“Oh, taste and see that the Lord is good; Blessed is the man who trusts in him!” Psalm 34:8

I have even blessed to spend the last ten days on an road trip round Israel with my grandson, which culminated in his baptism at Har Yardenit on the River Jordan on the final day.

Physically it has been a difficult week – much more than was expected. Like many teenagers, he has a passion for ice-cream, which we indulged on our third day in the land. What I didn't realise at the time was that I was exchanging 15 minutes (ish) of food bliss for eight days, and counting, of physical pain. Apparently, the concentrates that made the ice-cream so tasty sparked a gout attack.

Joy amidst the pain

On Monday and Tuesday we worked our way around Jerusalem; there were times when the pain made my eyes water. By Wednesday and Thursday we had fixed the gout acid crystals but my foot and ankle were so swollen that the whole thing was like a giant sponge. Not the most promising days to visit Bethlehem, Jericho, Masada and the Dead Sea, amongst others.

Knowing that God had brought about this trip and that he had something for both Finn and me, I kept going, mostly through determination.

I discovered the reality that God refreshes us in the dry dark places. Praise his Name.

On the Wednesday we were tramping around the Shepherds’ Fields, a really valuable visit for me, as I had an experience of God. I cannot really describe it, just a deep sense of God being with us. Then, in the heat of the afternoon at Tel Jericho, the archaeological ruins of the ancient city, I treated myself to the orange I had carried all day. The experience was intense. As I bit into that first segment and the refreshing juice exploded on my tongue, all I could say was “taste and see that the Lord is good.” I felt illuminated. My foot didn't matter anymore – just knowing God's presence was the only thing that did.

I discovered the reality that God refreshes us in the dry dark places. Praise his Name.

Beware of substitutes

The next day, in the baking heat of the afternoon as we emerged from bathing in the Dead Sea, I was thanking the Lord for the difference that the time in the mud seemed to have made to my foot. But we were both very thirsty, due to the saltiness of the water and the heat. Oranges hadn’t been available at the hotel that morning, and so we stopped at a cafe bar and, anxious to avoid concentrates, I purchased a Coke Zero. The first splash of that ice-cold man-made drink was just as refreshing as the previous day's orange, but once again I had a sense of the Lord, this time highlighting that this is a demonstration of just how easy it is to be refreshed by false things. The refreshing is not enough: we have to know its provenance, whence it comes. As 1 John 4:1 tells us: test the spirits.

As if to reinforce that little gem, on Friday, when visiting Caesarea, Haifa & Acco, we stopped briefly to look at the Bahai Gardens at Haifa. They are physically impressive, both on looks and size, yet I felt God asking me what spirit is behind Baha'i – and I had to confess that I had no idea, but committed to researching it.

Knowing Jesus – the real thing

Then on Saturday, just prior to Finn's baptism, we visited the Church of the Annunciation. As we went down into the oldest remaining part, feeling like we were peering through a window into history, I experienced an intense presence of the Lord that filled me with wonder, wellbeing, worship, and awe – it is beyond my describing. Certainly, I never expected anything like that, not in a formal church setting, with a Catholic mass being conducted in the room above (you could even say in the ‘upper room’). The effects of the experience remained with me right through to Har Yardenit – and I knew exactly what to say for Finn's baptism, knew whatever I felt I would be ok, even though I was worried about getting my trainer back on after a hard morning's walking, so much so I contemplated going into the water in my trainers!Yardenit baptismal site - image from the Yardenit website

And there we were. Finn declared Jesus as his Lord, renounced the temptations and works of the evil one and his acolytes and was baptised into God the Father, God the Son and God the Holy Spirit. He did it with eyes and mouth wide open, arms spread with fingers splayed, and as he came up out of the water a family of pigeons landed. God is good. 

What does it all mean? I don't fully know, but what I do know is that in a dry, hot place, in physical challenges for me and spiritual submission for him, we both tasted and saw that the Lord is good; and we were taught to keep our eyes and ears open for man-made substitutes that can appear just as refreshing until you look closer at the provenance.

Psalm 34

I will bless the Lord at all times;
His praise shall continually be in my mouth.
My soul shall make its boast in the Lord;
The humble shall hear of it and be glad.

Oh, magnify the Lord with me,
And let us exalt his name together.
I sought the Lord, and He heard me,
And delivered me from all my fears.

They looked to him and were radiant,
And their faces were not ashamed.
This poor man cried out, and the Lord heard him,
And saved him out of all his troubles.

The angel of the Lord encamps all around those who fear Him,
And delivers them.
Oh, taste and see that the Lord is good;
Blessed is the man who trusts in him!

Oh, fear the Lord, you His saints!
There is no want to those who fear Him.
The young lions lack and suffer hunger;
But those who seek the Lord shall not lack any good thing.

Come, you children, listen to me;
I will teach you the fear of the Lord.
Who is the man who desires life,
And loves many days, that he may see good?

Keep your tongue from evil,
And your lips from speaking deceit.
Depart from evil and do good;
Seek peace and pursue it.

The eyes of the Lord are on the righteous,
And his ears are open to their cry.
The face of the Lord is against those who do evil,
To cut off the remembrance of them from the earth.

The righteous cry out, and the Lord hears,
And delivers them out of all their troubles.
The Lord is near to those who have a broken heart,
And saves such as have a contrite spirit.

Many are the afflictions of the righteous,
But the Lord delivers him out of them all.
He guards all his bones;
Not one of them is broken.

Evil shall slay the wicked,
And those who hate the righteous shall be condemned.
The Lord redeems the soul of his servants,
And none of those who trust in him shall be condemned.