Israel, Day 2

We spent the day in the Shephelah, which is the hills west and north of Jerusalem and east of the Coastal Plain. Many battles were fought here over the years, most notably in the Valley of Elan and David defeating Goliath.
       I am admittedly a novice to the land of Israel, and I know that it is a very charged topic among Christians, Jews, and Muslims. But as we looked over this valley and read from I Samuel 17 it was pointed out that the message of the story is not that David defeated Goliath, nor that the Israelites regained their rightful place in the land.
       The point of the story is that "the whole world will know that there is a God in Israel." (I Samuel 17:46). In other words, this is a valley (and land) of MISSION... that the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob would be known to the whole world regardless of ethnicity, skin color, or religious background.
       It is sadly ironic that today this land is so fragmented and divided. Clearly that is not God's purpose and plan for Israel (i.e. the people of God).
       Tonight we drove to the Dead Sea and will spend the next two days here - tomorrow into the Negev (Judean Desert) and the following day visiting sites along the western shore of the Dead Sea.