What the land of Israel means to you?

Im pushing through the azure blue. My legs pump, my arms thresh the water as I propel downwards. No scuba gear, just mask and snorkel. I like it this way - hard work against the elements. I pinch my nostrils and break the pressure build-up in my eardrums. Almost there, about 6 meters deep. I straighten out and knife along the bottom towards a large coral outcrop, populated with an abundance of tropical fish and other splendid creatures. I’m almost at the foot of the coral when I straighten up, cease all muscular activity; limp, flaccid, I allow my body to float slowly to the surface – it’s raining fish! They wash over me as I continue my slow ascent. Green, yellow, blue, turquoise, a blur of color. They are fearless, protected for years in their underwater domain. They part way for my ascension and then slowly re-congregate. I break the surface and hungrily suck in oxygen. My pulse is shunting along; my arms and legs feel the extent of my effort. The distant beach greets me and the sky rolls away across the expanse known as the Red Sea. South of Israel, Eilat. Mixed emotions. Stark, unyielding sand dunes, brittle heat waves, cool fresh ocean. An almost unbearable tension… There are apparently more than 40,000 illegal “citizens” here in Eilat , this according to the latest news from the ministry of the interior. If they are so sure that there are 40,000 illegal citizens, why aren’t they doing something about it? As it is, they have pushed back travel Visa's to three months. They press on in their dogma and unbelief. Life in Israel is an over-laden express train thundering along an indeterminable line without breaks – no stopping just a blur of stations, faces, and sound. Tourists show their faces like guest appearances on a TV show. They see a façade, a superficial surface lade down by one of the most enticing tourist domains on earth. To walk where Jesus walked , to pray at the Wailing wall, to see the Dome of the Rock. Their tour is a brief taste of sights and sounds. But modern Israel is something different, both in character and spirit. 60 years new, 2000 years old. How I wish the men from the ministry would allow you more time here. Allow a fully integrated Israeli experience. An ancient American Indian expression tells us that you cannot know a man unless you have walked ten moons in his moccasins. Ten moons are not enough in Israel. It is a land so pregnant with history, culture, religion and politics that a lifetime is insufficient in this endeavor. My baptismal dive is over and I slowly trace my way back to my family who are patiently waiting on the beach. My daughters are ensconced in a treasure hunt for strange and amazing shells and coral residue. My baby boy is with his mother - she is dutifully feeding him some sliced fruit and sheltering him from the merciless heat. And then it strikes me, my baptismal dive; is a picture of our course as new immigrants in Israel. The coral reef represents the land itself, unstructured, borders not yet properly defined, shaped by the elements (people) over time (history). The fish represent the absolute diversity of religion, culture, nationalities, that lay claim to the land and seek refuge here. And I, I represent the immigrant, the new man, venturing into the unknown, pressing in to the land of hope , washing myself amongst the nations, but ultimately having to return to the surface, to breathe again. not yet able to stay down in the depths. 1 John 2:17 The world and its desires pass away, but the man who does the will of God lives forever.