His Work Here is Done

In all my prayers for all of you, I always pray with joy because of your partnership in the gospel from the first day until now, being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus.  -Philippians 1:4-6

I could have slept in until 8 A.M. but instead I'm up at 6 A.M.  Adventure awaits.

As I come to the last day of this pilgrimage something surprises me:  I have not read a lot of my Bible on this trip except to look up verses to go with pictures.  No, I haven't read my Bible, I've lived it.  God has done a great work in me in the Promise Land.

I've dreamt about my ex-wife again last night.  This time, however, things were friendly.  When I think about what has happened to me on this trip I'm overwhelmed by who God is and what He's done.  Others in our group want to stay in Israel; I'm ready to go home.  I hope to one day return to this land.  Some in our group would return next month if they could.  My trip feels complete.  His work here with me is done, and oh what a praise-worthy work!  Already there is talk about coming back in 2 years.  If HomeFront plans that trip, I will in all likelihood go.  There's so much more to see!  But for now, I'm ready to go home.  There's an item I have to deliver to my ex-wife to give to her boyfriend.

Going into this trip I had some very high expectations.  Typically, this is a recipe for a letdown.  Instead, God blew my expectations out of the water.  The prayer answered here is one that I have prayed and prayed for again and again over the last year and a half.  I had my doubts that it would ever be answered.  This trip changed my life.

The Temple Mount

While the rest of the group sleeps, Mark and I join Pastor Josh and Pastor Flick, along with Josh's parents in the hotel lobby.  The Temple Mount is not a location that we can bring 60 people to.  If too many people show up the Muslims will close it off.  Jews are not allowed to pray there, per the orders of the Muslims running it.  That's why Jews choose to pray at the Wailing Wall; it's the closest they can get to the place where sat the Ark of the Covenant.

The six of us file into two separate cabs.  The cabs take us as close to the Temple Mount as they can.  We get out to take the rest of the trek on foot.  Jerusalem can seem like a maze of multilevel streets and alleyways to someone visiting.  We begin to maneuver through the ancient city, stopping often to ask for directions.

Josh asks an Israeli soldier for directions.

Flick asks a group of Jewish men for directions.

We work our way closer and closer to the Temple Mount.

In order to get up onto the Temple Mount we must pass through no less than 3 security check points.  It's amazing how important this section of land is to Jews, Christians, and Muslims.  This was the location of both Temples to the LORD.  Solomon's Temple was destroyed by the Babylonians in 586 B.C.  The second Temple was built by Nehemiah and Ezra and later refurbished by King Herod.  That Temple was destroyed by the Romans in 70 A.D. and a temple to the false god Jupiter was built in its place.  Currently, the Dome of the Rock sits on the Temple Mount.  The Muslims believe that the rock within the Dome is the site where the Prophet Muhammad ascended to Heaven accompanied by the angel Gabriel.  The Muslim faith was derived circa 600 A.D. when Muhammad took the Judeo-Christian faith and crafted his own religion out of it, making changes as he saw fit.  The whole situation is very similar to Joseph Smith in the 1800's and the creation of the Mormon religion.

When we at last arrive onto the Temple Mount, a soldier immediately walks up to Mark and pulls him aside.  Mark is wearing shorts in a holy place that requires knees to be covered.  The soldier leads Mark away.  Several minutes pass.  It's unclear to the rest of us where Mark has been brought or if he will be allowed to come back.  Finally Mark reappears.  He walks up to us wearing what can best be described as a skirt.  He has just bought himself a $7 souvenir.

Thankfully Mark was not beheaded.  Even worse, he was forced to wear a dress to go with his Charlie Brown T-Shirt.

A Swiss Banker that we met while waiting in line at a security check point is kind enough to take our photo in front of the Dome of the Rock.

The Temple is no longer here, but now, WE are the Temple!  The presence of God once dwelt between the Cherubim inside the holiest of holies.  Now, the Holy Spirit dwells inside those who have taken Jesus up on His offer.  I am so thankful that the Holy Spirit guided me on this trip.

Do you not know that you are God's temple and that God's Spirit dwells in you? If anyone destroys God's temple, God will destroy him. For God's temple is holy, and you are that temple.  -1 Corinthians 3:16-17

Jewish Holocaust Museum

We arrive back at King Solomon's hotel just in time to grab a quick breakfast before our bus sets off.  Our first stop as a group will be the Jewish Holocaust Museum.  This is a required visit of any tour group visiting Israel.  Antisemitism still exists today and 70 years later there are people who deny that the Holocaust ever happened.

When we arrive Juda gives us a tour of the grounds.  He explains that once inside there will be no photography allowed.  Also, we will have free reign to walk the museum as we please (this is not a guided tour).

We enter the Children's Memorial.  I follow the path through the dark room.  Mirrors are meant to make it seem as if we are surrounded by 1.5 million candles (1.5 million children were killed in the Holocaust).  The darkness and mirrors make me a bit disoriented as I try to keep my balance.  The path is crowded.  From 9 A.M. until 5 P.M. each day, names of the lost children are read.  It takes an entire year to read them all.  A disembodied voice reads off a name, hometown, and age.  In the darkness, the first child I hear read is 5 years old.  Instantly I see my 5 year old daughter Josie.  As I move solemnly through the Children's Memorial I hear two children mentioned that are but 1 year old.  I see my son James, a 1 year old toddler.  I'm glad it's dark because my tears are falling.  I am looking into the face of how fallen this world is.

My children do not know about the Holocaust yet.  It breaks my heart that they have to be exposed to this.  They need to know about this one day, but today they are innocent and naive about just how fallen this world is.  One day they will know that this did happen.  The Germans were meticulous in their book keeping.  This museum houses their records.  This museum holds the evidence of something unthinkable.

As I traverse the main section of the museum I am constantly bumping into people.  This place is crowded.  No doubt the layout and stone walls are meant to make visitors feel like they are in a gas chamber.  As I walk along I am bombarded with photographs, black and white videos, interviews from survivors, and World War 2 paraphernalia...  After a while, I'm sorry to say, you get numb to the images.  But then, out of nowhere, you see an image that crushes your soul.

A German soldier prepares to execute a woman who is holding her child in her arms.

I want to go home.  I want to scoop my children up in my arms.  They're still little enough that I can hold all 3 at the same time.  My kids have had a taste of tragedy with going through their parents' divorce, but nothing like this.  God, thank you for waiting until the last day of the trip to show me this place, for I fear I would have wanted to come home earlier.

Israel Museum

Next we head to the Israel Museum.  Outside they have built something that captivates me.  Josh had told me about this but I had completely forgotten about it.  Ahead of me sits a 50:1 scale model of the City of Jerusalem circa 66 A.D. which was during the time of the Roman Revolt which lead to the destruction of the Temple in 70 A.D.  This is Jerusalem at the height of its grandeur, right before all was lost.

After spending the last few days exploring Jerusalem it is pretty amazing to gaze at this model.  It serves as a recap of the visit.  I point things out, "That's the Golden Gate!"  I cannot stop snapping photos as I move around the city, changing angles and discovering new places.  Below are some of my favorites.


Inside the museum awaits a priceless treasure:  the Dead Sea Scrolls.  I had seen the scrolls when they came to Grand Rapids in 2003 but had been too immature in my walk with God to fully appreciate them.  Their discovery meant that we had a copy of the Old Testament Scriptures that was 1000 years older than our previous oldest copy.  Their prophesy in the scroll of Isaiah was likely written on parchment before Jesus came yet describes His coming.  The scrolls contain portions from all but 1 Old Testament book; the book of Esther is missing (a late add to the canon).  Additional scrolls were found as well including:

• Never before seen Psalms attributed to David and Joshua.
• The last words of Joseph, Judah, Levi, Naphtali, and Amram (the father of Moses).
• The Copper Scroll which contains the location of 64 underground hiding places that are said to contain silver, gold, aromatics and manuscripts (treasures from the Temple).
• There are also new stories about Enoch, Abraham and Noah, including an explanation of why God asked Abraham to sacrifice his son.
• And the War Scroll which describes a final battle between the "Sons of Light" and the "Sons of Darkness."

In order to preserve the scrolls they are kept in a special building which resembles the shape of one of the clay jars in which the scrolls were originally found.  This Shrine of the Book is kept at a specific humidity by water that is sprayed onto the roof.  The building is painted white to represent the "Sons of Light" (whom the people of Qumran called themselves).  Near the building sits a black wall which represents the "Sons of Darkness" (whom the people of Qumran considered their enemies).

On my way to Jerusalem we made a stop in Qumran where the scrolls were found.  On my last day in Jerusalem we visit the Shrine of the Book where the scrolls are kept.

The Shrine of the Book representing the "Sons of Light."

A wall representing the "Sons of Darkness."

We exit the museum and load onto the buses.  The time has come to leave Jerusalem.  I will always remember this city fondly.  I will always remember with praise the work that was done here in me, from the Garden of Gethsemane, to the Wailing Wall, to the Garden Tomb.  His work here is done, but there's more work to do at home.  Amazing.  How great is our God!  Gadol Elohai!

The Valley of Elah

We have one final Biblical location to visit, located 45 minutes southwest of Jerusalem:  the Valley of Elah.

Now Jesse said to his son David, “Take this ephah of roasted grain and these ten loaves of bread for your brothers and hurry to their camp. Take along these ten cheeses to the commander of their unit. See how your brothers are and bring back some assurance from them. They are with Saul and all the men of Israel in the Valley of Elah, fighting against the Philistines.”  - 1 Samuel 17:17-19

Our group exits the buses and walks toward the valley.  Juda surmises that the ten cheeses were actually a bribe to encourage Saul to place David's brothers in a safer section of combat for the upcoming battle.  I try and imagine the armies of Israel on one side and the armies of the Philistines (including Goliath) on the other side.  I see the stream where David fetched 5 smooth stones.  Because of the drought, the stream currently sits dry.

Then he took his staff in his hand, chose five smooth stones from the stream, put them in the pouch of his shepherd’s bag and, with his sling in his hand, approached the Philistine. - 1 Samuel 17:40

The Valley of Elah.	Pastor Flick reads the story of David & Goliath from Juda's Bible.
The stream where David gathered the 5 stones dried up in the drought.	A stone from the stream the size of which would have been used in a sling.

At this point in Israel's history their soldiers wielded bronze weapons (with the exception of Saul & Jonathan) while the Philistines, who had discovered the secret of smelting iron, had superior iron swords.  An iron sword could completely sever one made of bronze.  The Israelites would not be able to rely on their weapons to defeat this army; only God could deliver them.

Not a blacksmith could be found in the whole land of Israel, because the Philistines had said, “Otherwise the Hebrews will make swords or spears!” So all Israel went down to the Philistines to have their plow points, mattocks, axes and sickles sharpened. The price was two-thirds of a shekel for sharpening plow points and mattocks, and a third of a shekel for sharpening forks and axes and for repointing goads.

So on the day of the battle not a soldier with Saul and Jonathan had a sword or spear in his hand; only Saul and his son Jonathan had them.

- 1 Samuel 13:19-22

When Goliath offered up his challenge I have a sneaky suspicion he anticipated Saul would step out to face him.  But Saul knew that the Spirit of the Lord had departed from him and he did not want to die.  Enter the young shepherd boy David who fought in the name of the Lord.  Historians know that the tribe of Benjamin, from which Saul descended, were experts in the use of the sling.  Isn't it ironic that instead of Saul someone from the tribe of Judah emerged with a sling?  God has a tendency to use those we would least expect to accomplish His will.  More than anything this story emphasizes (for me) that God defeated Goliath; David had only to do what the Spirit led him to do.

When I came to Israel I was battling anxiety and bitterness.  But I gave that battle to the Lord and followed His leading.  David's battle against Goliath was not won by a stone, it was won by the Lord.  My battle with my personal Goliath was also won by the Lord.  I still had to enter the battle, I just had to come in the name of the Lord.  My advice to those who face a Goliath (be it anxiety, depression, bitterness, or something else) is to engage the Lord's leading and enter the battle.

David said to the Philistine, “You come against me with sword and spear and javelin, but I come against you in the name of the Lord Almighty, the God of the armies of Israel, whom you have defied.  - 1 Samuel 17:43

Before I leave I enter the stream.  Because it has dried this year I have access to the middle of it.  I look for a small stone as smooth and as round as I can.  Passing over several, I find one I'm happy with and keep it as a souvenir.

Our Last Supper

One of several tables at our last meal in Israel.

For our last meal in Israel we eat at a nice Hebrew restaurant (I can't pronounce the name).  They serve us a 4 course meal as we reflect on our adventure.  Part of that reflection involves remembering the first 2 days and our struggle to get here.  It seems like a month ago.  As the journey comes to an end I can say with confidence that it was all worth it.

As our buses make their way to the Tel Aviv Airport the sun sets over Israel.  Likewise, the sun sets on our adventure.  I can hardly believe my eyes as we pull up to our gate:  we have to enter Tel Aviv through gate 33.  I feel God saying, "Hello.  I'm in control."

We leave Israel through gate 33 at Tel Aviv Airport.

My suit case is checked and I think of the souvenirs and pictures that I'm bringing home.  More important than what I'm bringing home with me is what I'm leaving behind.  All that bitterness and anxiety can stay put in the Wailing Wall.  Farewell.  My cup over flows; You led me to the Promise Land, both literally and figuratively.  This adventure may be over but my new life has just begun.

When anxiety was great within me, your consolation brought me joy.  -Psalm 94:19

Our plane touches down in the United States at the Detroit Airport.  Out of all the terminals in the airport we exit our plane through a symbolic one:  the terminal where we were originally told that we couldn't go to Israel.  I remember Pastor Mike's words on that day, “I’m sorry.  The trip has been cancelled.  You just can’t fit 60 people onto another plane.  I’m sorry.  The planes heading out to Tel Aviv over the next 3 days are all full.  Barring a miracle there just isn't a way.”

Blessed are those whose strength is in you, whose hearts are set on pilgrimage.  -Psalm 84:5

The time nears to deliver the chalice to my ex-wife to give to her boyfriend.