Heading To The Middle East

In my entire life I have been out of the United States on two occasions. Once was back in 1980 when, with no need for a passport, my wife and some friends traveled to Vancouver, British Columbia and Vancouver Island in Canada. The other time was about six weeks ago when I again entered Canada, this time with a passport, and went fishing in The Lake of the Woods. What a time that was! I have traveled many places in my mind through the use of television and many books, but actual international travel has not readily been available to me. This will all change in August.

I will be traveling alone by air to Cairo where I will meet up with my brother-in-law and his twin sons. One of them just received his Masters in Arabic Studies from Georgetown University in Washington, DC. That son will be spending the next year in a language immersion program in Cairo, Egypt. He will be our tour guide and translator. We plan on not spending much money staying most nights with local citizens of Egypt. We will attempt to visit the major landmarks, see the Red Sea and then climb Mount Sinai to the place where tradition said Moses encountered God in the burning bush. We then will travel through Jordan and into the West Bank territories and stay with some locals to get a sense of their perspective on political issues which have shaped our world for over sixty years. From there we intend to enter Israel and tour extensively in Jerusalem. Back to Cairo from there and I head back to the United States some ten days after arriving. To say the least I am excited about the prospects of this trip. I hope to learn much and have many new insights that I can share on this blog.

As I move forward on this journey of discovery I hope and pray that I will be able to view what I see with an open mind and eye for what God has to share with me. I have no expectation of changing the world, but I do hope to learn more about God's heart for all human kind. I desire to leave all of my prejudices far behind and listen, love, and act the way Christ desires.

I'll keep this post going once I get back.