40 Days
On October 16, one week after this trip was due to begin, I made an interesting observation with regards to the length of this trip. As of October 16, the trip was due to last 38 days from October 9 to November 16. As it happens, this trip was due to begin exactly 40 days and nights prior to the 17th of Cheshvan in the Hebrew calendar, which, according to commonly accepted Jewish tradition, is the day that Noah’s Flood began with 40 days and 40 nights of rain! The 17th of Cheshvan corresponds with November 18 in the Gregorian calendar in 2024. This is an interesting observation in light of the other references to the number 40 that God worked into this trip. (It was inspired on the first day of Lent – the 40-day fasting period prior to Easter Sunday, not counting the Sundays; and both trips to Jerusalem and Israel that were inspired on Ash Wednesday were inspired exactly 40 visits apart – the 11th and 51st). This visit to Israel would cover the 51st anniversary of the Yom Kippur War, e