It seems like every tourist who goes to Israel wants to go to the Dead Sea, and I get that.
At 1412 feet below sea level and almost 1,000 feet deep, the Dead Sea is the lowest point on earth. Because it is almost ten times saltier than the oceans, people float in it like a marshmallows in a cup of hot chocolate. The minerals in it actually fall out of solution and you can pick salt crystals up with your toes while wading in it. People spend an estimated $1.27 billion per year just buying the mud from the Dead Sea because it is said to be beneficial for skin care.
But to me, the Dead Sea is just what it's called.
Dead.
There are no fish, no bugs, no plankton, not even bacteria living in its waters.
It's shores are crusted
in thick layers of salt. The area receives less than two inches of rainfall per year. It's hot, it's dry, it's dusty, and lifeless. It is the very definition of "desolate."
But less than two-thirds of a mile from the shore of the Dead Sea, there is an oasis called "En Gedi." It's an Israeli national park and is visited by over one million people per year because it is absolutely beautiful. Water flows out of the steep rock and creates a green and beautiful oasis filled with lush plants and wildlife. You can stand under the waterfall and take a cool shower while standing in the pool formed by the flowing water.
It's absolutely gorgeous.
And, because this is Israel, of course it has a Biblical history. If you read 1 Samuel 23 and 24, you will find that David and his men camped at En Gedi while Saul and his men were suffering and sweltering in the area around the Dead Sea trying to find and kill David.
The contrast between the two places, even though they are very near to one another, is amazing. Life and death camp right next door to one another.
Our lives are really not much different.
We can choose a life of spiritual desolation and death or we can choose a life of glorious abundance.
Sometimes, however, death and desolation seem to seek us out. Whether this is our fault or not, spiritual warfare comes upon all of us at some point in our lives.
That's why the Freedom Quest Spiritual Warfare Symposium at Village Creek Bible Camp got me to drawing these parallel lines in my mind. The camp is located in a beautiful valley with a trout stream flowing through it. The staff of the camp are absolutely wonderful as are the accommodations. The food is excellent.
In this safe and glorious and beautiful place of abundance, we spent the weekend listening to people who were on the front lines of spiritual warfare. Terry Baxter spoke on demonic attack and the believer's authority in Christ. A wonderful 17 year-old lady named Ariella told us about being recruited in transgenderism in the public school system at age 10. Magon Van Zee touched us with the story of her husband's suicide and the spiritual warfare before and after. Dave and Janet Kott spoke on Satanic Ritual Abuse. Dr. Sam Sims and his wife, Breanna, told us about their spiritual victory through prayer and fasting. And, on Sunday, we heard a powerful video presentation by Bethany Baxter Noriega about true and genuine spiritual encounter weekends with a God who loves us more than we can think or imagine.
In the end, I realized what we had been talking about --and what we had seen right before our eyes-- was not as much Spiritual Warfare as it was Spiritual Victory!
And that's why, as I ponder all of this, I'm drawn to Psalm 23. Now, while there is a long tradition of reading this psalm in a calm and consoling manner, especially at funerals, I wonder if David didn't speak it (or maybe even shout it) in a tone of absolute victory!
"The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want.
He makes me lie down in green pastures.
He leads me beside still waters.
He restores my soul.
He leads me in paths of righteousness for his name’s sake.
Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death,
I will fear no evil, for you are with me;
your rod and your staff, they comfort me.
You prepare a table before me
in the presence of my enemies;
you anoint my head with oil; my cup overflows.
Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me
all the days of my life, and I shall dwell in the house of the Lord forever." (ESV)
(Photo of En Gedi used under GoServ Global's license with Canva.)
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