What a day!  We began our adventure in Qumran--where the Essenes faithfully copied God's word, then hid their scrolls when the Romans came to put down the Jewish revolt around 70 A.D..  Then in 1948 they were discovered by some young Bedouins and history was made.

Next we visited the oasis of Ein Gedi.  This is where David hid from Saul in one of hundreds of caves in the area.  We saw ibex and a beautiful waterfall.

Masada is a marvel.  How did they build that palatial fortress on top of THAT?!  Then we went for a float in the Dead Sea.  The water left a smooth, oily feel on our skin and the salt crystals on the bottom of the sea naturally scrubbed our feet.

Back at our hotel tonight we heard a niece of our own Miss Thelma share how God has brought her to live in Israel the last three years.  Our faith was challenged by Linda's faith in the Lord.

Then we heard a member of our group from Venezuela share about being kidnapped and held for ransom for 98 days before being released.  While he was captive he prayed for his kidnappers and read the scripture with them!  After many days they released him saying they had made a mistake by capturing a good man.  God blessed the faithfulness of this man not only by granting his release but in also saving a son through this experience.  That son was baptized in the Jordan while we were here!

Wish I had time to post a pic of David's waterfall, but we've got a 6 a.m. wake up call!  Goodnight!