“I could not help but feel that I need to redeem my time as the steps of the Lord’s return are near.”
In the spring of 2015, I quitted my job and joined a six-month kibbutz volunteer program in Israel. Kibbutzim (“collective farms”) in Israel practice a kind of socialism and share things in common. In the early establishment of the state of Israel, kibbutzim overcame the shortage of water, the lack of agricultural technology and the poor soil condition of the land. They created an agricultural miracle and played an important role in the development of the state. At present, there are still over 200 kibbutzim, with members ranging from 40 to 1000. They welcome volunteers from all over the world to experience the life in kibbutzim, and labor in exchange for boarding.
In the first four months, I stayed in a farm in southern Israel, near the Red Sea. The farm is situated in the desert, separated from the neighboring Jordan by a mountain. The main produce is date – there are 8,000 date palms. In the desert with an acute shortage of source of water, the Israelis invented water desalination, using the desalinated water for irrigating the date-palms via drip irrigation system. They produce high quality dates for export to Europe. In addition, they raise milk cows in the desert, producing dairy products enough to supply the whole nation. Not only does the agriculture sector succeed in achieving self-sufficiency, it manages to become a key exporting country to Europe. This is impressive.
In the fifth month, I moved to another kibbutz in Megiddo in northern Israel. Here the scenery is completely different from the desert. Everywhere is lush green. Megiddo historically was an ancient war site. The Old Testament recorded a good number of wars which took place here, especially in the books of Kings. The prophesy in the book of Revelation about the final war will also take place in Armageddon. In Hebrew, “har” means mountain, and ”mageddon” is the same as Megiddo. At times, when I looked at the beautiful plains before me, I would recall the prophesy in the Revelation and that the war at the end times will take place here. I could not help but feel that I need to redeem my time as the steps of the Lord’s return are near.
Before coming to Israel, I often heard news about many dangerous conflicts taking place in the Middle East. However, after coming here, I found that it is very safe here – even petty crimes like thefts are not common. My concept was that the Middle East is a dangerous place – but now my concept was completely changed. I found that it is even safer to here compared to Europe. In terms of food, it is not difficult to get used to. In general, the main Israeli food are salads, bread, accompanied by chickpea paste (hummus), sesame paste, and dairy products. The diet is in fact very healthy. If you want to cook by yourself, you can also find ingredients to prepare Chinese dishes.
I grew up in the church life, and I am familiar with the names, places and events in the Bible. Yet, these are at best fragmented memories. During the six months in Israel, I visited many places recorded in the Bible, one after another these places and events come together like different panels of a comic-strip. There are many other interesting facts, like the Bible often mentioned going “up” to Jerusalem. Now I know Jerusalem is situated 750 meters above the sea level and is the city with the highest altitude in Israel, hence one must go “up” to Jerusalem. On 3rd of April this year, it was the Passover, a big festival in Israel. Families in the kibbutz and volunteers celebrated together according to the traditional practice. First we sang, then read a portion about God leading the Israeli people out of Egypt, after that we blessed the bread and the cup, and finally we had dinner together. The most famous song sang during the Passover is “ Let my people go”, which came out from the book of Exodus. People all sang this song during this festival. After the Passover, the Israelis will keep the feast of Unleavened Bread for seven days, just as it is commanded in the Old Testament.
When I see the Jewish people trying so hard to follow the regulations in the Old Testament but without the reality, I have a sense of regret from within. On the other hand, I really feel blessed that we live in the reality of the New Testament, with the Lord as our real Passover and the Passover Lamb. All we need to do is to use our spirit and we can enjoy all His riches.
(AL, 2015)
In the spring of 2015, I quitted my job and joined a six-month kibbutz volunteer program in Israel. Kibbutzim (“collective farms”) in Israel practice a kind of socialism and share things in common. In the early establishment of the state of Israel, kibbutzim overcame the shortage of water, the lack of agricultural technology and the poor soil condition of the land. They created an agricultural miracle and played an important role in the development of the state. At present, there are still over 200 kibbutzim, with members ranging from 40 to 1000. They welcome volunteers from all over the world to experience the life in kibbutzim, and labor in exchange for boarding.
In the first four months, I stayed in a farm in southern Israel, near the Red Sea. The farm is situated in the desert, separated from the neighboring Jordan by a mountain. The main produce is date – there are 8,000 date palms. In the desert with an acute shortage of source of water, the Israelis invented water desalination, using the desalinated water for irrigating the date-palms via drip irrigation system. They produce high quality dates for export to Europe. In addition, they raise milk cows in the desert, producing dairy products enough to supply the whole nation. Not only does the agriculture sector succeed in achieving self-sufficiency, it manages to become a key exporting country to Europe. This is impressive.
In the fifth month, I moved to another kibbutz in Megiddo in northern Israel. Here the scenery is completely different from the desert. Everywhere is lush green. Megiddo historically was an ancient war site. The Old Testament recorded a good number of wars which took place here, especially in the books of Kings. The prophesy in the book of Revelation about the final war will also take place in Armageddon. In Hebrew, “har” means mountain, and ”mageddon” is the same as Megiddo. At times, when I looked at the beautiful plains before me, I would recall the prophesy in the Revelation and that the war at the end times will take place here. I could not help but feel that I need to redeem my time as the steps of the Lord’s return are near.
Before coming to Israel, I often heard news about many dangerous conflicts taking place in the Middle East. However, after coming here, I found that it is very safe here – even petty crimes like thefts are not common. My concept was that the Middle East is a dangerous place – but now my concept was completely changed. I found that it is even safer to here compared to Europe. In terms of food, it is not difficult to get used to. In general, the main Israeli food are salads, bread, accompanied by chickpea paste (hummus), sesame paste, and dairy products. The diet is in fact very healthy. If you want to cook by yourself, you can also find ingredients to prepare Chinese dishes.
I grew up in the church life, and I am familiar with the names, places and events in the Bible. Yet, these are at best fragmented memories. During the six months in Israel, I visited many places recorded in the Bible, one after another these places and events come together like different panels of a comic-strip. There are many other interesting facts, like the Bible often mentioned going “up” to Jerusalem. Now I know Jerusalem is situated 750 meters above the sea level and is the city with the highest altitude in Israel, hence one must go “up” to Jerusalem. On 3rd of April this year, it was the Passover, a big festival in Israel. Families in the kibbutz and volunteers celebrated together according to the traditional practice. First we sang, then read a portion about God leading the Israeli people out of Egypt, after that we blessed the bread and the cup, and finally we had dinner together. The most famous song sang during the Passover is “ Let my people go”, which came out from the book of Exodus. People all sang this song during this festival. After the Passover, the Israelis will keep the feast of Unleavened Bread for seven days, just as it is commanded in the Old Testament.
When I see the Jewish people trying so hard to follow the regulations in the Old Testament but without the reality, I have a sense of regret from within. On the other hand, I really feel blessed that we live in the reality of the New Testament, with the Lord as our real Passover and the Passover Lamb. All we need to do is to use our spirit and we can enjoy all His riches.
(AL, 2015)