School might be out, but we have an interesting, mid-summer lesson! Have you heard about the two seas in Israel and Jordan. Take a peek at the map here.

School might be out, but we have an interesting, mid-summer lesson! Have you heard about the two seas in Israel and Jordan. Take a peek at the map here. You’ll see the Sea of Galillee and the Dead Sea. You might remember something about them from your geography lessons or you might be able to place them in stories you’ve learned from your house of faith.

But you might not know this.

The Sea of Galilee is beautiful. It has blue water and is full of fauna and flora. Life exists. Trees line its banks where children splash and play. The Jordan River makes this sea, flowing from the sunny hills. And life is happy and vibrant around this sea.

Through the Sea of Galilee, the Jordan River continues to flow south. Into another sea the cool rolling waters flow. Into the Dead Sea. Here there are no fish swimming, no birds flying above, no families sunning near the shoreline. No man or animal will drink the water here. Life does not exist and no one wants to be here.

One might ask: What makes this enormous difference between these neighboring seas? Could it be the Jordan River? No. The same flowing waters empty into both bodies. It is also not the soil, not the people, not the geography.

So what is the difference?

The Sea of Galilee receives, but does not keep the Jordan. For every drop that flows into, another drop flows out. The Sea of Galilee gives equally as it receives. But the Dead Sea keeps the Jordan. It has no outlet. Every drop it gets, it keeps. It is not tempted to share and stockpiles its incoming waters aggressively.

There are two seas in Palestine. The Sea of Galilee gives, lives and flourishes. And the Dead Sea keeps everything, shares nothing and is dead. Which sea best represents you and your life? Which sea do you wish to be like?