Biblical Tamar Park
This 55 acre park is a change of pace for tourists. It is a retreat-type setting. Most of the hosts stay for at least one of the following reasons: archaeology, hands-on work experiences, fellowship, and/or prayer and study. Some just enjoy the rest and relaxation break from a fast-paced tour. The Park maintains housing units with a total of 50 beds, shared bathrooms (average of four people) and a full service dining commons. All rooms are air-conditioned.
The jewel of the Park is Tel Tamar, which according to Genesis 14:7, was first settled over 4000 years ago. Seven periods have been defined since the fortress city was first inhabited.
"But I have
received everything in full and have an abundance; I am amply supplied, having
received from Epaphroditus what you have sent, a fragrant aroma, an acceptable
sacrifice, well-pleasing to God. And My God shall supply all your needs
according to His riches in glory in Christ Jesus" (Phil. 4:18-19)
Hey Gang:
Did you ever get so caught up with something that you literally lost track of
what was going on in the world around you? That happened to me and
my bride in the mid seventies when our lives were totally consumed with the
development of the Village. I mean it was a 24/7 experience and one
did not have to be a rocket scientist to know that if we continued on that
route, we would soon burn out.
God knew that.
He knew, when we answered the call to take on the task of Foster Care turned to
developing a multi pronged program (five
separate program components at the same time) it was going to be like an all
consuming fire. And so he sent a rescuer into our lives, a person who has
spent a large chunk of his life in the desert regions of Israel and challenged
us to go to the desert and be refreshed.
His heart's desire and
the mission, answering God’s call, was to aid some destitue families at a
Kibbutz in the Arabah. Today it is a widely recognized Tel and show case of the
profound beauty and historical significance of the desert (Arabah). This
Kubbutz, then Ir Ovot, now renamed Tamar Park, is of special significance;
in the Old Testament it is called Oboth,
(Num 21:10) the place where Moses and the children of Israel spent a portion
of their sojourn from Egypt to the land of "Milk and Honey".
We were privileged to
be among the first pilgrims to spend time at Ir Ovot, and, in essence cleaned
the land and prepared the Kibbutz for those who would follow. There
is no way I can give you an accurate description of what we found and what we
were able to accomplish in that ten day period. It was the first time in
my life where I took two pieces of junk, made one piece of junk that worked and
felt pretty good about it.
My first assignment
was of utmost importance. It was a project that, if I failed to do
quickly and with great success, the whole conglomerate of people (more than
fifty) would be in very serious trouble. You see it seems someone had
tried to make a roadway in the middle of the septic system, which had been
installed by Moses (joking of course), maybe first world war -it was very
archaic They had split and clogged the
sewer line from the lavatory facilities to the septic tank. Problem number
one: where was the split? Number two: how in the world could we repair it
expeditiously?
Problem number one was
solved very quickly by turning on the water in the lavatory and letting the
leak show us where it was. Problem number two was a little more
challenging. In the early 1980’s there were no plumbers or plumbing
supply houses within fifty miles of Ir Ovot. But there were miles of
water lines that had been left behind by the Arabs, English and Jewish armies
who had all been assigned within a mile of the of the kibbutz, in various war
times
Within several hours
of very hard digging and some serious reducing of large water pipes to fit the
existing sewer lines, we solved the problem and many people with full bladders
were very beholding to the plumbing crew.
Soooo, why am I
telling you this story? As I mentioned there were over fifty people on
that work tour and we had literally nothing to work with except the few things
were able to take with us from the States, but
every time we ran into a clinker in that ten days, God provided amply and
with just the right thing to help us solve the many problems we encountered.
Our motto for that ten day period was "MY GOD SHALL SUPPLY. Do you have a need today? You might want to check
out Malachi 3:10-11 and use God's provision. He even places a challenge
"Test Me Now" with a promise, "then I will rebuke the devourer for you".
Blessings, Gramps
PS from Gma – we even
learned the cut out bottom of a tank made a wonderful grill for that number of
people!
Biblical Tamar Park
This
55 acre park is a change of pace for tourists. It is a retreat-type setting.
Most of the hosts stay for at least one of the following reasons: archaeology,
hands-on work experiences, fellowship, and/or prayer and study. Some just enjoy
the rest and relaxation break from a fast-paced tour. The Park maintains
housing units with a total of 50 beds, shared bathrooms (average of four
people) and a full service dining commons. All rooms are air-conditioned.
The
jewel of the Park is Tel Tamar, which according to Genesis 14:7, was first
settled over 4000 years ago. Seven periods have been defined since the fortress
city was first inhabited.
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