Marty O'Connor is the former director and board member of That the World May Know Ministries and has facilitated numerous Israel study tours with Ray VanderLaan, Kent Dobson, George DeJong, Bill Geisel and Dr. Tim Brown. Over the last years Marty has been privileged to lead Israel study tours for mega churches to main street churches to discipleship ministries. Marty is excited to share with you what he has learned from the Text, the culture, the land, history and from his mentors.
"The Journey Begins… your Journey" will be more than “just a bus tour” of the land of Israel. You will learn from the land and its people with your feet, your senses and the Text. You will visit the places where Moses, Joshua, Samson, David, Elijah, and John the Baptist grew in their understanding and relationship with God. Imagine experiencing the context of Jesus’ entire life and ministry… Bethlehem, Nazareth, Capernaum, the Sea of Galilee, the Jordan River, Jerusalem, and so much more. Marty's tours will be physically demanding, requiring daily hiking and climbing.
A former trip participant put together a video clip of one of Marty's Israel tours - check it out: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=88h6Gd9JBCs
Or view a slide show: http://picasaweb.google.com/GTI.Study.Tours/IsraelStudyTours
Comments/reflections on Marty's tour......
"When I take a group from NorthRidge Church to Israel, it is for the purpose of providing an experience that will significantly advance their spiritual growth. After several trips, I have discovered that the guide that I team up with can make or break the experience. For this reason, I highly recommend Marty O’Connor. He is passionate about connecting the Israel experience to spiritual impact. He provides a wealth of knowledge, insight, and unique facts that help to bring the Bible to life in the context of each site. And, as important as any other issue, he is willing to support the pastor or group leader in any way. I would encourage any pastor planning a trip to Israel to do themselves the favor of having Marty as their guide."
Brad Powell
Senior Pastor, Author & Teacher
NorthRidge Church Plymouth, Michigan
"I'm the director of a leadership-training program for college and post-college aged students. We've dreamed about having a trip to Israel as a part of our program and learning experience each year - so, I had been looking for a company and guide who we could stick with year after year. Marty will always be my leader of choice simply because he was a shepherd to my group and to me as the group leader. He didn't just impart information to us - he helped us encounter the very words of God while we were in the best of the lands. He's engaging, prayerful, and willing to boldly challenge his audience. Highly recommend him to you as a leader for your trip (...as long as it doesn't conflict with our future trips)!"
Matt Lantz
Director of the FORGE at Pine Cove
Tyler, Texas
"After a couple of days with Marty as our leader/teacher, it was apparent that he was intimately acquainted with Jesus, the text, the land, and its people. I highly recommend Marty O’Connor to you if you are planning an on-site learning experience to Biblical lands.”
Rev. Craig Clapper
Senior Pastor, Trinity Evangelical Free Church
South Bend, Indiana
"Marty O'Connor is a gifted teacher with the ability to make the Bible come alive. He has a great balance of teaching not only biblical history and wisdom but making it practical to every day life. I watched as my 52 college-age students were drawn into the text and came back with a new view of the Bible and how it applied to their lives. In my opinion this trip is comparable to going to seminary as you will never read the Bible the same way again - you cannot help but be changed as you walk the land that helped shape the scriptures and the people in them. Whether you are a college-age student or someone further along in life, Marty will challenge you and help deepen your understanding of God."
Rich Ferreira
Director of Joshua / Wildwood
Hume Lake Christian Camps
Hume Lake, California
“Israel is a land of intrigue. Having the opportunity to walk the land as you follow and experienced teacher and shepherd is simply a gift. Marty O’Connor is a man of the Text. He possess the unique ability to explain the biblical, historical and archaeological impact of the land on the Christian faith in a highly practical ways. The Israel experience with Marty will challenge you physically, spiritually, and emotionally. You will laugh, cry, and simply marvel at the truth of the Bible. Marty’s love for God and love for people clearly allows him to gently call everyone to a closer walk with God. Most importantly, Marty will get out of the way so that you can see Jesus as you walk in his footsteps. I highly recommend Marty O’Connor. I will use him again.”
Dr. Brian Haynes
Associate Pastor
Kingsland Baptist Church
Katy, Texas
"As a tour guide in Israel, I meet many tour leaders from all over the world. Marty O’Connor impressed me with his knowledge, kindness, and devotion for each person in the group. People followed Marty, the shepherd in the holy land, with joy and interest. I hope that many tourists come to experience our country, I also hope that Marty will be their tour leader and, God willing, I will be his assistant along the journey."
Ronny Ben Moshe
Manager of the Knesset Guiding Center
Jerusalem, Israel
I'm sure there are many wonderful gifted teachers out there giving tours in the land of Israel. However, I'm not sure how many allow the text to be the main guide to the land in which a person is traveling. I felt like Marty excelled in this area. Now, that's not to say that his commentary regarding the land and the text wasn't excellent, because it was, but his humility to allow the text to speak spoke volumes to me at who he is as a man and what his priorities are as a guide/ teacher.
Chad Oltman
The Urban Refuge Church
Minneapolis, Minnesota
I have met a lot of people in my nearly 15 years as a tour guide, tour leader, sales & marketing manager and lecturer in many universities in the world. Working with you was perfect, because you are excellent. You work very hard to make your group very happy it shows that you are a professional and a gentleman. You organized for your groups the very best tour in Jordan.
I respect you and think that you are the best for all the Groups. I heard a lot from the party saying. “Marty is doing a SUPER JOB for us”. Yes, you did a super job here! Marty, I am proud to work with you. I enjoy being your friend and guide for your kind of groups. I learned a lot from you. I want to you know that you are very good!
Samir Amro
Archeologist, Lecturer, Guide
Jordan
We would describe our Israel tour with Marty O’Connor as exciting, challenging and life changing. As Marty guided us on a physical and spiritual journey through Israel, we were regularly invited to find a soft rock and read from the Very Words of God.
Studying the Scriptures in the places that they describe was the ultimate experience of the text in context while Marty’s knowledge of Jewish history and the Hebrew culture brought the Scriptures alive. At each location Marty interpreted the Scriptures from a Jewish perspective which brought amazing additional meaning and insight to the text which he transferred in a very practical and challenging way to our lives.
Marty gave us the opportunity to feel Israel just as the Israelites did. We walked in the desert in 42 degree (108F) heat and will never read “desert” in the Scriptures so glibly again. There we experienced hospitality as Abraham did, we sampled the “so inviting but poisonous waters of the Salt Sea” and the “life giving pure water” of En Gedi. We walked between mine fields at Susita and stood on the newly discovered road to Damascus at Omrit. At each place we were challenged physically, but more importantly, we were challenged spiritually as Marty applied the Scriptures. “Who is God?” We know about God but don’t know who He is. If He is indeed Lord, why are we not following Him? God is only Lord if we are obedient.
As we journeyed through Israel, Marty’s input challenged us spiritually and as a result our perception of God has changed, as has the way we do ministry. Our lives will never be the same again.
Do you want an interesting, informative, challenging life changing experience in Israel? Tour with Marty.
Chris and Margaret Herud
New Zealand
"As a pastor I can't even begin to describe the benefit of traveling through the "Greatest of Lands" with Marty. His rabbinical-like teaching style was challenging because it's very different from our typical "Western" style. The trip was heart piercing, enlightening, and challenging, but in the end I wouldn't trade my experience for anything! This trip will bear fruit for years to come.”
Danny Loeffelholz
Pastor of Grace Community Church
Tyler, Texas
Your Journey will bring the Text alive for you in fascinating new ways as you look at it in its geographical and cultural context. As we Journey together our lives will be touched by the power and love of God in such a way that you’ll want to share with others and will not soon forget!
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