So it’s the day after Thanksgiving, which to me usually feels a lot like the movie The Day After. All the reflective peace and tranquility of Thanksgiving gets swallowed up in the cataclysmic hysteria and early morning rush of the “Christmas season.” Traffic around malls become impassable. Stay-at-home moms come outside to fight other moms for that last toy their child must have. Bedlam and mayhem rules in shopping malls across the lands and credit debt explodes like nuclear mushroom clouds over self-deluded parents.
While you’re thinking of joining the “Black Friday” frenzy, why not consider a purchase or investment you’ll remember and enjoy for years to come? Why not do something truly out of the ordinary? Why not do something that actually might help you grow in faith and understand your Bibles better?
Why not go to Israel? Why not tour the land of the Bible, not for “stones and bones,” but with a Reformed Covenantal perspective. Instead of dropping $2,000 on a tool set that he’ll never use to finish your “honey do list,” consider investing that in time away as a couple or family doing something you’ve always wanted to do. Instead of trolling the malls right up to closing time on Christmas Eve cluelessly looking for that gift she’ll swoon over, why not hand her a small envelope with plane tickets and travel brochure? And after you’ve spent Christmas with the extended family, packing and unpacking as you caravan like nomads from house to house, dragging the kids along despite their protests about aunt Betty’s beard and uncle Harry’s coarse jokes, pack your bags for an excursion you’ll be eager to make with the family of God.
Interested? Good. Check out my brother Voddie Baucham’s tour of Israel for 2014. I had the privilege of co-leading a tour with Voddie this year and it was the highlight of the year for my wife and me. More than that, it was an unforgettable experience!
So, skip the malls, the traffic, the online ads and all the tinsel that glitters until December 26th. Invest in something that will be life and perspective changing. Go to Israel.
