A Police Boat?

We were able to watch the colors changing over the
Sea of Galilee as day went into evening. So much
happened nearby as was posted in the last two blogs.
I grew up summers on Chautauqua Lake in NY
state and the lakes are similar in size and both have
hills on the other side of the lake. The hills in this
body of water are the Golan Heights which are cur-
rently being contested by Syria. We had a boat
ride on a beautiful afternoon, a peaceful afternoon--
until the Police boat showed up and boarded us to
see if papers were in order. Not ours but the captain.
One of the crew said that it was fine, he knew the guy,
and everything was in order. It was.

You see, reader, we had various and unexpected e-
vents on this tour that made it that much more inter-
esting. And, so far every day was cloudless and the
temperatures were higher than usual in February.

In the Footsteps of Jesus

Capernaum is in the Galilee region where Jesus spent
much of his time. The synagogue was very familiar to
him and it is in this town that Jesus prayed for Peter's
mother-in-law. These are some things that took place
there:

When John was put in prison, Jesus left Nazareth and
     dwelt in Capernaum 
He healed the paralytic who entered the house by roof
They left their nets and followed Him
The Centurion came and asked Jesus to heal his servant
The Temple tax that was found in the fishes' mouth
The Boat was headed to Capernaum when Jesus walked 
      on water to them.

In Matthew Jesus says this of Capernaum:
And you, Capernaum, will you be exalted to heaven?
You will be brought down to Hades. For if the mighty
works done in you had been done in Sodom, it would
have remained until this day. But I tell you that it will
be more tolerable on the day of judgement for the 
land of Sodom than for you.  Matt 11:23,24

I can tell you that we only saw ruins in the city of
Capernaum. That is true also of Magdala from which
a woman named Mary was relieved of seven demons.
It has only recently been discovered and the ruins of
the market place, the synagogue, the houses of the
priests showed that it was the town of Magdala.

The last place we saw in 'The footsteps of Jesus in the
Gallilee" is the Mount of Beatitudes. I didn't realize
that it was so close to the Sea. It is a hill that forms a
bowl--not a mountain just an elevation--and the people
sat on the side of the hill while Jesus talked below. Be-
cause of the the bowl terrain everyone heard him easily.

Well, reader, I will post pictures on Face Book, but know
the readers of the blog are not missing much, for the places
we went to were just ruins that were dug up from the past!
I am so impressed with the accuracy of all the prophetic
from Old to New Testament, as well as what has been pro-
phesied by Jesus and the apostles that we are now seeing
come to pass. It helps me to believe for all the prophecies
in both the Old and New Testament that have not yet been
fulfilled. One third of the Bible is prophetic.
God's Word is truth!

The Jesus Boat

In the last blog I added a picture of a 2,000 year old
boat that had been taken from the Sea of Galilee in the
1980's by two brothers who kept looking for things of
value. Since those who are not on FB cannot see the pic-
tures I will post the site that both gives information but
also has a picture of the boat. (Think stormy weather.)
It was tricky getting the boat out of the mud intact and
they put styrofoam around it and then removed that be-
fore putting the boat into water as it would deteriorate
in air. Much to their surprise bugs, worm like creatures,
came out of the boat and began to eat it. What to do?
Well, a fisherman told them he would bring something
the next day that would fix the problem but not hurt the
environment. Can anyone guess? Well, the next day he
carried in some goldfish and let them loose. Within 24
hours the boat was saved and now resides in a museum
that protects it with all kinds of sensors. This museum
sold ice cream much to the delight of the three children
who toured with us. They were great kids!

Reader, I keep pondering the last blog and how Jesus
fed His disciples. It must have been a very special meal
for all of them. Did they talk about the past three years
together? We don't know. But, the picture I get is that
this is their last meal together and Jesus prepared it as
part of His going away. He knew that these disciples
would not have an easy time of it as they spread the
good news of His death and resurrection. New ventures
are never easy. Or have you not discovered that yet?

When we were driving to the airport on that last day,
we went through sunshine and showers--and we saw
multiple rainbows. Such a gift as we returned to a nor-
mal life with new energy and wonderful memories.

This is a detailed site of how they saved the boat intact.
However, no gold fish were mentioned...but that is a
true story!

https://www.jesusboat.com/the-Jesus-Boat-Conservation/

The Sea of Galilee

We stayed at the beautiful Scots Hotel where we
worshiped outside as the sun rose in another clear
sky. We could even see Mt Herman dressed in pink
behind the Golan Heights which came down to the
sea on the other side. After an incredible breakfast
we boarded the bus where we began our day at a
walking path that connected Nazareth to Galilee.
Two thousand years ago it was the road that took
Jesus from Nazareth to His ministry around the Sea
of Galilee. We could see caves in the hills above us
where the Zealots lived. Remember Peter's title was
"Simon the Zealot!" (No, we did not walk toNazareth
that day.)

Amir took us to a wide beach and explained that we
were standing on the bottom of the Sea 2,000 years
ago. Several springs of warm water flowed into this
area and attracted the fish. Luke 5:1-11 is an amaz-
ing story where Jesus addresses the multitude from
Simon Peter's boat. When He finished speaking He
asked the fisherman how the fishing was. Peter said
it was terrible. Jesus told Peter to go out into the
deep and let down the nets. A skeptical Peter did so
and his nets began to break from the number of fish
that rushed in. Peter fell down before Jesus and said,
"Depart from me for I am a sinful man."

Now fast forward past the crucifixion and the resur-
rection to this same place. The heart broken disciples
had returned to the Sea of Galilee and went back to
fishing--they just didn't get it! In the early dawn a man
called out from the beach,

"Have you caught any fish?"
"No!"
"Cast your nets on the other side and you will find
some."

Nets were filled with fish but did not break. It was a
scene that melts my heart. John recognized Jesus and
they hurried to shore with their catch only to find that
Jesus had a fire going and fish simmering with bread
on the side. The resurrected Lord, the King of Kings,
had prepared breakfast for His disciples!!!!
(John 21)

So you see, reader, these two stories bookend the
ministry of Jesus--it is all about fishing for men.
Secondly, not only was there no scolding regarding
their lack of faith, but Jesus had a hot meal ready
for them. He ate with them and they fellowshipped
together.

What will it be like when we are with Him in our
resurrected bodies, feasting at His table???

By The Sea

We went from Jaffa north to Caesarea Maritima which
means "by the sea." We saw a Fig tree, which represents
Israel, standing full of dead looking limbs with little
knobs. Those knobs are tiny figs and those figs will
mature when the leaves come out and cover the figs.
Jesus, therefore, expected to find mature figs when He
saw the leaves, but He didn't because the tree was
"faking it." Matt 21:18,19

Caesarea is so close to the Sea that it will flood in the
winter storms and sure enough we saw sea shells piled
up. Herod built things he enjoyed such as chariot races--
the Hippodrome was two foot ball fields in length--. He
even fixed up a swimming area for his pleasure! Herod
also set up a theater for plays which was also used for
judgement. It is thought that Paul may have been
brought to the stage area below the box set aside for the
dignitaries when he spoke to King Agrippa. Acts 25:1-13.
It could be representative of the Bema Seat where Christ-
ians will be rewarded.

From the sea we went up to Mt. Carmel which overlooks
the Jezreel Valley known as Megido or Armageddon.
About 3,000 years ago Elijah defeated the prophets of
Baal at the top of this mountain. (1Kings18) When we
looked over the valley we could see Mt Tabor, Nazareth,
and much of the Galilee spread out at our feet. Everything
was various shades of green and brown in the bright sun-
shine. Mt Carmel is a good place to ponder the past and
the future where the 'Battle of Armageddon' will be fought
at the end of the tribulation.

Reader, I see so much as I write this summary and I hope
that it will give you a taste of the past, the present and the
future!

(hopefully the pictures will land close to the blog!)

Jaffa

So many of you are interested in an overview of our tour,
that I want to hit some highlights in the next few days. I
will be posting the blog on Face Book with pictures--if
I can make it work.

Our first night was spent in Tel Aviv in a beautiful hotel
near the Mediterranean Sea. The sound of the surf com-
ing in rocked me to sleep. After a huge breakfast we took
off to explore Jaffa which was formerly known as Joppa.
Originally it was a large city where ships came and went
and Tel Aviv was considered a suburb! Jonah fled from
God in a ship that sailed from Joppa (Jonah 1:3). It was
in Joppa that Peter prayed for Dorcas and she was raised
from the dead. (Acts 9:36-43) There is another story in
Acts 10 where Peter was a guest of Simon the Tanner and
he went up to the roof to pray while lunch was being fixed.
Suddenly he saw a vision of a white sheet filled with un-
clean animals and a voice said, "Rise Peter, kill and eat."
God was setting up Peter to go to the Gentiles and preach
the Gospel. While he was pondering the vision, men
came to the house to beg him to come with them. Well,
this trip ended with the beginning of gentiles finding
Jesus as their Savior. It is a good read.

That first day was cool and sunny with vivid blue skies.
The skyscrapers of Tel Aviv were not far off as we
walked the cobblestone streets of Jaffa. We came into
a cuddle-sac and found a doorway that said, "The house
of Simon the Tanner." It was my first shock of just how
real history can be, but just the beginning of coming in-
to contact with the past, present and future in a land the
size of New Jersey.

What a Wonderful Vacation!

My husband and I recently returned from a trip to Israel
with Amir Tsarfati, a man born in Jerusalem and of the
tribe of Judah. It was a multi-layered tour as we saw sites
that were 4,000 years old, 2,000 years old as well as what
will take place in the future.  We visited Israel in 1972 at
a time when the whole country, including the Temple area
was available to any tourist. We were able to get into the
caves in Hebron, wander around Bethlehem, sit on Jacobs
Well in Shechem, now called Nablas. We saw some agri-
culture, some new buildings, and winding roads through
the center of the country. This time we were overwhelmed
by the highways, the green fields everywhere, the tall
buildings in Tel Aviv and Jerusalem. It is a prosperous
country which feels secure, which is not at all what we
were cautioned about before leaving! At one point we were
on the Golan Heights 35 miles from Damacus; at another
point we were within a half mile of Lebanon, but in neither
case were we searching the skies for incoming missiles.
The weather was almost perfect with sunny skies in the
daytime and temperatures in the low 70's. We did experi-
hence some showers as we toured Jerusalem, but that did
not slow us down. We were a company of 48, with three
delightful children, from five nations. I am still processing
and will share later some of the meaningful sites visited.

Amir gives updates on the Middle East each week and has
a website sharing who he is and what is available. The site
address to Behold Israel is below:

https://beholdisrael.org/behold-israel-has-a-new-website/