Tiberias and points south...

This morning we are headed up the western side of the Sea of Galilee toward Capernaum. It's a beautiful day, the sun is shining brightly, and the haze isn't too bad. Capernaum was the "home town" of Jesus. We are passing along the shore of the Sea of Galilee - Mt. Hermon is visible in the distance, snow-capped and majestic. Between us are the Golan heights. Until just a few years ago the Syrians occupied those heights and looked down on Tiberias. Our guide, David (= "beloved" in Hebrew) described them as "our greatesst enemy." Not really, though they certainly continue to present a physical threat.

We will arrive at the Mt. of Beatitudes soon - central to what our guide calls the "Jesus Triangle," which is Capernaum, Bethsaida, and Chorazin - the three towns where Jesus did the majority of his teaching in Galilee.

Sitting here on the north shore of the Sea, I spot a lonely fishing boat far out on the water. I can't even see the people in it - just a dot in the middle of that watery expanse. I think of the Gadarene Demoniac (Mark 5) sitting up in the tombs near Sennabris, gazing out on that same water, seeing the boats pass back and forth. One of them held the Man who would rescue him one day - the man who would break the spiritual shackles that bound him to a dark world haunted by very real demons. And yet, from that distance, that perspective, Jesus would have seemed like any other fisherman. It isn't until Jesus lands on his shore that he can see the difference. It isn't until he bows before him and experiences the grace that can only come through a personal encounter with the living Christ that his life is changed forever for the better.

It's the same with me. The same with all of us. Take a moment today to welcome Him to your shores. Consider his offer to set you free from the chains that bind you. You don't have to be living among the tombs to feel estranged from God. You don't have to be filled with demons to sense your spiritual alienation. He is not small and far away. He is near you - closer than your next thought. Trust Him to deliver you. He will. And He will fill you up to overflowing with His life.