June 9, Monday - Sinai Desert

Wow!  Our first full day here was full to say the least.  After an early breakfast we got on the bus for a 2 ½ hour drive into southern Israel and the Sinai desert (Timna Valley).  This was further south than I had gone last time so this was all new territory for me. 

Even in the middle of nowhere - a MacDonald's!

A little guy at a rest stop on the way

Out into the desert

We got there about 10:30 in the morning and started hiking.  As usual, John would not tell us how far we were going or what we would see until we got there.

We soon learned that this area was where many of the Israelites worked smelting copper for the Egyptians.  It was also an area where Moses had tended his sheep once he fled Pharaoh.  And this was an area that the Israelites and Moses crossed through as they were leaving Egypt.  I had always thought of the desert in the bible like the typical Sahara desert – sand dunes with nice soft sand.  Nope, it was hard rocky ground, hot, and barren. 

As we studied the story of Exodus and the reasons why God, who loved his people, would bring them out into such a harsh and desolate place for 40 years, I came to see how God wanted to cleanse them of the Egyptian ways (they had been in Egypt for 400 years) and teach them to trust Him to provide what they needed.  It quickly became obvious to us that without God’s constant support of the Israelites they could not have survived (and it only took us 4 hours to learn this!).  It really helped open my eyes to the fact that I often do not trust God as much as I should and let worry enter in where it is not needed. 

We studied the covenant God made with his people and how the 10 commandments are a loving message of how to be happy rather than a list of do’s and don’ts.  Being out in these locations puts us into the bible stories and it is so easy to get a new perspective.  That is not to say that the impressions I get here are automatically correct, but it is already giving me the tools I need to better see how to bring God into my life and things I can do to get stronger in my faith.

Some serious erosion

I don’t mean to delve too deeply into the theological aspects of the trip, but I’m hoping that knowing a little of the effect it is having on all of us may encourage some more of you to take advantage of this experience sometime yourselves.

Once we finally reached the end of our hike (thankfully the bus was at the other end and we did not need to go back to the start!!!), we stopped for lunch.  Lunch is most likely going to be the same each day.  Pita bread, humus, turkey, cheese, chips, and apples.  I’m still not a humus fan so I skip that.  I may have to break out the peanut butter I brought tomorrow for a change of pace (and so I don’t have to think about bringing it back with me).

The Tabernacle

After lunch we had 2 more stops.  First we visited a scale model of the tabernacle (The wood and tent structure used to house the arc of the covenant during their time in the desert and until a temple could be built).  It was fascinating to see and the woman who talked about it was excellent.  You can read more about it at www.berean-to-berean.com.

Finally we hiked out to one more location in the desert (just in case we forgot what it was like) and finished our discussion of the Exodus.  John says this will lay the foundation for many of the other sites and teachings we will experience over the next 12 days. 

On the way back we passed large 'farms' which were a combination of date palm forests and tented areas.  Under the tents they grow a variety of things - using the tents to help cut down on some of the intense sun, and keep birds, bugs, and other animals away.  The ground around here is very fertile but it is the lack of water which keeps it so barren.  In areas where they can irrigate, they can grow quite a lot.




Tomorrow we head to Bethlehem and more sites along the way, so I’ll get this posted, drink more water, and head to bed soon.  I really have not had a problem with jet lag.  Between all the time out in the sun and the strenuous hiking – sleep has not been a problem!

Speaking of the hiking – today’s hikes were 4.25 miles (13,000+ steps), bringing the trip total to just 6.25 so far.