Giving Thanks

Every direction I turn, I see cause to thank God for His blessings to me. I think this has been one of my best Thanksgiving holidays ever.

I spent all day Tuesday with ancestors, at Mom and Dad's. The years are catching up with them. I need to see them every day I can.

On Thursday my attention turned to descendants. All my offspring gathered at daughter Rebekah's house. Spent about eight hours surrounded by the loves of my life. My Dallas Cowboys even won.

On Friday, the focus was on my soulmate, my sweet babe, the Babe Ruth. We went to The Chateau to use the gift card the church gave us for Pastor Appreciation Month.

Thank you, Lord, for your overwhelming kindnesses to me.

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Galilee's Capital

Sepphoris, the Roman capital of Galilee when Jesus lived, was located not far from Nazareth. The Roman Roads and Mosaics there are stunning. It was obviously a huge world of activity and life. It holds special interest to Christians because it was a beehive of construction during New Testament days. Many carpenters came from miles around to find work there.

One of the most popular spots in Israel is the Jesus Boat Museum. It houses a boat that dates from the first century A.D. It looks exactly like what we think of when we ponder Jesus in a boat with the Twelve. At the Chapel of the Beatitudes I led a devotional based on the Beatitudes. Stopped briefly at the Chapel for Peter's Restoration, where Jesus supposedly told him to "Feed My sheep."

We stopped at the spot where Jesus is said to have healed the demoniac and sent 3000 pigs into the Sea of Galilee. We then ate lunch at a restaurant where you can order St. Peter's Fish with or without a head. It's intimidating to eat a fish that's looking back at you. We rode a boat across the Sea. It's always moving to traverse the body of water Jesus and Peter walked on.

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Slaying Prophets

Twitter @john316marshall
www.facebook.com/john316marshallThe trip to Mt Carmel is worth the effort in order to see the gruesome statue atop it. It depicts one preacher in a bad mood killing another preacher having a bad day. Seems safe to say Elijah was a man's man.

Toured Megiddo. At the horse stables ruins, you can see an abundance of mangers. They are all made of stone, which is plentiful in Israel.

Whatever your end time belief, it is sobering to look down on the Valley of Armageddon. Napoleon called it the world's most natural battlefield.

Re-Married

Twitter @john316marshall
www.facebook.com/john316marshallAt Cana of Galilee, where Jesus performed His first miracle by turning water into wine at a wedding, several of us, including Ruth and me, renewed our marriage vows.

At Caesarea by the Sea we tested the acoustics of the Roman theater. Amazing. The Hippodrome, where horses raced, reminded me of the chariot race from the movie Ben Hur.

Lebanon and Syria

On our first full morning in Israel, we drove far north to visit Caesarea Philippi. The ruins of a huge pagan Roman temple there added poignancy to the confession Peter made there. In this city he said, "You are the Christ, the Son of the living God". The gods of Rome were among the first to fall before the advance of the Nazarene. I found it significant that the place where Jesus was exalted by Peter is also the place where nothing but ruins remain of a pagan temple.

As we drove up the valley to the north, we could see Lebanon to our left and Syria to our right. Both are military hotspots. Lebanon is controlled by Hezbollah. Syria is in a civil war. It was a bit eerie to drive so closely between the two hostile countries.

We toured Nazareth Village. Our tour guide and fellow Second Baptist member Cary Summers is the CEO of Nazareth Village. Over 150 movies have had scenes shot here. It is an amazing reproduction of first century Nazareth. It gives a genuine feel of what Nazareth was truly like when Jesus lived there.

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Tiberius

Twitter @john316marshall
www.facebook.com/john316marshallWe started our Holy Land visit in Tiberius. The Sea of Galilee was visible outside our hotel room. It was sobering to look out every morning and see the only body of water ever walked on.

From the time we left our house till we arrived at Leonardo Plaza Hotel we spent 26 hours in transit. It's a grueling trip, especially if you can't sleep on a plane.

Another tough part of the trip was the scarcity of wi-fi. I had thought a nation as developed as Israel would have internet access in abundance. Nope. It was tough to come by.

Israel

Last night about midnight Ruth and I returned from ten days in Israel with a group from our church. This was my fourth trip there; Ruth's third. Whether it's your first trip or your fiftieth, for believers, traveling to Israel is like going home.

The Holy Land is like a huge sermon prop that illustrates what the Bible is about. Aha moments abound in Israel.

For the next few days I intend to use this blog as a way to convey some of what we experienced there. I wish all of you could have traveled with us.

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Pray Over the Lost

To be saved, unbelievers must come themselves to Jesus, but before they do this, we believers should be bringing them before His throne in prayer. I encourage us to pick at least one lost person and never let go. Very few unbelievers become believers without having been prayed for first.

We know without doubt; the lost won't pray for themselves. We have to pray for them. We pray about ourselves much. I have been a believer 55 years. If I have prayed for myself only twice a day for all these years—and we all know we pray multiple times each day for ourselves—I have offered over 40,000 prayers for me.

Maybe you and I could slip some praying in there for the lost, many of whom have never prayed once for themselves. Blessed are the unbelievers who know if they go to Hell, they will at the last moment have to crash through a believer's prayers.

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