Israel: Friday, June 25th

Friday morning, we loaded the vans and headed to Caesarea. Caesarea is on the coast of the Mediterranean Sea. Aside from the fact that it is absolutely gorgeous, it also has great Biblical significance.

Caesarea is found in the book of Acts. It is a port city where Paul would leave to go on many of his missionary journeys. It is also where he was held in prison and gave the testimony of Christ to King Agrippa (Acts 25.) The remains of King Herod's palace, ampitheater, and

fresh water pool are still visible.

After leaving Caesarea, we headed to Mt. Carmel. Mt. Carmel is where Elijah defeated the prophets of Baal by calling on the name of the Lord in 1 Kings 18. There was a church on the place that it was said to have happened, but you could go to the top of the church for an awesome view looking over the Valley of Megiddo (or Armageddon in Hebrew) and Mt. Tabor. The Bible mentions the Valley of Megiddo many times throughout the Old Testament, but one of the most significant Biblical references is found in Revelation 16, where it talks of Jesus's final battle with the Enemy. Mt. Tabor is the traditional site of the transfiguration (Matthew 17, Mark 9, Luke 9.)

Our next stop for the day was at a small restaurant in Haifa that specialized in shawarma. I didn't get a picture of Brian's actual sandwich, but the one below is close enough. :)

After our before dinner snack, we stopped by a beautiful garden overlooking the Mediterranean Sea before heading to the beach to enjoy a quick swim and an amazing sunset.