I'm just a traveler yet to arrive

Prior to leaving for Israel I was really sad about leaving my kids. The day before we left I held them and cried on their faces. All day I kept thinking "This could be our last breakfast together. This could be our last lunch together. This could be the last time we..." Pretty morbid I know. However, I am someone who thinks drastically about routine trips I take in this country- let alone into the Middle East and flying over the ocean. I felt guilty about the thought of something happening to us and leaving our kids to live with someone else. This thought was almost too hard to bear. In some ways I felt like a bad father, putting the future of my kids at risk- no matter how little the risk might be. God challenged me about my faith. I asked myself "Do I want to live in a way that shows my kids that God can be trusted or not?" What kind of father would I be if I talked about believing in and trusting God and didn't really live as if I believed in or trusted God? The theme of growing stronger in my faith was a theme that I felt repeated in my life throughout the trip.

I would like to say that the flight was a smooth ride that reassured me that things would go well but that would be utterly inaccurate. The flight bounced up and down with turbulence for two hours. At one point the plane hit an air pocket and dropped what we were told was 20 feet, it seemed like hundreds. We were flying on this enormous whale in the sky- eight seats across. I have never seen a plane this big. Eight seats across and you enter the plane at the middle...sent by the flight attendant either front or back and either down the near aisle or the far aisle...this plane had a far aisle to walk down. It was frustrating to look around and watch everyone else talk and laugh casually during the choppy ride while I clutched my tray table for dear life.

We switched planes in Madrid which looks like a beautiful city. I would like to visit it one day but I am not sure I would think the plane trip was worth it. The flight to Tel Aviv, Israel was much smoother, except for the fact that Israeli law requires everyone to remain in their seat for the final 30-45 minutes to ensure that no one will rush the cockpit. It was not comforting when the flight attendants...the flight attendants...were the first to break out in applause when the plane landed safely. I thought they were supposed to expect that we would arrive all right. The safe arrival seemed to be a cause for celebration for them. I was intrigued at this but hardly reassured.

As I began to meet the rest of the team I was excited about being with a team of students who was approaching this trip as a group of learners, not a group of sightseers. (Skip to the next paragraph if you do not want to read a description of team members that you do not know.) I appreciated meeting Dave Berdan. He was with his son and I loved watching how he related with his son on the trip. He was an example to me of a godly husband and father. I could only hope that one day I could have a similar relationship with my son. He was also a pilot and I liked asking him flight questions during the trip. (Did you know that a plane can fly with only one engine? Did you know that Midway is one of the hardest airports to land in- there is a White Castle at the end of a runway? Did you know that the floatation devices probably will not help if you crash into the ocean? I figured.) I loved being with Mark everyday. It is hard for people to understand how nice it is that someone like Mark, a former student, would not act weird when his two worlds collided-church and school. But he didn't and we had a great time. I am really proud of the man he is becoming. I am thankful that Mike and Brooke asked us to go with. They are some of our closest friends and I am honored that we will always have these memories together. We played Phase 10 towards the end of the trip. We still have not finished the second game which I am on the verge of winning. The professors on the trip Dr. Vanlaningham and Dr. Wechsler reminded me of the thing I appreciate most about Moody- godly and relational professors. Our guide's name was Jonathan and he was skilled and knowledgable. Reuven was the driver on our tour bus and his ability to bring the bus through tight corners and spaces is the stuff that legends are built on. Tiffany was happy that a guy named Jimmy was on the trip because she was pretty sure that she might be taller than him. Jimmy became known as the Hebrew scholar on the trip when Dr. Wechsler would call on him to translate different things throughout the trip. There was a guy who juggled his way across the country. Posing for pictures, juggling on the edge of every cliff and high point we saw. There was the person who happily exclaimed to the group "I was taught growing up that it didn't matter whether or not you won or lost. The important thing was that you looked good while doing it." I think this was a classic case of misunderstanding your audience. I made some friends for the trip, but it was probably just for the trip. I had a great time getting the know the Jeffers my yarmulke brothers. We all bought them and would pat our heads like apes when we walked by each other. There was Randy the tough football player who loved the movie "Emma" and thus carried a hidden sensitive side. There were the adult couples who had their new adventure clothes for the trip, and added so much. One guy when he found out I worked at Bethel kept telling me Norwegian/Swede jokes which I have never gotten no matter how long I have been at the church. I really like the team and have missed them since the trip has ended.