(2:07 pm)

Depending on who you believe (the pilot or the stewardess), I am currently flying at an altitude of between 28,000 & 33,000 feet. It's amazing how perspective affects one's relationship to your surroundings. As I'm flying high above the clouds, I am beginning to realize how my perspective & God's can be vastly different on the same subject. The distances that seemed so far when I viewed them from the ground, now seem ever so small. I can almost squeeze them between my fingers. The buildings that seemed to tower above the ground, now appear to hug it tightly. The mighty rivers and lakes are but broad strokes of a painter's brush.

I am beginning to see that while something may seem huge and impossible from my perspective, it is nothing from God's.

I also see the "bigger" picture of things from this perspective. While I can only see one facet of a forest or field, or subdivision from the ground, from the air I can see a beauty that is altogether absent from the ground. Lines, curves, colors, textures, shapes, order, symmetry, assymetry all emerge with new beauty. This "higher" perspective is definitely more appealing than that to which I have grown accustom.

I have also become aware of my limited scope of vision by way of distance as well. Although I may not be able to see further than a few miles horizontally from the ground, I can see many more from above. And the abrupt horizon that is seen from below is only a blur from above.

If only the prophets could have seen what I see now. Surely the Psalmist was correct when he said that יהוה "rides on the clouds."

(9:27 am—5:27pm Jordan)

We're on the bus that will take us to Israel. Our guide's name is Emad. He taught us two Arabic words:

marh'ba=hello
shukran=thank you

(5:03 pm—1:03am Israel time)

Well, I'm finally in Ha'Aretz! I've been here since about 8:45 last night. It took us about 4 hours to go from Ammon and through both Jordanian and Israeli customs and get across the Israeli border. Everyone in our group was searched at the Israeli border (with the exception of Tom). The woman going through my bags came across my fold-up keyboard and was impressed. She had to show it around. Everyone in my group seemed put out by the security measures, but I really didn't have a problem with it. I know they are dealing with some high-security issues and can't take any changes. It actually helped me to work on my Hebrew a little.

Anyway, once we safely arrived at our hotel, we were immediately taken to the dining room for a WONDERFUL (did I say WONDERFUL?) buffet meal with all kinds of middle-eastern treats. I thought I had actually gone to heaven already.

After dinner (about 9:30 local time) Dale & I walked into Tiberious (about 45-60 minutes one-way). We went to The Galilee Experience, which was actually closed, but opened for us. It is possibly the largest Messianic bookstore in Israel. We got to look around and purchase some things that I couldn't get anywhere else. We walked back, and my feet are ACHING big time. I was wearing new shoes, and they don't have the arch support I'm used to having.

Well, just wanted to log a little time as to what went on today. I'm sure I'll write tomorrow. Shalom!

(9:11 am—5:11 pm local)

Well, today was great until about 20 minutes ago. I made a foolish mistake when buying souvenirs. I purchased a book (a Siddur) that I thought was $17, along with a number of other items. After I paid for everything, rode the bus back to the hotel, and began to go through my items I realized that my Siddur wasn't $17, but $72!!! I hadn't paid any attention to my total at checkout. What a foolish mistake! I'll have to make it a family heirloom, and turn lemon into lemonade.

Today we had a wonderful breakfast, and departed for the dig site (Kursi).

Lord, may You be blessed for allowing me the experience of seeing Your Land it this lifetime. May Your name be praised for all generations.

I've been in Ha'Aretz now for two and a half days. Until now I have had really nothing to write about from a spiritual perspective. Last night was different.

As Shmu'el & I sat in our room after dinner we began to share our hearts regarding HaShem, Ha'Aretz, B'nei Israel & the Edat b'Yeshua. My head and heart were swirling with emotion and contemplation. I know that the Lord has appointed this time to be still and hear His voice. Now, I must be still in order to hear…

(3:41 pm—11:41pm local)

Today was a wonderful day, even though I got very little sleep last night. Dale & I stayed up talking until around 1:30 am, and we woke this morning at 4:45.

Today began with a simple snack of some type of pound cake & coffee or milk. We left from the hotel around 6:00 or so, and arrived at the dig site around 6:30-7:00.

We began by cleaning the site from all of the debris that had collected over the last year. We swept the baulks, walls & floors, removing bucket after bucket of dirt. After about 4 hours of this I could hardly breathe. My mouth & nose were filled with the thick, dark, Israeli soil. Every time I blew my nose it looked like mud.

We ate a modest breakfast around 9:00 or so and then went back to cleaning. I think around 11:00 we actually started digging in our new areas. The engineer marked off four new loci (square areas) to begin work. The poeple that were here last year began working on their previous loci. Margarite was working on recovering the Roman pot she had unearthed last year, and Paul & Nancy were working on opening the entrance to a new room.

In cleaning & beginning to dig we found several small potsherds (small pieces of pottery), as well as some ancient glass fragments, and even a camel tooth or two. Recently, the director of the parks in this region discovered two coins that had surfaced after the rainy season. One was byzantine, the other questionable date. I believe the byzantine coin had been recycled by the Muslims, because it had been re-stamped on one side with the word "Allah."

After the dig we came directly to the hotel where lunch awaited us. I cannot get over the wonderful food here. If I had been more hungry, I would have had the tallopia. It was baked whole, and had a wonderful fragrance. I ended up choosing a chicken & mushroom pastry that was very delightful.

After dinner we showered and discussed going into town. The spell of sleep came upon us and we were out for about a three hour nap. it was very refreshing.

Upon waking, we met for dinner and then Shmu'el, Tom (from Nazareth) & I went into town. We went to an internet cafe that was full, so we continued on. We ended up at the Galilee experience again. They allowed us to use their computer for internet access, and I purchased a few things while we were there.

We stopped by an Arab's shop on the way back. They were closing, but asked if we would like to look around. We did. They had some really nice stuff, but we ran out of time. We will visit them again either tomorrow or Thursday and make purchases.

I'm sore today, but looking forward to the days ahead.

Lilah Tov.

As I finish out my third complete day in Israel, I write with a plethora of thoughts regarding my day. My hand is cramping severely from using the digging tools all day, but I need to express a little of my thoughts and experiences from the day.

Although I worked harder today than yesterday, I feel really great. I'm not too sore, not too tired, and had a really good appetite for lunch. The highlight of the dig today was when a Byzantine coin was found by none other than yours truly. It was toward the end of the day and i was leveling out our locus. I turned over a smooth, flat, roundish object that looked like a rock. However, I noticed that it was consistently thin and felt like it had a higher density than a rock. I cleaned it off a little to see if I could find anything on it. I saw what appeared to be the silhouette of a person's head on one side and some letters on the other (I believe). It turns out that it is a coin from the reign of Justinias. I believe Pinchas (of blessed memory) said it was a 40 numia coin. Not only was it the first official coin find of this year's dig, but the most complete and least damaged coin to be found at Kursi to date. It will appear in archaeological journals and eventually end up in a museum. Wow!

And although that was a wonderful experience that immediately made me want to participate regularly on excavations, it wasn't anything compared to reading Sabrina's email today. As I read her words of genuine love, and listened to her share the experiences of her week, tears began to well up in my eyes. I could never trade her love for adventure, fame, wealth, or anything else. For she is worth far more than diamonds or rubies or fifteen hundred year old coins. Far more…

Today came early. It's about 5:30am, and I'm on the bus getting ready to go to the dig site. It's about a 25-30 minute drive. Although it's not raining at the moment, it is supposed to start raining and not stop until around noon.

It's really amazing to work with such great names in the field of archaeology. I feel as if I've become part of something larger. I've definitely "got the bug."

Here is a brief description of the info and findings of today as revealed during the pottery reading time:

Vase lightly cleaned

In Area D, we found tombs that have been positively identified. There were a plethora of antiques that were recovered. Vasilius is corresponding our finds to the Persian massacres in Judea circa 614 CE, where they slaughtered monks in monasteries across the land. We have found three rooms with lots of bones (underground). With the victims that were buried, the weapons that brought them to their demise were buried along with them. Weapons such as scythes, swords and spear heads were found. Along with those things were personal items such as rings, bracelets, coins, etc.

It was a remarkable discovery and will be featured in BAR probably next year some time. One of the most remarkable discoveries was a glass vase that was able to be removed from the earth entirely in tact. It was beautiful! It was late Byzantine / early Muslim in origin. I can't wait to see it cleaned up. However, it may be a very long time before that happens. It will have to go to Jerusalem to undergo special cleaning procedures. I may only see it in a journal report or in BAR.

[Read an interesting side note]

This wasn't part of my original journal, but the story behind finding the vase is worth telling. One of the ladies on the dig was using a small pick to dig up the dirt in the lower parts of Area D. Upon striking the earth and pulling back her pick, she noticed something in the dirt. She carefully used her hands to dig away the dirt near what she was seeing, only to realize that her pick had struck dead center into the opening of the vase - roughly 2cm or so in diameter. She was able to slowly and carefully dig up the near paper-thin glass vase from there. It's amazing the entire top of it didn't get destroyed.

Unfortunately, I was not in the group which found all of these items. However, I am extremely excited for them. Everyone needs their time in the spotlight.

On a side note, we received the first bit of rain today that Israel has seen in around eight months or so. It was the beginning of the rainy season and a blessing from the Lord.

Today was also my brother's birthday. I hope he had a wonderful day.

Pottery Reading

Pinchas just told us an easy way to identify marble and its origin. You take a rock and scrape it. If it smells like sulfur, it comes from Italy. If there is no smell, it is probably from Greece or Turkey. [Read an interesting side note]

I also found out that Israel does not have any native marble. Any marble that was used in construction was imported. This is very significant, since many of the large architectural structures such as Herod's palaces were wrought with marble. Tons upon tons of tons of marble had to be imported via the waterways either from Greece, Italy or Turkey. It is simply amazing what the ancients were capable of accomplishing with their "primitive" methods.

We left the hotel at about 8:00 after a long night's rest for some touring. Since it is Shabbat, all of the stores will be closed. However, we will be able to visit many sites and cities.

I just overheard Shai talking to someone about what they have been finding in Area D. He said that although they have been finding lots of human bones, they haven't found any skulls yet. This has lead them to the conclusion (along with finding artifacts such as swords and scythes) that these people were probably beheaded by the Persians as they came through. [Read an article by one of the members of Area D regarding this find.]

We are now passing the Horns of Hittim, where the tide turned for the Jews against the Crusaders. It is said that the Jews were hidden out at Hittim as the Cruusaders were marching through the area. As the Crusaders marched through after a long day's journey in full armor, the Jews saw them from the Horns and sent people down to surround the troops. They then set fire to the fields through which the Crusaders were marching. This turned the tide for the Jewish defense from the Crusaders and helped to push them back to defeat.

We have now come to the Church of the Annunciation, where it is said that Mary (mother of Jesus) originally lived. It has been tured into a modern shrine. It was very beautiful and very sad at the same time. We didn't spend very much time there, for which I am thankful.

We are back on the bus, and I just overheard Shai and another guy talking about Nazareth. They said it was not 70% Muslim. It is sad to hear that. It breaks my heart that the town of the Jewish Messiah has all but forgotten him.

We just completed our visit to Nazareth Village, a tourist attraction which shows daily life in the time of Jesus. It was very interesting and shed light on different things from that time period, such as the wine press, olive press, etc…

We are now at Sepphoris (Zippora / צפורי). It is an elaborate complex of buildings with multiple rooms and beautiful mosaic floors in almost every one of them. I took lots of photos that I hope turn out.

We just left Caesarea Maritime. It was a tropical paradise. It was where Paul was imprisoned during the last few years of his life. It was built as a Mediterranean sea port by Herod Antipas. one of the remarkable things about it is its completely man-made harbor, which stretches far out into the sea. Another incredible site was the miles of aqueduct that brought fresh water all the way from Mount Carmel (nearly 10 miles away).

One thing I failed to mention about Sepphoris is that many scholars are beginning to believe that this is where Yeshua may have spent a great deal of his childhood. Their reasoning is that first, Nazareth was an extremely small town during the time of Yeshua with estimates of anywhere between 100 and 500 pleople. Yoseph and Yeshua probably wouldn't have had enough work in their small village to sustain them. Second, Sepphoris was very close—about a 45 minute walk or so. It was being built during Yeshua's childhood, therefore attracting local craftsmen. [Read an interesting side note]

With the idea of Yeshua working in Sepphoris in mind, it is thought that this may be where he became familiar with the term "hypocrite" which he uses quite often against the moral failures of certain Pharisees. In the Greek language of the day, the term "hypocrite" did not have the connotation it does today. It merely meant "actor," or one who was pretending to be something he wasn't. Actors in a play were "hypocrites." Sepphoris, being a large city, one of the only ones in the region with a theater, where "hypocrites" were seen regularly. Yeshua transformed this term into an accusation against one who preaches a message that is not backed up by appropriate actions. Thus the term "hypocrite" has been used in this sense henceforth.

We are now passing through Nazareth Illit (Upper Nazareth) on our way to some sites. A little further up in the distance we can see Mount Tabor (Har Tavor). We just stoped at a little Greek Orthodox church in Nain. Nain is an entirely Mulsim village, and the church sits directly across the street froma mosque. We just got through listening to Charles's propaganda about how the God of Israel and Christianity is the same god of the Muslims. I am praying that Hashem will give him a "toad to Damascus" experience with the True God of Israel.

We just stopped at Tel Jezreel, the site of Ahab and Jezebel's palace, as well as their demise. You can easily see how this would have been a good choice for a palace in this area, overlooking three different valleys.

We are now at Ma'Ayan Harod, a national park where it is thought that Gideon brought the men to drink from the water. This is called Gideon's Spring, and the water flows from the mouth of a cave. It is very pretty.

I just said my second complete sentence in Hebrew to an Israeli. With Bryan's help, I asked for a pamphlet of the park (Hebrew version). I had forgotten, but last nigh I had asked a vendor the price of some clothes in Hebrew. Unfortunately, she responded back in Hebrew and I didn't have a clue what she said! Oi Vei!

We just came from Bet Alpha. It was extremely fascinating, with a video telling how the mosaic floor came to being. It was disappointing, however, to hear the conclusions reached by the majority of scholars that from this mosaic, pagan images were acceptable in traditional Judaism.

We just visited the Museum of Regional and Mediterranean Archaeology. it was interesting, but a little on the boring side.

We are headed to Bet She'an where we will have very little time to spend…

It was a beautiful structure/complex. However, it turned my stomach to hear of some of the things that went on here (based on inscriptions found in different rooms). It is too shameful to even talk about.

We have eaten lunch back at the hotel and now a handful of us are at Capernaum (כפר נהום). I am staying on the bus because the Franciscan priests who are in charge of this area will not allow anyone in without "proper" attire. One of the priests even came out a few minutes ago and told Zaki to turn the bus off because it was making too much noise. It truly reminds me of Yeshua's rebuke of the Pharisees in Matthew 23: "They tie up heavy loads and put them on men’s shoulders, but they themselves are not willing to lift a finger to move them." And again, "Everything they do is done for men to see: They make their phylacteries wide and tassels on their garments long; they love the place of honor at banquets and the most important seats in the synagogues; they love to be greeted in the marketplaces and to have men call them ’Rabbi’."

It makes me well up with righteous anger, while at the same time re-examine my life; especially when I read further: "In the same way, on the outside you appear to people as righteous, but on the inside you are full of hypocrisy and wickedness." Do I really measure up to the standard that Torah and Yeshua have set for us? This is a good time for reflection.

It’s about 5:30am, Monday morning. We are about to start our second week of the dig. We had a time change last night due to daylight savings. It was good to get an extra hour’s worth of sleep, even if I work up early. I forced myself to go back to sleep. Charles just announced that tomorrow we are waking up at 4:15 and leaving by 5:00 in order to make use of the daylight and cool temperatures. Charles also just made the comment that someone was excavating what they believed to be the ancient city of Ai. He added the comment, "if there ever really was such a city."

We are supposed to have about 16 people joining us today. I believe they are all college students. This should allow us to open two new chambers within the tombs, as well as a new locus in area C.

It was a good day of digging. We reached the floor of the locus we are working in. This was both exciting and disappointing. We had hoped to find mosaic floors. However, we found a smooth, marble floor. It was still good though, because the floor was in really good condition and it made us re-evaluate our assumptions about the area in which we were digging. This brings me to a very important issue that I’ve been struggling with.

They say if you have ten archaeologists look at a site and ask them about it, you will have one hundred opinions. I have seen first-hand how this is an accurate statement. And while a lot of times archaeologists do correctly interpret their findings, I have to say that when it comes to biblical archaeology, things are really messed up. Even Charles himself admitted that he was "a good archaeologist, but a terrible theologian." One of the most rampant problems I see with "biblical archaeology" is what I will term "normative absolution." When they come across something that appears several times, it becomes the norm. From there it enters into the theological realm as acceptable.

A prime example of this can be seen by looking at Bet Alpha. It is a synagogue that was built at the beginning of the sixth century. It is famous for its mosaic floor, which is a mixture of Jewish and pagan imagery. It has the ark of the covenant, menorahs, and a few other things at the top. At the bottom it has a scene of Abraham about to offer up Isaac as a sacrifice. In the middle, however, is a zodiac wheel depicting each of the twelve zodiac symbols with the sun god Helios being drawn by four horses in the center of the wheel (and the mosaic). Because of this (and other finds) many believe that since this type of thing was normative throughout different periods, then it is also an acceptable practice for the religion as well. It overrides any biblical precedent, based on the idea that these were not used as "objects of worship." My warning to those who would take this stance is that "normative" Judaism is what always got the Israelites into trouble. Whenever they began to assimilate into the cultures around them, they were on the downhill slide in their relationship with El Shaddai. As it is said at the Yad V’Shem Memorial: "Forgetfulness leads to exile; remembrance is the secret to redemption."