Water.
Such a common commodity that I fear I often take it for granted. With the turn of a faucet, it pours out – clean, purified, hot or cold, and fluorinated. I give no thought to harm coming to my family when we use our water. We drink, cook, do laundry, play, and bathe in it without any concern.
But this is not true for everyone –
“Imagine that the water you fetched from the lake was teeming with deadly bacteria, parasites, and waterborne diseases – that are killing you. This is the grim reality for about 1.2 billion people in our world today. As many as 5 million people die every year of water-related illnesses. A child dies every 15 seconds of a waterborne disease. This creates a no-win situation for millions of parents in our world today – they can watch helplessly as their children die for lack of water, or they can watch them die from diarrhea, because the only water they have is tainted.
(from The Hole In Our Gospel by Richard Stearns, page 138)
This threat to our families from our water is truly unimaginable to us. Yet those we are trying to reach in Uganda face this threat each and every day.
Esther Tendo, Father Ricky, and the mamas participated in a water filtration outreach recently. Simple water filtration systems were brought to the village of Rakai. Many had never seen clear water, water that is untainted in color. They draw their water from a small, flowing source in which the water is muddy and full of worms, snakes, insects, and parasites.
God was about to work in ways no one could have imagined.
I am over at The Lulu Tree where I am sharing the rest of this story. Hope to see you there!
Today I am joining … Thought Provoking Thursday and Grace Moments .
