Israel 2024: Preparation Guide

Our tour of Israel in 2024 has the opportunity to be a life changing experience but that opportunity is greatly dependent on the amount of investment our group members are willing to make in preparation for our trip. With that in mind, below are written resources that are being provided in order to help with your personal preparation for the trip. All of these volumes are in PDF format.

Volume 1 (September 21, 2023) – Caesarea Maritima and Herod the Great

Volume 2 – Coming Soon…

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Unsolved Mysteries of the Bible
Pleasant View Church of Christ – 2023

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PDF copies of the handouts and notes from my periodic series on Sunday nights at Pleasant View Church of Christ looking at Unsolved Mysteries of the Bible.

Lesson 1 – Who Was the Pharaoh of the Exodus? (September 3, 2023)

Lesson 2 – What Time of Year Was Jesus Born? (September 10, 2023)

Lesson 3 – Where is Noah’s Ark? (September 24, 2023)

Today has been a very long yet good day. We woke up at 6:15 and had breakfast at our hotel. We left the hotel at 8:00

After arriving at the U.S. Capitol, we walked to our first stop, the Senate Building. We didn’t go inside because the court was in session, but we sat on the front steps and listened to a talk from the Senate Chaplin, Barry Black. He taught us how to apply the message of James 1:5 to our lives. The verse reads, “If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask of God, who gives to all liberally and without reproach, and it will be given to him.” He urged us to pray for God to give us wisdom every day.

Next, our group entered the U.S. Capitol Visitor Center for lunch. After this, we got to walk around the lobby and gift shop. The lobby featured a lot of interesting statues of various people, as well as a full scale replica of the statue of freedom on top of the Capitol.

At 12:00, we went on a tour of the actual Capitol. The first place our tour guide took us to was the crypt. She told us about how under the crypt, there is a tomb that was originally made for George Washington, but he didn’t actually end up buried there.

We then climbed up into the famous rotunda in the center of the Capitol. Our guide talked about the history of the paintings inside as well as the statues. The dome was absolutely gorgeous!

The final place we visited on the tour was the hall of statues, where many of the statues for people in various states in the Capitol are located. We also got to experience the “whisper effect.” Because of the room’s irregular shape, our guide stood on the opposite end of the room, and we could hear her as if she were right next to us.

After we finished at the Capitol, we visited the Library of Congress. The architecture in this building was absolutely astounding. We got to see an overhead view of the reading room (the line to actually get in was way too long since we only had 30 minutes). We also saw Thomas Jefferson’s personal collection of books he’d read and donated to the library.

We boarded the bus after this and drove to the Museum of the Bible. This may have been my favorite part of the day. Our group began at the exhibit featuring the Old Testament Walkthrough. This was an incredible experience that featured many theatrical effects, and it did a great job of summarizing the Old Testament story. We also watched the New Testament movie experience, and we visited the history exhibit. This exhibit was very cool, as it contained a Gutenberg Bible, manuscripts from the Septuagint, and some of the first Luther and Tyndall translations of the Bible.

We then drove to the Marine Corps Memorial and were told the story of how many members of the Marine Corps lost their lives at Iwo Jima. After this, we drove into Virginia and had dinner at Primos.

Our final stop for the day was the Pentagon Memorial, which honors the people who lost their lives on 9/11 when the plane crashed into the Pentagon. This memorial is definitely what stood out to me most about today. Every person who died on the plane and inside the pentagon had their own personal bench. This is another one of those places that just creates a horrible feeling inside, and it’s hard to even grasp.

When we returned to the hotel, it was after 10:00, and we were all exhausted. We all went to bed soon after we returned.

6:00am came early this morning, but we had a nice breakfast at 6:45am, and the kids in our group did a great job of getting everything packed up and out of their room. Today our little group changed a bit as we had one of our girls to a different bus because of being on a different flight home. This meant that Emma joined us for the day. All of the busses pulled out around 8:00am with a goal of going to Arlington National Cemetery.

Unfortunately due to traffic, and the massive crowds at Arlington, we had to leave shortly after arrival in the parking lot in order to make it to our scheduled time for the Holocaust Museum.

We headed back to DC and took a short walk over to show the group the front of the White House.

This morning we got to sleep in an extra hour and had breakfast in the hotel at 8:00am. The busses left by 9:00am and headed toward the Naval Academy in Annapolis Maryland.

Every year, the Lipscomb Academy 8th Graders go on a class trip to Washington D.C. This year, it’s finally my turn! I’ve been so excited for this trip since the beginning of the school year, and to make things even better, I get to go with my dad!

My day started at 3:45 AM, and we got to the airport at 5:30. After getting through security, my dad took us to 8&r Coffee and got me a hot chocolate! The flight process was pretty smooth, and I spent the time listening to Broadway tunes with a friend.

When we got to D.C, we almost immediately boarded a bus to go to a food court at a mall. We stayed a while, and my friends and I browsed in the various stores.

Our first destination for touring was the Museum of African-American History and Culture. This museum was very interesting, but it is definitely a lot to take in. Learning about the horrors African-Americans have gone through all throughout history creates a terrible feeling.

After this, we went to dinner at Buca di Beppo. This was a very good meal, and it was family style, so we could all help ourselves to a little bit of everything.

Our final touring destination for the day was the John F. Kennedy Center, which features both the Hall of Nations and the Hall of States. On the top level, there was also a beautiful terrace where we all took pictures.

We didn’t get to spend long in here, but after we went to the terrace, we got to explore an exhibit highlighting the growth of various arts programs over time. What really stood out to me about this exhibit was that each sign I read pointed out how the specific art form told the story of America as a whole. As much as I love music and theatre, this is something I’d never really thought about.

We arrived at our hotel at about 8:30, and we were all very tired. However, it was a very good day that we all enjoyed in one way or another.

Our second morning began with a lovely breakfast at the hotel and we pulled out just after 8:00am. The first stop of the day was the US Capitol Building. We parked on the front side of the Capitol and then walked up the hill to the back.

From there we walked over to the Supreme Court building and took a photo of the group.

At the start of this post, I want to acknowledge the school shooting that took place at Covenant School this morning just after we arrived in Washington D.C. Covenant School is less than two miles from the Lipscomb Academy Lower School where my wife Olivia works, and less than three miles from the Upper School where both Kate and Sara attend. Learning about this during our day was overwhelming, and difficult to deal with emotionally. This was especially true considering the many connections those in the Lipscomb family have with the families who lost loved ones. While we still enjoyed our day in D.C., it understandably cast a heavy shadow. I cannot comprehend this act of evil nor the loss of these precious souls. My heart hurts and my prayers will be continually lifted for all involved.

This week I am accompanying Sara while serving as a chaperone for the Lipscomb Academy 8th Grade field trip to Washington D.C. I was able to go on the same trip four years ago with Kate, and am thrilled to be going again with Sara. Olivia dropped us off at the airport at 5:30am to meet up with our group of approximately 125 students, teachers, and chaperones. The group was split into two flights (Southwest & United), leaving at two different times, and flying to two different airports (Reagan & Dulles). Even with all of this going on, the process of getting boarding passes and navigating through security was pretty smooth. Kudos to Bob Rodgers Travel, Southwest and United Airlines for having everything ready to go!

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Feasts, Festivals, and Holy Days of Israel
Pleasant View Church of Christ – 2023

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PDF copies of the handouts and notes from my periodic series on Sunday nights at Pleasant View Church of Christ covering the feasts, festivals, and holy days of Israel.

Lesson 1 – Introduction (February 19, 2023)

Lesson 2 – Sabbath (February 26, 2023)

Lesson 3 – Passover-Part 1 (March 19, 2023)

Lesson 4 – Passover-Part 2 (March 26, 2023)

Lesson 5 – Passover-Part 3 (April 2, 2023)

Lesson 6 – First Fruits (April 16, 2023)

Lesson 7 – Pentecost (May 7, 2023)

Lesson 8 – Trumpets (May 21, 2023)

Lesson 9 – Atonement (May 28, 2023)

Lesson 10 – Tabernacles (June 4, 2023)

Lesson 11 – Dedication (June 18, 2023)

Lesson 12 – Purim (August 27, 2023)

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I Am Not Ashamed: A Study of Romans
Pleasant View Church of Christ – Winter-Spring 2023
Will also live stream weekly on Facebook Live via the link above

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PDF copies of the handouts and notes from my Wednesday night class at Pleasant View Church of Christ covering Romans.

Introduction (January 4, 2023) / Stream

Chapter 1 (January 11 & 18, 2023) / Stream 1 / Stream 2

Chapter 2 (January 25 & February 1, 2023) / No Stream / Stream 2

Chapter 3 (February 8 & 15, 2023) / Stream 1 / Stream 2

Chapter 4 (February 22, 2023) / Stream

Chapter 5 (March 1 & 8, 2023) / Stream 1/ Stream 2

Chapter 6 (March 15 & 22, 2023) / Stream 1 / Stream 2

Chapter 7 (April 5 & 12, 2023) / Stream 1 / Stream 2

Chapter 8 (April 19, 26 & May 3, 10 2023) / Stream 1 / Stream 2 / Stream 3 / Stream 4

Chapter 9 (May 17, 24, & 31, 2023) / Stream 1 / Stream 2 / Stream 3

Chapter 10 (September 6 & 13, 2023) / Stream 1 / Stream 2

Chapter 11 (September 20, 2023)

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Under the Sun: A Study of Ecclesiastes
Pleasant View Church of Christ – Summer-Fall 2022
Will also live stream weekly on Facebook Live via the link above

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PDF copies of the “Questions for Discussion” and notes from my Wednesday night class at Pleasant View Church of Christ covering the book of Ecclesiastes.

Lesson 01 – Introduction (August 17, 2022) / Stream

Lesson 02 – Chapter 1 (August 24, 2022) / Stream

Lesson 03 – Chapter 2 (August 31, 2022) / Stream

Lesson 04 – Chapter 3 (September 14, 2022) / Stream

Lesson 05 – Chapter 4 (September 21, 2022) / Stream

Lesson 06 – Chapter 5:1-7 (September 28, 2022) / Stream

Lesson 07 – Chapter 5:8-20 and 6 (October 5 & 12, 2022) / Stream (Part 1) / Stream (Part 2)

Lesson 08 – Chapter 7 (October 19, 2022) / Stream (Part 1) / Stream (Part 2)

Lesson 09 – Chapter 8 (November 2, 2022) / Stream

Lesson 10 – Chapter 9 (November 9, 2022) / Stream

Lesson 11 – Chapter 10 (November 30, 2022) / Stream

Lesson 12 – Chapter 11 (December 7, 2022) / Stream

Lesson 13 – Chapter 12 (December 14, 2022)

On select Sunday evenings in the Summer and Fall of 2022 at Pleasant View Church of Christ, we will be having a series of lessons from the Holy Lands. These lessons will be designed to help bring greater context to the narrative of scripture by focusing on the locations in which significant biblical events occurred. If you are unable to join us in person, the lessons will be also streamed via Facebook Live. Slides and notes (annotated slides) for each lesson will be posted below before each lesson. Links to the streams will be posted after the lesson as they are available.

Introduction (June 20, 2022) – Overall geography and archaeological concepts
(Slides / Annotated Slides / Stream)

Lesson 1 (June 24, 2022) – Caesarea Maritima, Tel Megiddo, Jezreel Valley
(Slides / Annotated Slides / Stream)

Lesson 2 (August 14, 2022) – Tel Megiddo, Mount Tabor, Tel Hazor
(Slides / Annotated Slides / Stream)

Lesson 3 (August 28, 2022) – Nazareth Village, Tel Dan, Caesarea Philippi
(Slides / Annotated Slides / Stream)

Lesson 4 (September 11, 2022) – Sea of Galilee, Capernaum, Mount of Beatitudes, Magdala
(Slides / Annotated Slides / Stream)

Lesson 5 (September 25, 2022) – Jordan River, Bet-She’an, Jericho, Qumran
(Slides / Annotated Slides / Stream)

Lesson 6 (October 2, 2022) – En-Gedi, Masada, the Dead Sea
(Slides / Annotated Slides / Stream)

Lesson 7 (October 23, 2022) – Tel Be’er Sheva, Valley of Elah, Herodium
(Slides / Annotated Slides / Stream)

Lesson 8 (November 6, 2022) – Jerusalem Model, Mt of Olives, and Old City of Jerusalem
(Slides / Annotated Slides / Stream)

Lesson 9 (December 4, 2022) – Western Wall, Southern Steps, City of David, Pool of Siloam, Pilgrimage Road
(Slides / Annotated Slides / Stream)

Lesson 10 (December 18, 2022) – Pool of Bethesda, Burnt House, Broad Wall, Convent of Sisters of Zion, Via Dolorosa, Holy Sepulchre, Garden Tomb
(Slides / Annotated Slides)

On July 6 (7pm) at the Pleasant View Church of Christ we will have a supplementary lesson for our new “I AM” sermon series where we will consider the name of God from Exodus 3:13-15. I have prepared slides and a handout for this lesson, and they can be downloaded via the links below. All are welcome to join us at 7pm in person or via Facebook Live!!

 

All, we have a mailing list for anyone interested in news and information concerning future trips to Israel (and possibly other Bible related destinations) hosted by Timothy. If you would like to join this mailing list, please complete the form below. You will receive an initial email and will need to confirm your subscription to be added to the list.

 

For anyone interested, you can access our family’s photos from our recent trip to Israel via the links below. All photos are separated by day and can be downloaded from the linked site.

These are medium resolution and are suitable for social media. If you would like access to the full resolution images, please contact me directly.

Days 1-3 – Travel, Tel Aviv, Tiberius (May 27-29, 2022)

Day 4 – Zippori, Arbel, Sea of Galilee, Capernaum, Mt of Beatitudes, Magdala (May 30, 2022)

Day 5 – Nazareth Village, Golan Heights, Caesarea Philippi, Tel Dan (May 31, 2022)

Day 6 – Bet She’an, Qumran, En Gedi, Dead Sea (June 1, 2022)

Day 7 – Masada, Beer-Sheba, Valley of Elah (June 2, 2022)

Day 8 – Western Wall, Southern Steps, City of David, Jewish Quarter (June 3, 2022)

Day 9 – Mount of Olives, Pool of Bethesda, Via Dolorosa, Holy Sepulchre, Garden Tomb (June 4, 2022)

Day 10 – Israel Museum, Herodium, Shepherd’s Field, Bethlehem (June 5, 2022)

Days 11-12 – Caesarea Maritima, Jezreel Valley, Tel Megiddo, Jaffa, Travel Home (June 6-7, 2022)

I’ve had a few requests for a printable copy of my 2022 Israel Photo Journal that was posted on this blog. A PDF version with all of these posts can be accessed via the link below. The full journal is 243 pages (146 MB).

Israel 2022: Journal – 243 Pages (PDF copy suitable for printing)

The beginning of the day today was spent on our airplane. I passed the time watching movies (and sleeping through some of them). After a pancake breakfast, we landed in Miami.

Today started especially early because of Covid test requirements to re-enter America. I was very nervous because the last time I got a Covid test, it didn’t really go well. Right after breakfast, we headed over to get tested, and it went far better than I expected, and the fear was way worse than the actual test.

Today was our last day in Israel and I got up at 5:45am this morning to get ready and finish packing. We had to be done with breakfast early to take a COVID test at 7:30am for our return flight to the United States.

After the COVID test we boarded the bus for a long ride to the northern coast and Caesarea Maritima. This was a site we were supposed to see on our first day that was missed but Ami was able to rearrange our schedule so that we could fit it in today along with Tel Megiddo.

I snoozed a bit this morning until 6:40am, and the Sara and I quickly got ready to meet Olivia and Sara for breakfast.

In the dining room I ran into Murad who was our guide on my last trip to Israel. We ran into him again later at the Israel Museum. It was good to see him. 

For Breakfast, we had hot food again now that sabbath is over. I combined some eggs with three more cheese danishes. I never eat like this at home!

We boarded the bus around 8:15am for a short drive to the modern city of Jerusalem. Today is Shavuot, which is Pentecost of the Feast of Weeks. The streets were pretty quiet because of the holiday, but we could see many Orthodox Jews heading to the Western Wall.