Jerusalem

Hey everyone!

I am sitting in a convent coffee lounge right now in Jerusalem listening to the sounds of the city thorough the open windows. I can hear a police siren off in the distance; a family next door celebrating some event (I think it is a birthday, but I don’t speak Hebrew—yet); the wind rustling through the ally; cars driving by; the occasional footstep of people in the ally below; a car horn honking at pedestrians who just crossed the street; two cats having a cat fight; and the Muslim call to prayer playing over the loud speaker from the mosque next door.

Oh, and the really whiny girl (not from our group, but also on a Study Abroad trip for the summer) on her laptop speaking very loudly to her boyfriend (maybe?) on Skype. I cannot describe to you in words how much whiny voices irritate me, but it is equivalent of God’s hatred of sin (okay, maybe not that bad). She is sitting here, complaining about how her trip is too long, and how five weeks is just too much on a twenty year-old (twenty years old!? REALLY!? I would have pegged her as fifteen by the way she was acting). She was saying how she just doesn’t like this place, and how it’s hard, and it’s hot, and how the food just isn’t good here, and how blah-blah-blah. I really want to go over there and slam her computer shut and say, “Look, you are twenty years old! Grow up! This is a Study Abroad trip for you! This is a foreign country—the Middle East of all places! Of course it is hot over here! Of course the food is different! Of course people walk everywhere over here! What did you think this was going to be, a vacation? Why not instead of complaining about how horrible it is, why not make it a learning experience and learn some appreciation for the people who live over here and not think only of yourself and your discomfort, hm?” But that would be very cruel, rude, arrogant, and rather sinful of me. The Holy Spirit in me quickly calmed the frustration and I relaxed. So anyway, back to the city:

It is so interesting how this city works. If you don’t know how the Old City of Jerusalem is laid out, let me give you a very brief sketch. There are four areas known as Corridors inside the Old City walls. There is the Armenian, Muslim, Christian, and Jewish Corridors, each labeled by the majority of people living in that section.

Yet where I am staying breaks the traditional “segregation” that the Corridors provide because I am living in a Roman Catholic convent in the middle of the Muslim Corridor. How does that work? I don’t know. I don’t ask, I am just thankful I have a place to stay that is rather nice.

It is very interesting the architecture here. The city is so crammed, the allys are narrow and people just keep building up. The buildings make no archetecural sense; they have multiple floor and various staircases leading to each level. I plan on making a video so you can see. You should be able to view it here. (Coming Soon)

Most people who are on a pilgrimage to Jerusalem stay outside the Old City in the New City in some fancy Marriott Hotel or something, so I am grateful to be right in the middle of the action—in the middle of history—as I stay in this very odd building. I feel it is so important not to just take the stereotypical tours but to really explore the full aspects of the city.

Jerusalem has provided me with a split view. On the one hand, this cities rich history has me love struck—I could live here if I really wanted to. The bizarre architecture and just how the city looks also captivates me and draws me in. I am quickly falling in love with city.

But then something happened to break me of my city-crush… a group of guys starts whistling at my girlfriend and some of our other girls in our group saying, “Come here baby and lets _____.”  One guy started to advance on my girlfriend when her back was turned on our way to the convent and I jumped between them and gave him the death glare of his life. He backed off and stopped laughing. His friends sobered up too when they realized I was serious. I didn’t have to say anything; I just gave them the glare and walked on.

Why are people like that? I know this isn’t only a Jerusalem thing. I know that other cities have that same problem. *le sigh* It just irritates me to no end. It just was not a great way to be introduced to Jerusalem.

I will let the rest of the week decide for me what I think of the city, but I am sure I will love it. Tomorrow, we have a very busy day.  But tonight, I am considering doing some parkour on the rooftops around the city like Jason Bourne… Nah, not really. Just joking. Goodnight!

Following His Call,

Adam

Leviticus 19:33

Qumran

Hey everyone!

Let me tell you about one of the coolest things ever (and possibly a thesis topic for me for my paper): the Qumran Dead Sea Scrolls.

If you don’t know the story, let me start from the beginning. Two Bedouin boys were wandering through the desert watching their goats near the Dead Sea and, to pass the time, started throwing rocks into caves up in the high cliffs. After a few rocks, they heard what sounded like glass shattering. Curious, they climbed up to the cave and found a bunch of very tall pots, and in them were these leather-like pieces.

Taking them to the market, they tried to sell them. After floating around in the market for a bit, they fell into the hands of a scholarly Rabbi who recognized them for what they were: scrolls with writing on it. Not just any writing, but the book of Isaiah.

Following the trail back, he managed to find those two boys and have them show him the cave they found them in. Thus started the archeological exploration of Qumran, and yielding over 200 scrolls and scroll fragments.

The best and nicest ones are housed in The Shrine of the Book in the Israel Museum. According to the curator of the Museum (who gave us a private tour), it should be more accurately named The “Temple” of the Book (based off the Hebrew translation. We soon found out why.

The building itself doesn’t look anything like a temple. The white onion dome on one side with water shooting at it and the solid black wall with flames at the top hardly looked anything like a temple. The curator told us that the building itself reflects the scrolls and the community they were from.

Let me backtrack for a second. The scrolls were written in Qumran, a sect that historians believe broke off from the Essenes and lived in a monastic community in the desert. Without going into too much detail (because believe me, I could write a short book on this), they shared everything together, ate together, and were really focused on ritual bathing and purity. They believed those priestly sinners in Jerusalem were making a mockery of Yehad (their name of God) and his kingdom.

They believed in a cosmic dualism, where God and his angels fought Satan and the demons on a daily basis at times. Eventually, they believed the world would end in a massive fight between the two opposing forces. While the Qumran community resembled Judaism, if was very obvious they had some different beliefs.

This cosmic dualism is presented in the structure. On one side, there is the white, curvy, onion-shaped dome with water flowing from it and a pool around it. On the other side, there is a black, rigid, wall-like structure with flames coming out of the top. As you walk through the middle of these two, you feel the tension and dualism presented.

Going down some stairs, you enter the “Temple” on the black wall side. Again, more symbolism, as entering the dark side of the complex symbolizes a spiritual journey you are supposed to take, ending up in the core of the white dome on the other side where the scrolls are kept. (More about the spiritual journey at the end. For now, know that you are supposed to go from darkness to light.)

The entire complex was designed like a formulaic temple with three main areas: the outer court, the inner court, and the holy of holies. While this building has nothing looking like an actual temple, the door was very temple-esk, and the three chamber idea was temple-esk.

The first chamber was the explanation of Qumran and how they found the scrolls. As you entered the second chamber, immediately you could tell it was supposed to be like a cave, similar to how they found the scrolls. Lined on the walls were various artifacts they found at Qumran cased in special glass cases.

Finally, you enter into the holy of holies: the place where the scrolls were kept. In the middle of the room, elevated on a large pedestal, was a large sculpture made to look like a scroll with the scroll of Isaiah wrapped around it so people could admire the entire thing. Lined all around the outside of the room were the other scrolls. Beneath the pedestal you could climb down a series of steps to get to the other important documents housed in the Shrine of the Book.

One was the Aleppo Codex, one of the most famous books in the world. (If you don’t know what it is, google it really quick, because I don’t have enough space to put it in writing on here.) It was so awesome standing just a few inches away from such a famous book that changed the world.

Anyway, the idea of spiritualness I said I would tie in from above. The curator was talking about how the Dead Sea Scrolls reach across religions, connecting Judaism to Christianity. The Dead Sea Scrolls only validated the accuracy of the Hebrew Bible and gave scholars the earliest copy of the manuscript to date.

However, Christians don’t realize the significance of the scrolls as much as they should. Let’s examine this for a minute. Could Jesus read? Yes. How do we know this? Because it says in Mark 4 that Jesus went to the Synagogue and read out a scroll. And what scroll did He read out of? Yep, you guessed it, Isaiah.

So, Christians are tied directly to this scroll, if Jesus Himself thought it important enough to read from, then we should really listen to it. Isaiah was the prophet who spoke of the coming Messiah and how He would liberate the people, freeing them from bondage.

It was really cool to see the scroll that contained the same words Jesus Himself read while in the synagogue. It really takes you back and reminds us of where we came from. Never forget where you came from; it is a part of who you are.

Following His Call,
Adam

2 Timothy 3:16

Day 26

Day 26: Masada, Dead Sea, Qumran, Nazareth, Bet She’an

Hey everyone!

Today has been such a long day! In fact, I have had to do two posts to describe it all. We started today finishing off our tour in Nazareth by seeing a very large famous church in Nazareth—the Church of Annunciation. What was really cool was how different countries donated different wall decorations for the church (many of which are in my photo album; you have to look them up). My personal favorite was the Japanese mural they donated. The Japanese Mary and baby Jesus really made my day!

Afterwards, we literally stopped by for a few minutes at Bet She’an, an old city that ruled powerfully during the first millennium AD.  We walked into the gate, went to the top of the ramp that led down into the city and took pictures. We then turned around and got back on the bus and headed to Qumran, because we were on such a tight schedule.

There were three major places I wanted to visit on this trip: Petra, Masada, and Qumran. Karnak was a close fourth, but I really wanted to see those three. We planned on visiting two of those places today.  I was so excited! Little did I know I would be disappointed… twice.

First there was Qumran. While I was totally thrilled visiting there, it was nothing I was expecting. It was just a small complex that was in ruins and a bunch of mountains. From the research I had done on Qumran before, I had painted a totally different picture of what it would look like in my mind. While it was disappointing to look at, I got over it quickly when I found a hiking trail that led up the mountain. Then I was greatly let down again as our professor yelled for us to get back on the bus, causing me to not be able to climb the mountain. Sad day… but I got over it pretty quickly. Small building or not, I still loved Qumran and expect to come back and spend a full day there.

Even more upsetting was Masada. I have had the biggest disappointment of the trip so far. I will try to explain this calmly so I don’t start any more misunderstandings (but this is another tick on my “Israel is disappointing me” tally). We went to Masada with full intention of hiking it. If you are unfamiliar with Masada, it is a series of palaces on top of a plateau that King Herod built and later became a Jewish refugee camp that stayed fortified until the Romans final came in took it over. The Romans besieged it for months trying to get in.  This place was the perfect military position because there was virtually no entrance.

Naturally, part of the experience of Masada is climbing up to the top so you can see the difficulty the Romans had at invading the location and why the Jews chose it as a hideout to keep them safe. In fact, the Romans had had enough of the problems and spent three years building a siege ramp to get to the top of Masada.

I was all geared to go to hike this thing when the people of Masada came out and said, “We are concerned for your safety; we don’t want you to get a heat stroke or heat exhaustion, so we closed the trail at eleven this morning. People cannot hike the trail.” WHAT!? I thought. I was furious. You are going to prevent me from doing it because it is too hot? Why not have me sign a waiver and let me go anyway?

It got better. The man then said, “But the gandala is still open. For thirty-five shekels, you can ride to the top.” The lift was the only way up. So, the only way we could see this monumental place was by paying even more money (after paying the money we had already spent to get into the park) to get to the top. In psychology, we call that marketing strategy “lowballing”.

I was furious. That is not cool. You don’t close the only free option of travel, especially if people are willing to risk the heat, and then force them to buy a ticket to see a monument they have already paid to see. The thing was, they didn’t tell us at the gate that we couldn’t walk it. They waited until we got inside before they were like, “Oh… we’re sorry… but…” Then they pretended like it was for our safety (which it may have been, but you don’t then charge people when you take away a free option).  

Apparently, that is the new trend across Israel: closing things at certain times, changing touring hours, and then charging more once you get there. We had to cancel other sites because they closed early or changed their touring hours and didn’t tell anyone; they just put a sign on the door.

For some reason, Israel has become sue-conscious. What is with people today? Why do really dumb people sue over really dumb things and then ruin it for everyone! From our knowledge, nobody had sued Masada that we knew of, yet they still implemented a policy to keep themselves safe. Has our world become that corrupt that we have to do things like this to keep ourselves safe? I’m sorry, but if you are dumb enough to climb a mountain in the heat and pass out from it and sue the park because they didn’t warn you, you don’t deserve any money.

However, as a park, you don’t take away people’s free pass and then charge them more to see the site they have already paid for. If you are so worried, get a few lawyers, create a legal document people can sign to climb up the hill anyway, and let them risk it. Don’t lowball them. That’s cruel.

Ok, rant over. Overall, I did have a great day. I did enjoy Masada, despite the setback. I guess I will just have to go there earlier next time and climb it up.

Following His Call,
Adam

Leviticus 19:15

Day 25

Day 25: Sephoris, Meggido, Bet She’arim, Chroizim

Hey everyone!

You know how in Day 10 I told you about how the complaining monster took over our group? Well, now the exhaustion monster has affected our group. We all were so tired today as we were traveling around that we had to cancel two of the areas we were going to visit because we just didn’t have the strength to go.

We ended up going to Har Meggido, which (if you are familiar with Bible stuff) is the place of the final battle. Can you hear the English word we derive from Har Meggido? It is Armageddon. It was fascinating standing at the same place so many battles have been fought throughout history. It’s no wonder why God choose this place as the symbol for the battle to end all battles at the end of time.

We also traveled to Sephoris, the place near Nazareth where Jesus may have gone with Joseph to work (because Nazareth was a very small village and most likely could not support the income needed for Joseph’s family). I could go into the whole story of interpretive history about Jesus and Joseph if you guys want me to, but I figured it would just bore you. If you want me to make a post on it, just tell me below in the comments and I will make one.

We also visited Bet She’arim, the necropolis of deceased Jews. We explored the catacombs, which was a blast. Afterwards we visited Chorozim, which was another part of the Evangelical Triangle (along with Bethsaida and Calpernium). It was in this Evangelical Triangle that Jesus did the majority of his teaching and miracles (or “power acts”, as our professor calls them).

After that, we had to quit. We were all exhausted and needed rest. We had not slowed down and had a break since Egypt when we had the morning off to ourselves to sleep in. Through Jordan, we had to wake up at seven every morning and go do something. There was a lot of travel and a lot of seeing stuff. There was virtually no rest time. In Israel, we would work from six in the morning to noon, do pottery reading in the afternoon, and attend a lecture at night. Averaging five hours of sleep each night for two weeks while performing manual labor is never a good idea.

It is very important in your life to have a Sabbath. By that I don’t mean a Sunday or Saturday when you go to church, I mean a day of the week you can just sit down and relax. We are designed to relax once a week. Even God took a day out of His week to rest. Who are we to think we are better than God?

This trip has shown me that we really need days of rest. Going constantly nonstop is wearing on me. If I am getting wore out, I can’t imagine how those people feel who go out and party at night and have hangovers the next day. (I would sympathize with them, but they did make the choice to go out the night before, knowing they would have to wake up at seven the next day.) Oh well, I'm glad they had fun. It's just not my idea of fun.

Just remember, no matter where you are or what your personality is, you need your rest. And I am not talking about a few hours at the end of the day; you need a day off, a full day, where you can fully rest.

What about you? What do you do to rest on your Sabbath day?

Following His Call,

Adam 

Exodus 20:8

Day 24

Day 24: Bethsaida Dig (Day 8), Mr. Arbel

Hey everyone!

Dang… I really hate it when I’m wrong. It’s not the being wrong part that bothers me; it’s the having to admit to other people I was wrong that bothers me. Maybe it is male ego. Maybe it is just my family heritage. Either way, it is pure pride and I need to suck it up and get over it.

Have you ever totally pegged somebody wrong? I mean, you look at them and based on your initial encounters with them you start to judge them one way, only to realize that after you get to know them better you find out you are totally wrong about them?

That’s how it was with Lloyd (if you remember me talking about him on Day 16). I totally got him as a know-it-all and usurper of authority, and in some ways I was right, but that one viewpoint totally wrecked my whole interpretation of him as a whole.

Ya know, you should never do that. Don’t be like me and just judge a person based on a few things you know about them, even if they did rub you the wrong way. People are complex and intricate; not everyone is as static and unchanging as movies would have them be.

Today, in the evening, we hiked Mount Arbel. This place was pretty historical, located very close to Bethsaida. In fact, at the top of Arbel, we could see Gamla, Chorizim, and Bethsaida over the sea Sea of Galilee. I was so blown away by the view and was so glad we went.

Not everyone attended the hike. Actually, only about six of us attended with Lloyd as our guide. The small group turned out to be great because we all stayed close together and moved pretty fast up the mountain because we didn't have to wait on anyone. What was really nice was the breaks along the way where Lloyd would stop and describe some history about the mountain and the people who had been there.

This is where I really started getting convicted. Lloyd was so knowledgeable, and a great teacher. He may have been over zealous, but he was very aware of us and how we were doing along the hike. He would tell us where to look and would take us places off the path to show us something interesting. Besides our guide in Egypt, Lloyd probably had to be the best guide we have had so far.

The best part of the trek was on the way back down. We actually rock climbed for a little bit, suspended on the side of the cliff going from ledge to ledge trying not to fall twenty plus feet to our deaths. All in all, it was invigorating and I was so thrilled. Lloyd proved to be totally not the person I originally judged him to be. At the end of the day, I learned more than I expected to learn. Go figure.

Following His Call,
Adam
Matthew 7:1

Day 23

Day 23:

Hey everyone!

Remember how I told you on Day 20 that I would tell you about the new group that came to Bethsaida to help us dig? Well, today is the day.

The guy who runs the new group (who was not present at the dig) runs a psychiatric clinic in the Christian Arab community in Nazareth known as “The Nazareth Village”. This small community has become a historic tourist spot because of its connections to first century Christianity in Nazareth (or so it claims; these things are very hard to prove and are many times just talk to make them popular). His wife (who brought the group to the dig) was a tour guide for the Village.

The volunteers from this group were in close proximity to my age and came from various states around America. Their internship at the Village could last for months or years, depending on how long they wanted to stay. Some people have been there for years. Some of them came back each summer to help. Some of them had just started a two year program. Despite their varying backgrounds and lengths of time they were staying, they all were very obviously Christian.

When I say they were very obviously Christian, I don't mean that in a bashing way. I mean they seemed like they were part of their own culture. It is interesting how Christianity has become a subculture in modern day. We have our own music, our own lingo, our own jokes, our own religious sites, our own connection of networks, our own books, etc. These people were obviously American Christians just by how they were acting.

Some people would see this as great. We were called to be different from the world--and these people are. They are not indulging in what the world indulges in. They are not speaking like the world. They are not acting like the world. They are not partaking what the world likes.

However, even at the dig site, this subculture has become a problem--and I don't mean in a God honoring way. This same Christian group has helped with the dig in years past. One time, they uncovered an ancient stele with a pagan god on it from the 9^th or 10^th century BC. This was a huge find for Bethsaida because it showed that it was inhabited by pagans before the Jews came in and made it a Jewish town in the 1^st century AD. Our dig leader was so happy, he wanted to see it cleaned up. He asked the Christian leader-lady to pick it up, dust it off, and wash it off so they could see it better. She looked up at him with a look of horror on her face and said (I’m paraphrasing here, obviously), “I am sorry, but I just can’t. I can’t touch a pagan statue like this. I feel like the Holy Spirit will be grieved in me and I will defile my body by touching it.”

Our dig site leader (a secular Jew) looked down at her with a look of utter confusion on his face and said (again, I'm paraphrasing here), “But you have been touching it before as you were digging it out.”

“Yes,” she said, “but that was before I knew what it was.”

Our dig leader started to get angry, “Why does that make a difference now?!” He composed himself and said, “Fine, I will have someone else do it,” and he called for someone else to grab the stele. 

As this story was related to me (because I wasn’t there), the dig leader was just beside himself. He was very upset with her and didn’t understand why she refused to do it. Being a secular Jew, he understood the purity laws and such, but she had already touched it and was messing with it before he came over and told her what it was. Why did it make a difference then?

I can sympathize with both parties. I understand her conviction to keep herself clean and pure. But at the same time, I don’t understand why she could no longer touch it after she knew what it was. Plus, she was working on a dig site where we find stuff like this all the time. From what we know, Bethsaida was predominantly pagan until the Jews came in, then was predominantly Jewish. There is no evidence it ever became Christian, even if Peter, Philip, and Andrew were from this area. From what we are finding, there is more evidence to believe the area stayed largely Jewish. There is so far no evidence of anything Christian in the area.

But that event wasn’t the only one. Someone in our group brought up some conversation involving bisexuals. I was not present, but I did hear the end of the conversation (when I got there) when the leader-lady say in a very condemning tone, “Okay! That’s enough! We don’t need to talk about this subject. Thank you!” Our group members were taken aback. From what I could hear (which was very little), they weren’t talking about anything graphic or detailed; they were just talking. It became obvious she was very uncomfortable with this topic and told us to stop talking about it.

To me, as a Christian, it was very rude. She was in so many words demanding that we talk about what she wants to talk about, not what we were talking about. I thought I was just being all huffy-puffy (like I normally am), but when I asked some other Christians on the sight, they said they were getting annoyed with the other group too.

This group was not just an isolated event. I run into this problem in college all the time. Christians today have become a subculture that is not relevant to the world anymore. I have heard more jokes bashing the Christian lifestyle, Christian radio, Christian music, or Christian talk shows than I have before while I am in college.

This is not persecution. Jesus said, “Blessed are those who persecute you on my behalf” (Matthew 5:11, emphasis mine). These people were not bashing the Christ-aspect of the what they believed; they were making fun of a subculture that seemed to want to separate itself from society. Those who made fun of the Christian subculture looked at the Christian subculture much like the Amish—only these same people give the Amish more respect than they do the Christians, because the Amish way of life seems to make sense to them.

Nowhere did Jesus say that we had to separate ourselves from the world. Nowhere did Jesus try to form His own clique or start His own club. He didn’t invent His own rules and expect people to follow them. He spoke love. He spoke truth. He shared life with people. He never expected anyone to change their opinions or way of thinking before following Him.

What He did expect was trust and surrender. You had to let go of what you were holding onto so tightly (like in the story of the rich young ruler) and let Jesus change you. He never expected us to change ourselves; He expected us to let Him change us in His time.

Why do we divide ourselves? Why are we afraid to get dirty? Jesus wasn’t afraid to get dirty. He went to where the sinners were. You can still get down in the trenches of spiritual warfare and keep your heart pure and not corrupted. 

Remember when you are witnessing to people to be sensitive to them. Don’t make them be sensitive to you. Keep your heart locked tight in Christ and don’t let anything corrupt it. But sometimes, we can give a little for the sake of being an example to others. Don’t let legalism tie you down. Serve God with strength and valor. God bless!

Following His Call,
Adam

Matthew 5:10

Day 22

Day 22: Bethsaida Dig (Day 8)

Hey everyone!

So, I am going to be honest, when I opened up my saved file of this blogpost, it opened to a blank page. Oops. I don’t know if I didn’t save this entry or if the computer restarted and I lost it. Either way, I have no recollection of this day. How sad.

It must have not been that important; it must have been a standard day. But, I will briefly talk about some of the wonderful ladies we worked with on the site. We worked with three ladies from Australia, and they were some of the nicest people I have ever met. One of them was going into the ministry like I was, and we had some awesome conversations!

She was talking about the calling experience, and I can really relate to that. If you want to be a pastor or something, it truly is a calling; it is not a career choice. Most people who make pastorship a career choice only last a few years then they are in a secular job again because of the headaches, stress, and stupid people (sorry to say that, but sometimes there are some really stupid people in church). The calling is not something you can get away from; it is a conviction you can’t describe. She was telling me how for years she ignored the call, saying, “God, surely you don’t mean me.” But that is the thing about the call, you can only run so far before He catches up to you and says, “Alright now, my child, it is time to do some work.”

Don’t get me wrong, it isn’t bad we were called into the ministry. On the contrary, it is a beautiful obligation. Yes, it is an obligation, but not a burden. Well, in some ways it is a burden, but a wonderful burden to bear; a burden I would gladly carry. To me, it is an honor, a privilege, like some fanboy who runs up to a celebrity and eagerly asks, “Can I carry that for you, sir?” And the celebrity responds with, “Sure, thank you son.”  

These ladies were so wonderful to us. They joked with us, harassed us, and helped us out. It felt like we had known them for months by the time we were done. I really respect them and I miss them greatly, now that I am back in the states.

Oh well, I know I will see them again someday. Until then, I pray the best for them.

Following His Call,
Adam

Psalm 100:2

Day 21

Day 21: Bethsaida Dig (Day 7)

Hey everyone!

Well, there isn’t much to say about today. We dug some more, listened to some pottery readings, and then listened to our professor speak tonight as the guest speaker. Overall, it just was kind of a blah day.

The blah-ness has allowed me to really think. After my posts in Day 7 and my revised views in Isreal, combined with my thoughts from Day 20, I just have really be thinking a lot about the future, both for myself and for the church.

For myself, I am solidifying my beliefs. Sadly, most people grossly misinterpret what I say and what I believe. Part of that is my fault based on my own delivery. Part of that are people coming to my arguments with their own presuppositions and then reading into what I am saying.

I honestly do not know how to fix this problem--not with Israel and Palestine, but with my speaking problem. I have been trying to be careful with what I say. I have really be trying to be fair and not one sided. However, it seems like I am supposed to be one sided in my arguments.

Don’t hear me wrong, I firmly believe that Jesus is the ONLY way to heaven. Unlike many modern Christian movements that lean towards Universalism (which I greatly disagree with), I actually believe that there is only one way to heaven, and that is Jesus.

Yet, even though I believe it, it seems like I am asked to believe so much more on top of it. While I am a firm supporter of solid doctrine, some beliefs I do not feel are important at all and really should not be debated. I believe we get so caught up in the specifics of the Bible (how specifically the world is going to end, which nation to support and which to not support, whether you should sprinkle or dunk during baptism, whether you are Calvinist or not) that we rank those up with the greater doctrines that are more important in life (like the Triune God or the validity of the God-Man: Jesus).

I have just found that people like this who rank lesser doctrines up higher with more solid, life-altering doctrines tend to push people away, as I have described with Susan in Day 20. We are unintentionally pushing people away as Christians because we are losing sight of our First Love.

Jesus should always be our main focus, and the basic doctrines of His teachings as outlined in the Gospels should be our primary doctrine. The writings of Paul and his other contemporaries (Peter, James, etc.) should be taken secondly as a whole. We should never take one verse and make an entire doctrinal stance on it.

All I know is that I love Jesus and that He loves me. I am working my hardest to serve Him, and He has presented me with opportunites to show how much He loves other people as well. I am FAR from perfect. I don’t know everything. (Sometimes, it feels like people expect me to have it all together and have all the answers, and it really sucks.) God is still working on me. I am still learning to trust and rely on Him. He is still showing me the full extent of His love.

Let us remember that as we are going throughout life. In every day, in every way, keep your eyes focused on Him. Let’s not get bogged down with the little things. Let’s not judge and ridicule those who are different than us. Let’s look for opportunities to witness and share God’s love to people. Let’s change the world.

Following His Call,

Adam

Hebrews 12:1-2

Day 20

Day 20: Bethsaida Dig (Day 6)

Hey everyone!

Today was interesting. Sam was fairly quiet (I think that he woke up too early to function properly). We got new people from the dig site today (I may write more about them tomorrow.... or maybe some other day). Lloyd left to go to a different site (FINALLY!). And I got to meet Susan Boyle.

Ok, not really. I didn’t get to meet Susan, but I practically met her twin. She looks the same, sounds the same, acts the same, and has the same mannerisms. It was fun for a while, until she blew up on me after I accidently stepped on her toe. She didn’t actually blow up on me, but she stepped up behind me in the food line very close, and someone had to move in front of me. I stepped back right on her toe, and she over reacted a little. I mean, it is one thing to be angry, but she just was silently enraged. I just backed off and left.

But yeah, nothing else really happened today on the dig site. It was pretty bland, yet still fun. I did run into a very prude British lady that subbed her nose at any food I offered her. After wanting to slap her, I calmed down and returned to my dig site.

The most interesting thing that happened today was my conversation with Susan (pseudonym). After the dig, I got to sit down with her and discuss some of our beliefs. The conversation didn’t start that way; we happened to stumble upon it after some previous conversation. What she said really made me think.

After belaying her disgust with some of the people who have worked on the site (and many of the stories were rightfully disgusting), she told us about “Dig-Site Love”. Apparently, it is not uncommon for people to hook up on the dig site after spending a few weeks together. What really baffled me was the number of affairs that have occurred on the site.  But what was really mind blowing was the number of people who were pastors. She never told us how many were pastors, but the fact that there were pastors who were coming to help dig on a biblical archaeological site having affairs while they were away from their family just made my heart sink. My heart groaned inside as she related to us the stories of broken love.

Transitioning from there, I told her that I was going to enter into the pastorship, and how much it disappointed me to hear these stories. The look on her face afterwards told me this was going to be an interesting conversation. We continued our conversation from some time, as we hashed out what each of us believed.

It became very apparent she had a huge disinterest in Christianity. I could tell by how she talked that she had some very poor experiences with Christians before. She asked, "How could Christians treat other people so poorly, and how they could be so condemning and judgmental of other people?"

I found that there is really no way to argue with her. I didn't try to. I didn't try to defend those Christians who hurt her in the past. I didn't try to justify their actions; I couldn't do that in good conscious. I didn't know what any of those Christians said to her. All I know is that her perception was not positive. 

What do you say to someone who has been so hurt by Christians? How do you respond to a person who has such bad experience with Christians?

I ended up agreeing with her. The way Christians (as a whole) have been acting recently has been horendous. Don't get me wrong, not all Christians have been like this; many of them have been exactly what Christ has asked them to be. But there are several Christians out there that are not representing Christ like they should. Many times, those Christians don't even know they are being a hindrance rather than a help.

Some of them are very well meaning, thinking that telling a person how much of a sinner they are will help them to see the light and want to repent. Sadly, this actually does the opposite. Half of the people today know they are sinners, so telling them they are wrong does nothing. In fact, some of them embrace the accusation, saying, "Yep, that's me, and I am having the time of my life," and no amount of yelling or convincing will ever get them to see otherwise.The other half of the people do not think there is anything wrong with them, so when you tell them they are sinners, love does not come across. Instead, the person hears judgment and condemnation. They think there is nothing wrong with them, so they think, "Who are you to coming into my life and tell me how wrong I am whenever you are no better than I am! We do the same things: I volunteer at a charity, give to the poor, raise my kids right, volunteer at school, and support my family. Who are you to tell me I am a sinner?!"

Jesus never went around and told everyone how much they were sinning and how wrong their relationship with God was, even though He had ever right to do that. Yes, He preached a message of repentance, but not a message of condemnation. Think about the difference. The only people he seriously corrected were the religious fanatics of the day: the Pharisees--those men who did walk around proclaiming their own righteousness and condemning others around them (Luke 18:9-14). Susan was hurt by these religious fanatic people, who were well meaning, but sadly mistaken.

Not to mention Susan was also disgusted by the hypocrisy in the church. She had a hard time believing Christians preached love and acceptance when they wouldn't even let homosexuals in the church. Susan pointed out how Christians seem so focused on the rules and making sure they are so pure and right that they really turned her off. She had met some ladies who were not allowed to cut their hair and could only wear skirts and no make-up. In addition, they could only watch certain movies and could only listen to certain types of music. Susan was appalled that, if she was to convert and become a Christian, that she would have to abide by all these rules. She didn't want anything to do with a legalistic system.

I think sometimes Christians today, in their strive for righteousness (which is a truly admirable and noble ambition,one I am lacking and need to improve upon), end up turning people off from the Gospel, because the message of prudence because of love does not translate, but instead comes across as legalism. Instead, we need to engage in some helpful dialogue with people to explain to them why we do what we do, focusing on Christ first and foremost, not the righteous behaviors we have adopted out of love for Him. Many times, we accidentally focus on the rules we have made for ourselves and expect people to abide by those rules before they accept Christ. For example, people expect a homosexual to give up all of his homosexual lifestyle before coming to Christ, or a smoker to give up smoking, or a person who cusses profusely to stop cursing entirely. Christ never put any stipulations on salvation. He simply said, "Follow me." God will work out their salvation on His time, not ours. He will work on their heart, and when they are good and ready, He will change them.

Talking with Susan really opened my eyes to the current state of the American church. I have really been thinking and praying about it recently, and I will be writing a post about it later on. But for now, I need to do some more thinking and praying. What do you think? Am I right? Am I way off? What problems do you see in the church today and how can we fix them?

Following His Call,
Adam
Matthew 7:2

Day 19

Day 19: Acco, Haifa, Caesarea Maritima

Hey everyone!

Here we are in another day of excursions and travel (i.e. another day of tiredness). Right now, we are in Haifa, listening to a lecture on the psychology of the conflict against Judaism. I am having a hard time following, not because I am typing at the same time, but because I am not sure what point he is trying to get across. He keeps talking about anti-Semitism and how Billy Graham and Richard Nixon made some bad comments, but I don’t get his point. *le sigh*

We have already stopped by Acco/Aaco/Akko/Aako (however you want to spell it, just pick one). Acco is a maritime city, one of the most influential in history. Sadly, we did not get to explore it all. We had to rush to Haifa for this meeting.

(…a few hours later…)

I finally understood what this guy was trying to say. I really started to piece together his argument after we started asking him some questions. You can see what he talked about and my take on it here (Coming Soon). But anyway, back to today.

We just finished eating dinner after swimming for a long time in the Medditerranean Sea. That was a blast! I can finally say I got to swim in the ocean (after two years of missing my family vacations). I was starting to have withdrawals. Yet the beaches were nothing like Daytona Beach. These beaches were sandy up to the water, then it became a rock shelf for a long time. You had to be really careful when venturing out so you didn’t cut your foot (which sadly happened to one of our team members; we all sympathized with him).

Sam wanted to go out in the water too, but was not familiar with the ocean. As it turned out, our swim in the ocean became him clinging to my arms or neck as I tried to swim from one rock to the next while dodging waves at the same time. I still had fun. I always feel so accomplished when I help kids out with stuff like that.

I did get to take some underwater footage on my camera. While they are not that impressive, I think it was just flippin’ sweet I even got to do that! I hope to put the videos on line soon. You can see them here (Coming Soon).

 What was just as cool was venturing around Caesarea Maritima. That place was so cool, considering it was right on the coastline, not to mention absolutely gorgeous! One of the coolest things I found out was that they are doing underwater archaeology. I want to do underwater archaeology! That sounds so cool! Much of the city fell below the sea after massive earthquakes racked the region. I just want to see what underwater archeology is like. That sounds so much fun!

Anyway, I am exhausted. I am off to bed now. Goodnight!

Following His Call,

Adam
Philippians 2:5

Day 18

Day 18: Tel Dan, Banias, Nimrod’s Fortress, Gamla, Quasrin, Jacob’s Crossing

Hey everyone!

Oh my! I am so tired after today! I was tired to begin with after a long week’s work on the dig site; my body naturally wanted to rest. However, we were not allowed to rest as we traveled all over the Galilean region and visited these historic sites. We went to six different places and explored each one. Between that time, I tried to catch up on some sleep on the bus to no avail. I will go one by one and describe each of the places so you know what they are.

Jacob’s Crossing

This was a famous Crusader castle right in the middle of a natural geographic passage way from the Mediterranean and Damascus. To the north were swamps that no person could cross and to the south were mountainaous terrain and valleys that were uncrossable. The place had been used for millennia because of its strategic location, but no archeology had really existed on the site until they started uncovering the Crusader castle.

In a nutshell, the castle was one of the few castles built for offense. It was designed as a staging station to launch sieges to Damascus. However it was quickly destroyed by Sal-Adim before it was finished because of its potential threat. One of our dig site leaders worked on her dissertation on the site and led us through the tour.

Quasrin

This was a Medeival jewish settlement in the Galilee region. The site became known for its olive presses and exportation of olive products. You could say that this village was somewhat like the precursors to the Kibbutz society.

Gamla

This was one of my favorite places! It was so beautiful! “Gamla” is Aramaic for “camel”, and rightly named because it is literally a hump out in the middle of this mountain range. It was housed my many Jews in late antiquity and well fortified because of its location. We climbed to the top and saw the ruins of the city and the place where, according to Josephus, five thousand people jumped to their doom, committing suicide rather than being taken by the Romans. It was pretty intense.

Nimrod’s Fortress

This place was quite fun as well. Sadly, we only had about forty minutes to explore the place. The fortress situation at the top of the hill was used for centuries, but was made well known during the Crusader times where it became a safe haven for Muslims. After the Muslims conquered Acco, the fortress became less important and became a prison during the Ottoman Empire. IT was still awesome to run around in the ruins and explore the castle.

Banias

Named after the Greek goddess Pan (the goddess of the forest and animals) after Alexander the Great conquered the region, Banias became a Hellenistic religious center that housed temples of Pan, Zeus, and Aphrodite. Today, it is a GORGEOUS national park that we had a great time hiking around in and exploring its vast landscape.

Tel Dan

If you haven’t heard this name before, let me tell you about how significant it is. First, some background: if you have been raised in a Judeo-Christian background, you are familiar with the story of King David, “the man after God’s heart.” During the reign of King David, the kingdom of Israel grew exponentially, reaching into neighbors borders. This was considered the Golden Age of Israel, judging from how the Bible describes it. His son Solomon succeeded him as king and was well known among the nations as the Bible describes.

Problem: Neither King David nor King Solomon are mentioned anywhere else in history; they are only mentioned in the Bible. Because of this, some scholars question whether or not David, Solomon, or their kingdoms actually existed because nowhere else in history is it named. Most every other King mentioned in 1 and 2 Kings are mentioned by other nations, but not David or Solomon. Because of this, some people believe that David was more of a King Arthur figure, not the man everyone claimed he was, but a figure head people could look to.

Well, at Tel Dan, this problem was finally put to rest because they found an inscription on a stone tablet that a soldier was writing to his father (possibly) describing his defeat of different kings all from the “House of David.” Strangely enough, this was the only reference outside of the Bible to David, but gives validity to the fact he was a real person. This find was monumental and settled many debates.

Anyway, that is the story of all where we went. I am tired (obviously) and am off to bed. So I bid you all good night and I will talk to you tomorrow.

Following His Call,

Adam

Acts 13:22

Day 17

Day 17: Bethsaida dig (day 5)

Hey everyone!

“It’s Friday, Friday, gotta get down on Friday…” Sorry, I couldn’t help it. It is Friday here and the last day of our first week of digging. Today, there is no lecture and no pottery reading. That means, FREE TIME!

I haven’t had free time in so long, we are actually just sitting here and doing nothing. When I say that, I mean there are several of us just sitting here, not moving, not talking while Sam runs around and annoys us. Honestly, we don’t mind. We are just too tired to fight him right now.

Today was alright. I got to work in the heat all day outside of the shaded tarps. Our leader asked me to clear a site for digging, and honestly, it was way more work than I anticipated. I found myself hoeing, shoveling, and throwing rocks all day and still didn’t finish half of it.

On the bright side, Lloyd found a new job that kept him constantly busy. He was running around surveying and mapping the site. Sam was very well behaved today, more so than usual. And we found two more dead guys, so I would call the day a success.  Sadly, I didn’t get many pictures, but I should get some more on Monday.

Anyway, this is a short post; I don’t really have much to say. God is good. I am loving this. Talk to you later.

Following His Call,

Adam

Exodus 20:8

Day 16

Day 16: Bethsaida Dig (Day 4)

Hey everyone!

Today was interesting. We didn’t have Sam constantly on our site and crawling all over me as I am trying to dig. It was a relief. It is nice to get away from little kids for a while. But I have to say I did miss him a little bit. I have grown very attached to the little guy.

But our work was far from pain free. One of our other workers—lets call him Lloyd—was extra annoying. It’s not that he is an annoying guy or that his personality and mine clash. The problem is that he is extra hyper super eager to help and do things.

Lloyd can’t stop. I mean, he has to stop to eat breakfast and drink water, but other than that, if you don’t give him something to do, he will create for himself something to do—many times making it more difficult than it needs to be (for both him and us).

What is funny is that he isn’t a little kid or even someone my age (which I still consider a kid). He has to be in his mid-forties. Yet, dispite his age, he is in excellent shape and a good help. He is just annoying.

For example, this morning we needed to set up a shade tent so we could work sifting out of the sun. We have these large, black, archeological shade-tarp-thingys that stretch over the top of our dig sites to give us a break from the sun. Normally, it should take a maximum of about fifteen minutes to set up. With Lloyd, it took an hour because he kept adjusting it and trying to fix things.

Another example: when he got back from lunch, he decided to put up another tarp (many of us groaned). It took him another 30 minutes to saw off a tree branch with a pocket knife to use it as a pole to support the new tarp.

It isn’t just his over eagerness that urks many of us; he also tends to take things upon himself and--if he doesn’t agree with the authority--will often go against it. This is a BIG no-no in my book. You don’t go against the authority because you think you know more than they do. I’m sorry, Lloyd, but you do not have a degree in biblical archeology. You have a degree in physics. Do NOT usurp the authority of the people who do have a degree in archaeology.

For example, he asked our dig leader of the entire project if we should move these stones that were next to the road so we could excavate underneaths it. Our leader said to not move the stones, that it might be a grave so we should leave them there. After he left, he looked at my girlfriend and said, “Let’s ask Rudy (pseudonym; our site leader for our specific section of the dig) what she thinks we should do.” My girlfriend was like, “Uh…. No.”

In addition, my girlfriend asked our professor (who has a doctorate in Biblical Studies and has been with the site for 21 years) whether or not to dig in a particular area because the soil was hard (that indicates it may have finds in it). Our professor said to not dig on the site, but to clean it off very well so we could start digging. My girlfriend took the next half hour to prepare the site, cleaning it with a brush and such. She leaves for a bit to help sift soil, and comes back to find Lloyd totally dug up half of the square already. She thought he had just made a mistake, so she didn’t say anything and left again. When she came back a second time, the whole thing was dug up. Yeah, you could say she was furious. I was furious for her. He was really starting to hack me off.

I just don’t know how to approach this man. He is way older than me, works at a college, and has been here a few years to help with them. He has a great passion for the project. He is very resourceful and helpful (I mean, shoot, he cut a huge tree branch down with a pocket knife, come on!). But how do you tell someone like that to back off and listen to instructions when you are his inferior in every way?

Idk. Just be in prayer for me as we move into day 5 of the dig. Please and thank you!

Following His Call,

Adam

James 5:8

Day 15

Day 15: Bethsaida Dig (Day 3)

Hey everyone!

Today was a hard day. I got to go around with the wheel barrow for hours collecting dirt in people’s buckets and dumping them down the hill. Occationally, I got to dig and help set up tents. But probably my biggest achievements of today was organizing their tool shed (because it was a disaster). I felt so accomplished when people could actually walk from the front to the back with no problem.

While organizing the shed was my biggest achievement of today, it was far from my most memorable event of the day. The most memorable was on the dig site with Sam. It was around 11:00 and we just finished our pop-sickle break (no joke, we have a pop-sickle break every day), I was sitting on the ground and Sam was leaning over my shoulder like a throw rug, making me very hot and uncomfortable. I was just about to tell him to get off when he said, “Adam, I am sweating like hell out here.”

At first, I was taken aback by the statement. I REALLY hate it when kids cuss, and while saying “I am sweating like hell” may not be a cuss word, I put it in the same category as Kids-Should-Not-Be-Saying-These-Words-or-Phrases. My first reaction was to say, “Hey hey! Don’t say that! You shouldn’t be saying things like that!”

But that was God’s moment I have been waiting for. While others reacted disgusted, I simply responded, “Why do you say that, Sam? Do you even know what hell is like?”

“Yes, Adam!” he replied in his know-it-all voice. “It is a place of constant fire and is always hot.”

“Yes, you are absolutely right,” I replied calmly, “but do you know what else the Bible says? It says it is a place where the worm never dies, meaning that worms will be crawling all over you and you will never die. It is a place of eternal darkness and nasty smells.”

“And you will wish that you can die, but never can,” my girlfriend slipped in smoothly.

The look on Sam’s face showed he was concerned and wanted to know more. “How do you stay out of hell then?” he asked.

“It’s easy,” I said. “You know who Jesus is, right?”

He rolled his eyes, “Yes, Adam, I know who Jesus is. We have talked about him before.”

“Ok. So do you know what Christmas is about?”

“Santa Clause?”

“It may seem that way now, but traditionally, it celebrates the birth of Jesus Christ when He came into this world.”

“Oh yeah, I knew that…” (Sure he did...)

“Do you know what Easter is about?”

“Yes Adam! Everyone knows what Easter is about!” Sam started sounding frustrated.

“Can you tell me what it is about then?”

“No,” he replied defiantly. “I don’t need to. Everyone knows what it is about.”

Sensing his frustration at not knowing, I calmly replied, “It is the date of Jesus’ death and resurrection. Jesus was an innocent man. Yet people killed Him because He said He was God. They nailed Him on a cross and left Him there to die. Three days later, he rose again from the grave, showed himself to his disciples, and then ascended to heaven.”

Sam sat there listening, showing no reaction. He had no expression on his face. I continued,

“All you have to do is ask Jesus to save you from hell and He will save you. You just ask Jesus to save you and then you become his best friend. Since He is your friend, you will do whatever He asks you to do.”

At this moment, another person came into our conversation, and the topic was shifted. Sadly, the conversation died before I got the chance to finish it. I am still happy; the seed has been planted. I hope to keep talking to him about Jesus. I wanted to start light, considering he has never heard of Jesus before. I couldn’t start with sin and depravity and how worthless we are as humans. That would turn him away. I had to start with the person Jesus and how awesome He is.

I want to really get to the point where I can share with him openly the Gospel. God has made a way so far, I am sure He will make another. Please be in prayer for Sam as I try to witness to him. Pray for me that God will speak through me.

Following His Call,

Adam

2 Timothy 4:2