The next day we remained in the Galilee region. Our guide, Henry and his family live on a kibbutz in the area. So, he had been able to hop off the bus on our way back to the hotel yesterday evening, and spend the night with his wife and young children. It was now apparent that 11 hour days were our new normal. In the first picture below, we are ready to go! Beginning and ending each day with Jonathan Cahn’s teaching followed by praise and worship also became a wonderfully regular practice!
Today is the beginning of the Jewish Sabbath, or “Shabbat.” Thanks to Henry, we quickly picked up the customary greeting of “Shabbat Shalom.” In English, the word “shalom” can mean “hello”, “goodbye”, or “peace”. But, its actual meaning is broader, encompassing wholeness and well-being. Observant Jews take care to not shorten their celebration of Shabbat. Therefore, many maintain the practice of lighting Shabbat candles 18 minutes before sunset on Friday. This is to insure that they do not begin Shabbat late. Contrary to my previous understanding, Shabbat continues not until sunset on Saturday. Rather, it continues until the appearance of three stars on Saturday evening. This is meant to guarantee that Shabbat is not ended early. Henry also told us that most Israeli Jews do not work at all on Friday. But, those who do, typically will work only until 12:00 noon.
We had received our Shabbat lesson as we headed out on the road. Our first stop was in the land of Cana where Jesus had performed His first public miracle by turning water into wine at a wedding feast. While there, the married couples, including Shelley and I, renewed our marriage commitments to each other in a very special ceremony. The couple married the longest (66 years) also re-enacted a Jewish wedding. Rabbi Cahn gave them a misheberach blessing.A chuppah, i.e. a four cornered cloth roof (which symbolizes the new home that a bride and groom would build together), was held over our couple by four tour guests, each holding one of the four posts. The wedding celebration included the 86 year old “groom” smashing a cloth covered glass goblet underfoot. Then we formed several circles, and everyone enjoyed a hora, the traditional Jewish wedding dance. All of this celebration was interspersed with group worship, and teaching from Rabbi Cahn.
Next, we drove through Nazareth on our way up Mt. Precipice. We observed much trash piled up alongside the road. When questioned, Henry told us that Nazareth has a largely Muslim population, and that the way they manage the city is “very bad”. Up on the mountain, we received more teaching while overlooking the city, and the Jezreel Valley. See the second and third pictures below.
We visited the ruins of the Migdal Synagogue, the first synagogue discovered in Galilee. See the fourth and fifth pictures below. Later, we experienced a very special time with the Lord on the northern shore of the Sea of Galilee near the area where Jesus had called His disciples. There, Rabbi Cahn delivered a short lesson. See the sixth picture below. Then we each enjoyed about 20 minutes of solitude with our LORD.
At the end of the day, as the sun was setting, we all boarded one of two Galilean ships tethered together, and sailed out onto the Sea of Galilee. There, we joyfully, and loudly worshiped God, both before and after more teaching from Rabbi Jonathan. See the final picture below. This time, our worship was led by the captain and owner of the ships, a Messianic Jew named Danny, who has been blessed with a powerful singing voice. His worship of Jeshua was loudly amplified out over the lake both in Hebrew and in English. Shelley and I purchased a flash drive of Danny’s worship music so that we can praise God with him at home, with our voices in English, and from our hearts in Hebrew. After this very special day and evening spent exploring Israel with God, we enjoyed another buffet dinner, and another overnight in our hotel by the Sea of Galilee.
Ready for a New DayNazarethJezreel ValleyMigdal Synagogue Description
Israel – Day 5
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Posted: December 21, 2025 by OBrien Rich
Friday, November 7th
Day 5
The next day we remained in the Galilee region. Our guide, Henry and his family live on a kibbutz in the area. So, he had been able to hop off the bus on our way back to the hotel yesterday evening, and spend the night with his wife and young children. It was now apparent that 11 hour days were our new normal. In the first picture below, we are ready to go! Beginning and ending each day with Jonathan Cahn’s teaching followed by praise and worship also became a wonderfully regular practice!
Today is the beginning of the Jewish Sabbath, or “Shabbat.” Thanks to Henry, we quickly picked up the customary greeting of “Shabbat Shalom.” In English, the word “shalom” can mean “hello”, “goodbye”, or “peace”. But, its actual meaning is broader, encompassing wholeness and well-being. Observant Jews take care to not shorten their celebration of Shabbat. Therefore, many maintain the practice of lighting Shabbat candles 18 minutes before sunset on Friday. This is to insure that they do not begin Shabbat late. Contrary to my previous understanding, Shabbat continues not until sunset on Saturday. Rather, it continues until the appearance of three stars on Saturday evening. This is meant to guarantee that Shabbat is not ended early. Henry also told us that most Israeli Jews do not work at all on Friday. But, those who do, typically will work only until 12:00 noon.
We had received our Shabbat lesson as we headed out on the road. Our first stop was in the land of Cana where Jesus had performed His first public miracle by turning water into wine at a wedding feast. While there, the married couples, including Shelley and I, renewed our marriage commitments to each other in a very special ceremony. The couple married the longest (66 years) also re-enacted a Jewish wedding. Rabbi Cahn gave them a misheberach blessing. A chuppah, i.e. a four cornered cloth roof (which symbolizes the new home that a bride and groom would build together), was held over our couple by four tour guests, each holding one of the four posts. The wedding celebration included the 86 year old “groom” smashing a cloth covered glass goblet underfoot. Then we formed several circles, and everyone enjoyed a hora, the traditional Jewish wedding dance. All of this celebration was interspersed with group worship, and teaching from Rabbi Cahn.
Next, we drove through Nazareth on our way up Mt. Precipice. We observed much trash piled up alongside the road. When questioned, Henry told us that Nazareth has a largely Muslim population, and that the way they manage the city is “very bad”. Up on the mountain, we received more teaching while overlooking the city, and the Jezreel Valley. See the second and third pictures below.
We visited the ruins of the Migdal Synagogue, the first synagogue discovered in Galilee. See the fourth and fifth pictures below. Later, we experienced a very special time with the Lord on the northern shore of the Sea of Galilee near the area where Jesus had called His disciples. There, Rabbi Cahn delivered a short lesson. See the sixth picture below. Then we each enjoyed about 20 minutes of solitude with our LORD.
At the end of the day, as the sun was setting, we all boarded one of two Galilean ships tethered together, and sailed out onto the Sea of Galilee. There, we joyfully, and loudly worshiped God, both before and after more teaching from Rabbi Jonathan. See the final picture below. This time, our worship was led by the captain and owner of the ships, a Messianic Jew named Danny, who has been blessed with a powerful singing voice. His worship of Jeshua was loudly amplified out over the lake both in Hebrew and in English. Shelley and I purchased a flash drive of Danny’s worship music so that we can praise God with him at home, with our voices in English, and from our hearts in Hebrew. After this very special day and evening spent exploring Israel with God, we enjoyed another buffet dinner, and another overnight in our hotel by the Sea of Galilee.
Copyright 2025 Rich O’Brien
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