33 years ago!
33 years ago
Today!!!
Our first tour of the Garden 33 years ago.
Today!
The number of visitors each year has significantly
increased each year in 33 years.
Our Guide 33 years ago.
We are trying to identify him
Any help will be appreciated.
Bear in mind that he is 33 years older but just might have a son that looks just like him!
Volunteers in the Garden Today.
OK, you got me. The picture was taken in February.
It is not cold enough for leather coats yet!
Skull Hill, Golgatha, 33 years ago.
Notice that there is no TV antenna on the tomb atop Skull Hill.
Today, complete with TV antenna.
Wine Press 33 years ago, full of rain water.
Wine Press today minus the water.
Sadly there are more changes to come that we are not looking forward to. Our neighbors, the Waqf that control the Muslim cemetery atop Skull Hill are building a Mosque and Minaret in the cemetery. They are getting ready to pour several tons of concrete on top of an unstable brick wall that the Garden Tomb Association built 105 years ago to separate the Garden from the Muslim Cemetery. We are concerned for the safety of our guests in the Garden as well as for the Skull face on Skull Hill. The Minaret is being built right alongside and above the Skull Face.
15 foot high poured concrete wall will sit on top of
a 105 year old brick wall. Incredibly unstable!
It could come crashing down into the garden at any time
crushing upward of 200 guests.
A potential disaster of catastrophic proportions just waiting to happen!
Minaret under construction in the bus station next door.
It will rise alongside the Skull Face and tower above it.
The pile of dirt above the Skull face, alongside the tomb on the top,
is preparation for further building.
The Christian Broadcasting Network (CBN) was here last week and aired a great news story over the weekend. You can catch it online at
On top of everything else, this month is Ramadan. Approximately 130,000 Muslims marched past the entrance to the Garden this past Friday on their way to Temple Mount to pray at the Dome of the Rock. It was heart breaking watching them go past our gate without Christ while we knew that we had the Truth they needed. Ramadan ends this week. Please pray with us that God will give us unique opportunities to share our faith in this land.
On the way home from Muslim Prayers
We do not know the future for the Garden. We just know Who holds the future. Please pray with us that God will protect this place. A quarter of a million visitors come to the Garden Tomb each year. There are a significant number of those who do not know Christ as their Savior but they ALL year the gospel while they are here. This place has been a very special place in our lives for 33 years personally. We trust that it will remain a light house in this land for the Kingdom until Jesus returns!
No comments:
Post a Comment