(MUSIC)
ONE OF MY FAVORITE THINGS TO DO
IS BUILD AND FLY MY OWN AIRPLANE.
SO HAVING THE OPPORTUNITY TO DO SOMETHING
I HAVEN'T DONE BEFORE IN ISRAEL
AND THAT'S DO SOME FLYING,
I'M JUST SO EXCITED ABOUT THIS MORNING.
I KNOW THAT FLYING IS INHERENTLY DANGEROUS
AND EVERY TIME I GET IN AN AIRPLANE,
I KNOW THAT IT MIGHT BE THE STEP INTO GLORY.
IT WOULD BE KIND OF A SHORT PROGRAM IF THAT HAPPENS.
I'VE NEVER FLOWN ONE OF THESE PARAPLANES.
IT USES A PARACHUTE AS A WING,
AND IS POWERED BY A SNOWMOBILE ENGINE.
APPARENTLY THEY FOUND A USE FOR SNOWMOBILES IN THIS PLACE.
(PROPELLER WHIRS) LAUNCH!
(EXCITING MUSIC)
I'VE BEEN COMING TO THIS LAND FOR OVER 25 YEARS,
BUT I'VE NEVER HAD THIS BIRD'S-EYE VIEW
OF THE JEZREEL VALLEY.
SPEAKING OF BIRDS, THIS RICH LANDSCAPE ATTRACTS
OVER 500 MILLION MIGRATING BIRDS EVERY YEAR
AS THEY TRAVEL BETWEEN CONTINENTS.
THAT MIGHT GET A LITTLE TRICKY IF THEY WERE MIGRATING TODAY.
WE'RE ABOUT 65 MILES NORTH OF JERUSALEM
AS THE PARAPLANE FLIES.
I CAN SEE ALMOST ALL OF THE 145 SQUARE MILES
OF THIS FERTILE VALLEY FROM MY PRECARIOUS PERCH
ON THIS LIGHTWEIGHT AIRCRAFT.
THE VALLEY WAS FORMED BY THE COLLAPSE OF THE MOUNTAINS
AND RESULTING SEDIMENTATION LEVELED THE VALLEY FLOOR,
PROVIDING A NATURAL TRANSPORTATION ROUTE.
THE SEDIMENTATION ALSO PROVIDES THE SOIL
THAT MAKES THE JEZREEL THE BREADBASKET OF THE HOLY LAND.
IT COMES AS NO SURPRISE THAT A LAND AS RICH AND FERTILE
AS THE JEZREEL VALLEY WOULD INVITE CONFLICT.
(MOTOR SPUTTERS)
THAT IS ONE SHORT STOP. (LAUGHS)
OF COURSE, WHERE THERE'S CONFLICT,
THERE'S STORIES OF LIFE AND DEATH,
OF SURVIVAL AND CHALLENGING CIRCUMSTANCES.
AND WHEN WE SEE THESE STORIES IN THE BIBLE,
WE SEE STORIES OF PEOPLE WRESTLING WITH FAITH,
WRESTLING WITH WHAT THEY WOULD BELIEVE ABOUT THEIR GOD.
I GOTTA TELL YOU, THIS IS A PILOT'S PILOT.
(UPLIFTING MUSIC)
THE JEZREEL VALLEY IS A PLACE OF WAR.
IT'S A PLACE WHERE ISRAEL AGAIN AND AGAIN MET ENEMIES
WHO WERE MORE NUMEROUS THAN THEIR SOLDIER COUNT.
THIS LAND IS SO VALUABLE, EVERYBODY WANTED IT.
SO EVEN THOUGH IT WAS ASSIGNED
TO 5 OF THE 12 ISRAELITE TRIBES,
WHAT WE FIND WHEN WE GET TO JUDGES CHAPTER FOUR,
IS THAT THE PEOPLE LIVING IN HAZOR, CANAANITES,
HAVE COME DOWN AND OCCUPIED THIS SPACE.
(UPLIFTING MUSIC)
ONE OF THE BATTLES FOR CONTROL OF THIS REGION WAS FOUGHT
NOT FAR FROM HERE WHERE THE DOME SHAPE OF MOUNT TABOR
RISES ABRUPTLY FROM THE VALLEY FLOOR.
AND SINCE THERE'S NO PLACE TO LAND ON TOP,
I DECIDED TO CATCH A RIDE.
(UPLIFTING MUSIC)
WE'RE GOING UP TO ABOUT 1,800 FEET ABOVE SEA LEVEL,
THAT'S A GOOD 1,800 FEET OF CLIMBING.
JOSHUA HAD BROUGHT THE ISRAELITES INTO THE LAND
AND THAT GENERATION HAD PROMISED,
"WE WILL REMAIN FAITHFUL TO THE LORD AS THE ONE TRUE GOD."
AND THEN THEY CAME INTO THIS LAND AND STARTED TALKING
TO THE LOCAL CANAANITE FARMERS ABOUT HOW TO GROW GRAIN HERE.
BUT THEY GOT ONE PIECE OF AWFUL ADVICE AND THAT WAS
THAT THE LOCAL DEITY OF THIS SPACE, BAAL, WAS A GOD
THEY NEEDED TO WORSHIP IN ORDER FOR THE RAIN TO COME.
EVERYONE HAD MORE THAN ONE DEITY EXCEPT ISRAEL.
THIS BACK-AND-FORTH MOVEMENT THAT WE HAVE
GOING UP THE SWITCHBACKS OF MOUNT TABOR, THIS MOVEMENT
BETWEEN ABSOLUTE FAITHFULNESS TO THE ONE TRUE GOD
AND LIVING IN WELL-BEING TO THE POLAR OPPOSITE,
WHICH IS ADOPTING THE WORLD VIEW OF THEIR PAGAN NEIGHBORS,
THIS CLIMB UP MOUNT TABOR JUST FEELS LIKE THE STORY
TOLD IN THE BOOK OF JUDGES.
(PENSIVE MUSIC)
YEARS AFTER JOSHUA, THE CANAANITES BECAME STRONG
AND OPPRESSED GOD'S PEOPLE FOR 20 YEARS.
IN DESPERATION, THE PEOPLE CRIED OUT TO GOD FOR HELP.
IN THE BOOK OF JUDGES, WE READ THAT GOD RESPONDED
BY RAISING UP A PROPHETESS AND LEADER NAMED DEBORAH.
SHE SUMMONED THE ARMY COMMANDER BARAK
AND REVEALED GOD'S BATTLE PLAN TO DEFEAT THE CANAANITES.
DEBORAH TOLD BARAK TO GATHER THE ARMY,
ALMOST ALL INFANTRY, HERE AT MOUNT TABOR.
BARAK WAS HESITANT, HE ONLY HAD 10,000 MEN
FROM THE TRIBES OF ZEBULUN AND NAPHTALI.
HE WAS OUTNUMBERED AND FACING A PROFESSIONAL ARMY
WITH GREATER STRENGTH AND ARMS.
HIS FAITH WAS WAVERING, AND SO AT HIS REQUEST,
DEBORAH WENT WITH HIM TO BATTLE, SPEAKING THIS PROPHECY,
"THE GLORY OF VICTORY WOULD BELONG TO A WOMAN."
OBEYING THE COMMANDS, BARAK SUMMONED
ALL AVAILABLE MANPOWER TO THE FIGHT.
I CAN IMAGINE AS THE SOLDIERS GATHERED, THEY GREW ANXIOUS.
(PENSIVE MUSIC)
THEY WERE WAITING RIGHT HERE BECAUSE THE FORESTED SIDES
OF MOUNT TABOR WERE THE BEST PLACE FOR INFANTRY,
PARTICULARLY WHEN THEY WERE LOOKING INTO A PLAIN
WITH 900 IRON-CLAD CHARIOTS.
THAT'S WHERE SISERA, THE GENERAL OF THE HAZOR ARMY, WAS.
AND THE ASSUMPTION OF THE ISRAELITES
GATHERING HERE: "WE WAIT,
"WE WAIT AND WE WAIT, AND EVENTUALLY THAT CHARIOT CORPS
"IS GOING TO DRIVE OVER TO THE BASE OF THE MOUNTAIN
"AND COME UP AND FIGHT US ON THE FORESTED SLOPES
"WHERE WE'LL HAVE THE ADVANTAGE OF ELEVATION
"AND THEY WILL NOT HAVE THE ADVANTAGE OF TECHNOLOGY."
(CALM MUSIC)
BUT INSTEAD THE PROPHETESS DEBORAH TOLD BARAK
TO CHARGE DOWN THE MOUNTAIN AND FIGHT ON THE PLAIN.
THEY RESPONDED WITH A STEP OF FAITH.
AND THE LORD BROUGHT SOMETHING TOTALLY UNEXPECTED
THAT CHANGED EVERYTHING.
HE BROUGHT RAIN, AND LOTS OF IT.
THE ONLY REASON YOU BRING CHARIOTS INTO THIS LANDSCAPE
IS IF YOU WERE ABSOLUTELY CONFIDENT THAT IT WOULDN'T RAIN.
ALTHOUGH INFANTRY ARE TERRIBLY DISADVANTAGED
AGAINST CHARIOTS ON DRY, LEVEL GROUND,
INFANTRY HAVE THE ADVANTAGE WHEN THE CHARIOTS
ARE BOGGED DOWN IN THE MUD.
AND SO WE KNOW THAT IT'S A TIME OF YEAR
WHEN RAIN WAS NOT EXPECTED,
THIS RAINSTORM, FLAT OUT MIRACLE,
A MIRACLE THAT GOD GAVE IN ORDER TO GIVE ISRAEL
THE VICTORY OVER CHARIOTS ON THE PLAIN.
THE JEZREEL VALLEY IS A LAND WORTH FIGHTING FOR.
SO AGAIN AND AGAIN AND AGAIN, IN OLD TESTAMENT HISTORY,
WE READ ABOUT WARS THAT ARE GOING ON HERE.
WARS THAT ALMOST ALWAYS FIND ISRAEL AT THE DISADVANTAGE,
BOTH IN TERMS OF NUMBERS AND TECHNOLOGY.
AS I READ THE STORIES OF THIS PLACE AND WALK THE RICH SOIL
OF THE JEZREEL VALLEY, THIS PLACE REMINDS ME
THAT ONE GOD IS ENOUGH.
NOT JUST THE OBVIOUS MIRACLE OF GOD'S DELIVERANCE
FROM ENEMIES WITH JUST ENOUGH RAINFALL
TO TURN THE ADVANTAGE, BUT SO MUCH MORE.
LIKE BARAK, WHEN MY OWN FAITH IN THE ONE TRUE GOD
IS WAVERING AND ABOUT TO GO UNDER, THERE'S SOMEONE
WHO HAS PROMISED TO BE WITH ME THROUGH IT ALL.
THIS ONE PROVIDES ME JUST ENOUGH FAITH TO CARRY ON.
THE GLORY NEVER BELONGED TO ME IN THE FIRST PLACE.
(UPLIFTING MUSIC)