SWBA pastors on Holy Land Tour, from left to right, Nhia Yee Her, Mark Hong, Bob Stine, Moises Rodriguez, Julius Brent, Mark Millman

From January 14 to 23 there  were 38 pastors and staff members from across the Minnesota-Wisconsin Baptist Convention.   Six of us were from the Southern Wisconsin Baptist Association.  In the picture you see us gathered in Tiberias on the Sea of Galiliee.

Our tour covered more than 40 sites all across Israel.  Some of the highlights included Caesarea Maritima, Dan, Nazareth, Bethlehem, Capernaum, Massada, the Mount of Olives, the Garden of Gethsemane, the Via Delarosa, and the Garden Tomb in Jerusalem. Our pastors were enlightened by our guide who had a vast knowledge of the Scriptures and geography.   His expertise along with the devotional nature of our group made the trip both informational and inspirational.

Some scholarly highlights included visiting the Shrine of the Book where the Dead Sea Scrolls are stored along with visiting the caves of Qumran where they were found.  Perhaps the most disturbing site we visited was the Holocaust Museum built in remembrance of the 6.5 million Jews who were systematically killed during World War II.   Leo Endel did an excellent job of connecting the Scriptures to all the sites we visited.

I want to thank our churches for sending our pastors and for the SWBA for sending me.  I am very grateful for this opportunity which has shed so much light on the teachings of the Bible and the life of Jesus.    We pray our  adventure to Israel will help us to walk more closely with the Lord in the days to come.