Listening in the Wadi Qelt

It may look desolate. But as we headed towards the Wadi Qelt, a valley that begins in the West Bank and ends in Jerusalem, I had such excitement about what was ahead!

This walk in the Judaean wilderness is one of my favorite parts of our time in Israel!

The walk itself is spectacular, but the time we spend along the way is really special.

Dave talked about what it was like for Jesus to get away to spend time with his Father.

And then his assignment for us was to "withdraw to the Father's presence so that we could return on the Father's agenda."

And with that, he gave us 45 minutes, in the desert, by ourselves, in silence...to be with our Father.

You wouldn't believe what you "hear" in that silence! Birds chirping, hyrex skittering, flies buzzing, wind blowing. And those sounds are awesome to concentrate on.

But then, those noises fade away. And finally, FINALLY! The Lord begins to speak. And oh! That's the moment I'd been waiting for.

The time went all too quickly before we gathered back together to talk about what we'd heard and experienced.

I don't think any of us wanted the time to be over! People's insights and thoughts were so precious.

It makes me want to be even more committed to not only taking daily time to be with the Lord, but to get away and have these times with him in the quiet of nature where I can listen in this unique way.

I'm already looking forward to the next time we walk the Wadi Qelt!