Wednesday March 3, 2010
DREAMS DO COME TRUE!!
CINDY
Bye Bye Jerusalem and Hello Dan! 
Today we left Jerusalem and headed toward the buffer region between the Israelites and the Philistines. We went to Bet Shemesh (house of the sun) where the ark of the covenant was for some time before it was with the Philistines. From the ruins we could see the new modern Bet Shemesh with its red tiled private home and where Samson grew up on the hill close to Bet Shemesh (cool!) We then went on to see the amazing Elah Valley.. as we drove on the road,hills(mountains.. but they looked like hills to me) flanked us on each side and I could just imagine the Philistine army in their armor standing on one side and the Israelites standing on the hills on the other side. Wow, just the grandeur of it all. We parked right on the side of the Elah Valley. I could just imagine Goliath coming out and facing up towards the hills of the Israelites and mocking them and asking “is there anyone who would dare to come against me” (paraphrased).. this massive 9 foot man coming out day after day for 40 days and the Israelites not even responding .. just standing there.. UNTIL David comes and hears Goliath and goes out to meet him with his five smooth stones. Wow. I could see lil’ David coming down that mountain with all the Israelites watching him (including his brothers) and Goliath out there in the valley just watching this lil’ ant come down the hill towards him in complete disbelief and humor. And yet this lil’ guy beat that giant with one stone. I can imagine the faces of the Philistines going from complete laughter as they watch David come up to Goliath to their draws dropping in shock as they watch Goliath hit the ground after a stone hits him on his forehead. Wow! As we drove away I remembered how one Sunday school class I had the fleeting thought “I would love to go there someday and see it for myself” and I did!!!!
Another cool place we went to was Meresha. We were going for a Dig-for-a-Day Experience. I highly recommend it! We also spelunking-crawling through a half excavated 22oo year old cave where the only light came from a few candle sticks placed here and there. So much fun! such an adventure slidding on your butt through small cave openings, getting dirty, and discovering what it looked like underground for some of the houses that used to be there centuries ago!!! I felt so alive. It felt like an Indiana Jones movie! hahaha!We went to a site they have been digging for at least 25 years and have uncovered so much and are continually digging. Archaelogists discovered about 5,000 caves underground where people seemed to have basements to their houses, which they burned down and filled the caves with dirt as they left Meresha (when it was overtaken by the Maccabees) So we got to go in one of the caves and dig. I was in a group that was digging in a room of the cave called “Cultic.” After a few instructions, I couldn’t wait to start to dig and unearth some treasures!! eEEEeeee!! I sat on that some moist chalk dirt and began to broke through with my archeaologist’s tools ☺ I felt like a professional. The cave was dimly lit and it was just a perfect 70 degrees inside…perfect digging conditions. I contined to dig and haul the dirt in a bucket.
My first find: a piece of clay pottery. I was excited!! Yaaaay! Then as I continued to dig I felt something that was harder than the chalk moist dirt. I used the brush to continue to sweep dirt from around it. I saw a huge circular piece. I tugged on it but it wouldn’t budge. I dug and swept around it more and more frantically… what could it be??? And I unearthed another piece… and it too wouldn’t budge.. I kept digging and sweeping and finally the two pieces loosened together.. I held them together and they made a perfect fit.
We called Ean (the head excavator and field archaeologist) He was excited. I found two other pieces and as I handed him over the two other pieces we realized all four were a perfect fit. The next question: What in the world is it?! It was an incense altar they used for burning incense for a god. Great! I found a pagan incense altar! Hahaha! It was sooo awesome! Seriously. I was so elated! Who knows? It might end up in a museum some where ?!!!! It could tell a piece of history about how these people lived that they never knew before! So exciting. As I put my treasure in the bucket to be later looked at later by some professionals I went back to digging and then it hit me. I remembered when I was like 12 years old and looooved Egypt and all I wanted to do was to be an archaeologist and dig and unearth treasure.. to be in dark cold place and bring back to life things that were dead or even unknown! … It was just a dream for me.. what seemed to be a distant dream! And here I was 15 years later digging in a cave and unearthing things that have not been touched by hands for 2200-2500 years!! Soo exhilarating and satisfying! I almost cried when I remembered it and thought “God you do make all my dreams comes true!” At that moment I felt so loved and I just felt that I could trust the Lord and all his plans for me even more.. if he had been faithful with childhood dreams and fleeting thoughts how much more will he be faithful with passions and dreams and deep desires I have now.. EEEEE! I love God and the way he does things!!.. bringing me all the way to Israel to remind me of his faithfulness.. I guess we are in the Land of Promise.. hahaha! ☺
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