERFALL

DAN

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DAY THREE SATURDAY, MARCH 14TH

Jordan River

JORDAN RIVER SONG

Kursi

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Chorazin

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Sea of Galilee

DAY TWO

MOUNT ARBEL

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MEGIDDO

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Mount Carmel "Elijah"

Caesarea

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DAY ONE

JOURNEY THROUGH THE HOLY LAND