February 21, 2026

Life in the Land: A Bobsleigh Story

If you don’t know the difference between a bobsleigh and a bobsled, then you’re not alone. I had to look it up myself, and it turns out that there isn’t really a difference. Americans say bobsled and the rest of the world generally says bobsleigh. But I promised you a story, so let me get to it.

Have you ever been an alternate or a backup? Perhaps you were the first runner up at the Miss Tractor Pull or Miss Pickle pageant (yes, both are actual events) and Miss Pickle suddenly relinquished her title because of a scheduling dill-emma. Or someone declined an academic scholarship to LSU or Auburn and it fell to you. Go Tigers!

Well, after Great Britain declined one of its allotted slots for the Olympic two-man and four-man men’s bobsleigh competition, the spot was awarded to Israel. The two-man competition ended on Tuesday, and they finished 26th out of the 26 teams in their first-ever Olympic appearance. But who knows how much they might improve by 2030 for the 26th Olympiad in France? The four-man bobsleigh competition begins today. Best wishes!

Daniel McCabe

The Diary of My First Trip to Israel—pages 5-6

Page 5: I fell asleep with little fanfare last night, but awoke early around 5:30 to visit the water closet. As I returned to bed, I became aware of a choir of birds outside performing the rendition of a jailbreak. It was a little unnerving until the sun called them away after 6:00 and the staccato of a distant church bell incessantly launched into its own overture. Refreshed nonetheless, I awoke wondering, “Was it a morning like this when Golgotha claimed the life of my Love and the love of my life?

We headed out at around 8:00 after a breakfast of eggs and dry toast. From this point on, I must sadly note that words cannot capture the magnificence of this day, certainly not mine! May Jewish evenings and mornings are quite chilly, but the day heat was soon upon us. We wandered purposefully through the narrow, paved, hilly streets which led from the Jaffa Gate to the Temple Mount. There a PBS camera crew captured one of our guide’s many lectures on what we were to see that day. As the cameras rolled and the green-clad IDF forces kept careful eye, I looked sadly from my perch out upon the blind zeal of the Jews at the Western Wall.

Robinson’s Arch, Wilson’s arches and Warren’s Shaft were dutifully explained. Am I here? The young boys turning thirteen are here on this Thursday, as also on Mondays, to celebrate their bar mitzvahs. Faces from all over the world are here. I am one. We advanced up the rampart to the Temple Mount. One woman was politely asked to cover her shoulders by the Muslim gatekeeper. Several cats greeted our party near the olive trees on the east side.

Later we exited the mount to join a large group of German Pentecostals in a glorious rendition of “Amazing Grace” inside St. Anne’s Church. Then off for a panoramic view of the east side of the Old City wall. The traffic is congested throughout the city and walking is therefore greatly preferred, and I was also struck by the close proximity of everything to each other, making walking less a chore. My lunch of rice, spinach, quiche, coleslaw, two veggies of unknown origin, one Coke, and one heavenly slice of blueberry pie set me back 65 shekels or roughly $16, but I ate with ravenous desire. A walk through David’s city and a visit to the traditional site of the Upper Room completed the day’s events that evening.

This night as I purchased a large round treasure of bread and a bottled water for 6½ shekels, the Jaffa Gate was inundated with thousands and thousands of teenage Jews singing, waving the Israeli flag in celebration and chanting, “I will give my blood for Israel.” It was spectacular.

After much discussion with Brent and Lee tonight about the day’s happenings, I sought my first hot shower. Now I will seek the Lord.

Page 6: Obe’s voice and closed fist were heard through our door. We were sound asleep and it was time to leave. A rushed dressing and quick walk through the crisp air of the Christian quarter brought us to the Holy Sepulcher Church. The candle-lit halls and altars led to the traditional site of the burial of our Savior. A short Coptic priest with a crooked smile and red gown shot past us, and a black-gowned Greek Orthodox priest with folded-arms guarded the entrance to the tomb. His only words were said cheerlessly, “Please hurry, we need to clean inside.” The frescoes and paintings were discolored from years of incense. But after exiting the church, leaving through the Damascus Gate and spelunkering for a time in the quarries below the Old City, we ventured next to a lot behind the Palestinian bus station and looked up to see Gordon’s Calvary, a skull-like protrusion in the cenomanian limestone.

Then we entered the Garden Tomb and witnessed living faith as had not been encountered anywhere in our journeys until that moment. Our guide’s British accent, gray hair and polite demeanor stood out from the hustle and smell and noise of the street from which we had just come. Stan was our guide through the garden, and he articulated in fine manner the history of the place while emphasizing on more than one occasion that the person of Christ was more important than any place. He gave the gospel message clearly and even shared his testimony of trusting Jesus Christ through the ministry of a military liaison that he met while in Michigan many years before. I will never forget his last words to us this day. He said, “Go on in, folks. It’s empty!” Thank you, Stan! See you in the throne room of heaven!

From there we made our way to the Golden Arches for a taste of the familiar. The others have gone shopping. Lee sleeps. I write. Tonight the Sabbath will begin and we will walk to the Western Wall to take a peek at Sabbath worship. For now, though the tomb is empty and the Lord risen, my bed is occupied, and I shall not rise for two hours or so. Shalom!

Daniel McCabe

Trivia (Answer below)

What day do Muslims gather for worship with others?

History: A Once Proud Building

Forgive me if this post falls into the category of “meh” for you. Sometimes I fear that I’ve become like the guy who pulls out his baseball collection at a quilting bee or like the dad who drones on about his new miter saw at his daughter’s slumber party. It’s just that I love everything about the Old City of Jerusalem, and though admittedly some of you will never love black jelly beans, dark chocolate or black-eyed peas as much as I do, perhaps you might enjoy the following snapshot of history.

As you walk out of the shade of Jaffa Gate on your entrance into the Old City, squint your eyes or shade them from the early morning sun and focus about one hundred yards dead ahead of you to the far side of the square, Omar ibn al-Khattab Square to be precise, named for “Omar, the son of Khattab,” the second caliph of Islam who conquered Jerusalem in 638 A.D. There it is—an old stone building that’s passed by thousands of locals and tourists every day with barely even a notice though it once stood quite proudly over the square.

The United States moved its embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem in 2018, one of only five countries with a formal presence there today. Before that time the U.S. only operated a consulate in Jerusalem, a consulate being simply a branch office of an embassy. The U.S. has had a supportive and lasting relationship with the land of the Bible long before the people there took the name of Israel in 1948. Until 1917 the Ottoman Empire ruled over the land of milk and honey from its capital in Constantinople, modern-day Istanbul, and the U.S. embassy officed there. In 1844, however, the U.S. opened a consulate in Jerusalem, and in 1857 it moved to a building on Omar ibn al-Khattab Square in order to assist American citizens, missionaries and tourists and to report local developments on the ground in Jerusalem to the embassy staff in Istanbul. Needing more room and citing security concerns, the consulate moved to a building just outside the Old City in 1912, which operated there until its merger with the new U.S. embassy in 2018.

Attached are two pictures—a shot of the U.S. consulate on the square that dates to 1857 (taken facing south and marked by the stars and stripes) and a modern shot of the still-standing building (taken facing east).

Now, see! That was at least slightly more interesting than watching paint dry or doing your taxes. Perhaps you even enjoyed the read.

Daniel McCabe

Scripture Study: Man’s Moral State

I’ve previously noted that Adam and Eve were morally perfect in the beginning. They had not sinned. But when man failed his first test from God in the garden, he fell into a state of sin, resulting in his total depravity, which means that every aspect of man has been affected by sin. Our mind has fallen. Our bodies are fallen. Of course, we’re morally fallen. Every aspect of man is now imperfect and depraved, and every human being bears guilt for his sinful condition.

Even though Adam and Eve were the only two people in the garden, the entire human race fell into a state of sin with them. We’re born into a fallen race of people. We may not think that’s fair, but it’s the reality. Each person inherits a sinful nature from Adam, his representative head, and each person is guilty from birth.

Even so, sinful man retains the image of God. We never lose that. Satan tried to trip up Adam and Eve in the garden in an attack on God’s image, but we are still made in God’s image, an image which for believers will be ultimately restored to a pristine condition on the basis of the work of Christ. That is why God provides redemption for mankind—because we are made in His image and He loves us.

Angels do not have this opportunity. After Satan drew some angels away from God, those who remained faithful to God were preserved or confirmed forever in a pristine moral state, but those angels who fell have no opportunity to be restored. Only man has the opportunity for salvation because he is made in God’s image. The angels are not made in His image.

The work of Christ is, of course, what restores man to God. Christ imputes His righteousness into a redeemed man, redeeming that person from his sinful state.

Now as long as we’re in this flesh, we all wrestle with the flesh. We struggle! Unfortunately we continue to sin even after we’re saved. It’s at the point of our glorification, after this life, when we then get to be with God in heaven. It’s only after we are glorified that we no longer struggle with the flesh, for we’re out of the flesh at that point. After the resurrection we won’t wrestle with a fallen flesh anymore.

Adam Keim

Editor’s query: If they were “morally perfect,” how could they sin? Perhaps a better description is “innocent,” and thussuccumbed to temptation. Jesus, on the other hand, was morally perfect, and therefore did not succumb to the devil during his wilderness temptations. Isn’t that why the Bible refers to him as “the second Adam?”

Soup’s On!

Sometimes you just need a break from the heavy lifting of archaeology, geography and history in order to satisfy that hankering for a king-sized Payday; a box of dark chocolate Raisinets; or a toasted, blueberry bagel covered in butter, just butter. I know I’d be better off to choose a veggie tray, a bowl of fruit or even a cup of chicken soup. Which reminds me! Tonight is the Sabbath, and on Friday nights Jewish homes typically enjoy a large meal steeped in various traditions, including elegant table-setting, candle-lighting, prayers, blessings, songs and relaxed conversation.

A common main dish for the Sabbath meal is chicken soup, often served with matzo balls that give it the name matzo ball soup. Matzo balls are dumplings made with matzo meal, eggs and fat.

Daniel McCabe

Answer to the Trivia

A. Friday

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