Revisiting Israel

IT’S ALL OVER THE NEWS.

Israel is again at the center of attention. The reports coming out of the Holy Land bring back all the memories. Memories that are not just of a distant place far away, but a familiar one that carries huge significance for me—and for the world.

AS I GET OLDER, my bucket list seems to get longer, not shorter. Places I want to go and things I want to experience, with very few coming even close to my travels to the land of the Bible. I have been blessed to be able to go to some amazing places that I would have never dreamed possible, and Israel is definitely at the top of that list.

BEFORE I MARRIED, I was a travel consultant at a travel agency and would have never believed that I would have the privilege of visiting the incredible places I have been. Many of these have been once-in-a-lifetime experiences, and for the most part I am satisfied with just one visit—very content to cross them off my bucket list–but not Israel.

THE FIRST TIME YOU VISIT the land of the Bible it is life-changing and a bit overwhelming. There is so much to see and to experience. So much so, that when I left that first time, I knew that I had to return one day. And we did. Every trip a new experience. The second visit reminded us that traveling to The Holy Land is not just a trip—it is a journey.

TIME IN ISRAEL brings new insight, fresh perspective, and renewed purpose. It is not just a place where history happened. It is where the Bible comes alive and where faith is revealed as you walk where Jesus walked. Cobblestone streets, olive groves and Bedouin shepherds are a reality, not just a part of the past.

STANDING ON A “JESUS BOAT” as nets are cast on the water; the smells, the sounds, and the taste of fresh fish out of the Sea of Galilee take you back in time where you sense what it might have felt like to see Jesus walking on the water.

THE GARDEN OF GETHSEMANE and the Garden Tomb are two of my all time favorites places to visit. For me, personally, it was not the churches that inspired me— it was the stone walkways and the ancient olive trees that invited me to walk with God down a path that would change forever how I read the Bible. I am a visual learner, and experiencing God in Israel changed my entire perspective of His Word. Coming even more alive in my heart, I see it more clearly every single time I read it.

Every single time.

“…This Jesus of Nazareth was a man attested to you by God with miracles, wonders, and signs that God did among you through him, just as you yourselves know. Though he was delivered up according to God’s determined plan and foreknowledge, you used lawless people to nail him to a cross and kill him. God raised him up, ending the pains of death, because it was not possible for him to be held by death… God has raised this Jesus; we are all witnesses of this.” Acts 2:22-24; 32

WHEN the time of Lent comes and we approach those days of Passover and Easter, the events of Holy Week play over and over in my mind. I revisit Israel with vivid memories of the Garden, the Via Dolorosa, the Garden Tomb and The Place of the Skull. At Christmas time I am taken back to a place that continues to fascinate me. A place that draws me back to where our stories all began from creation to the crucifixion to now; a place that I will once again return to, if the Lord allows it. (We are taking a group in December 2026!)

IF YOU ARE A BELIEVER, God’s Word can come alive for you whether you ever get to travel to Israel or not. It may seem overwhelming at first, but reading God’s word is a place of discovery. In it you will find His story–from Creation in the book of Genesis to the end of time in Revelation. The more you read through the Bible, the more you will discover—and the more you will want to know. Even without traveling to the land of the Bible, you will begin to see the incredible plan He has for all of His creation–the most prized and glorious of all being mankind. And that includes you.

“For God loved the world in this way: He gave His one and only Son, so that everyone who believes in Him will not perish but have eternal life.” John 3:16

GOD’S WORD is a gift. A treasure that is worth far more than anything the world has to offer. Why not consider taking a journey through the Bible. Start with the book of John if you’ve not read much of the Bible.

IF YOU WANT PERSPECTIVE, read the first four books of the New Testament: Matthew, Mark, Luke and John. These all are all four accounts of the life of Jesus by four different men who followed Him.