Come with me to Israel in 2024!
Dear Calvary Family,
Have you ever thought about going to Israel? It was always a dream of mine as a young person reading the Bible. I wanted to see what the places actually looked like, smelled like, and sounded like. I wanted to feel the water in the Jordan River and the Sea of Galilee. I wanted to float in the Dead Sea. I wanted to have a sense of what Jerusalem was like the week leading up to the crucifixion. Maybe that made me a weird kid and maybe that’s part of why I’m a pastor today.
My first trip to Israel was in 1996. I was 21 years old. I made it a life mission to get there when I was young. It’s not easy to get the time and money to go to Israel but I knew I had to walk on the soil where all these stories took place. The trip was too short - only six days in the country - but I was somehow hooked on the experience of The Land. I’ve been back 7 more times and I’m honestly giddy with excitement to go back a 9th time and take many of you with me.
I’ve learned so much over the last 8 trips and it has prepared me well to lead your time there. I’ve learned the places to see but not spend too much time and I’ve learned the spots to linger and pray and take it in. I’ve made friends with a tour guide named Ronen who is a Bible scholar, expert in history and archaeology, and who is a funny and adventurous travel partner.
This next trip is at the perfect time of year. April 1-13, 2024. Springtime in Israel is very similar to California. Not too hot, not too cold. Stays light a little later which extends our touring time and slows our pace down to be a bit more relaxed. I’ve also extended our time in the region of the Sea of Galilee so we can take some walks that are likely the same paths that Jesus walked while living in this area.
You will see the deserts the Israelites wandered, you will see the city where Jesus was born, you will see the city where Jesus died and rose again, you will see the place he preached the Sermon on the Mount, you will go on a boat ride on the lake that Jesus walked on, you will pray where Jesus prayed the night he was arrested, you will pray on a mountain by the Sea of Galilee where Jesus prayed, you will see the power of the Roman Empire, you will see where Paul was imprisoned and then sent to Rome, and genuinely so much more.
Please email my personal email address with questions about the trip - and visit our website to see the full itinerary, cost, dates, payment information and to find out where to register at CalvaryLife.org/Israel
I highly encourage you to make Israel a priority on your travel itinerary at some point in your life, but don’t wait too long. Walking the land of the Bible at 21 completely changed and enhanced my experience of reading the Bible. It also deepened my faith and my relationship with Jesus. And I want to help bring the land and lessons of the Bible to life for you, too! Let’s go to Israel together next year.
L'Shana Haba'ah B'Yerushalayim. Next year in Jerusalem!
Eric Wakeling