Israel: Takeoff

Faith. In our information-riddled and tech-driven society, many words that once carried meaning now have become buzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz—words like love, hope, joy, peace, and faith. We know what they symbolize. But even in being able to articulate something like faith, can we honestly say we know what it means? Do we have deep, intimate connection with love, hope, faith? Or are they just words we throw out to make things sound better … make ourselves feel better?

I know this is a deep, almost melancholy way to open up a blog about my excursion to Israel, (which I’m super dooper uber excited about) but the best way to describe this trip is in one word: faith. When I first heard of the HolyLand Tour, it was the beginning of 2009. While I was interested, I dismissed the idea that I could go–money, relationships, money. Well, the urge to go never went away. It grew stronger and stronger. Finally, I began to pray about it in December 2009—a full year later. The answer was clear: Go. All I had at the time was the $500 deposit, which came from my income tax refund check. The rest? I believed God would provide. Throughout the next seven months (all money was due in August), I saved what I could in a savings account using the Dave Ramsey baby steps. Additionally, after praying about it, I asked God if I should ask for donations from family and close friends. He gave the green light, and I sent an e-mail. When May rolled around it didn’t look like I was going to have the final total in time. But a week before the money was due, I had every dollar.

Faith. It is now. Faith is present every day. Faith believes that God will partner with you when you DO what He has placed in you to believe. It’s taking steps into the un-natural – the supernatural. I have 10 hours ahead of me … an ocean ahead of me … foreign territory ahead of me. I am so excited to take steps where Jesus walked.

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