one more week of walking

This weekend, Joe has been featured in Wayne County's paper, The Press-Sentinel in a lengthy article entitled "Pastor carries water to call attention to plight". We are so thankful to staff writer Derby Waters for exposing our mission to bring water to the people of Kenya, and in so doing, bringing them the good news of Jesus Christ.

In case you don't know what I'm referring to, I am talking about Joe's Lenten project this year. Contrary to a typical Lenten sacrifice of giving up a certain thing, by putting himself in someone else's shoes, he is trying to call attention to a desperate need. Those shoes belong to the many people in Kenya and throughout Africa. That need is water. While this Lent is different, it is also probably the one he has learned the most from.

If you didn't get a chance to read my original post on this, please do! You can find it here: walking for water

A couple weeks ago, Joe wrote this in the church bulletin:

I am walking each week to raise awareness and money for water wells in Kenya. As you know, the average person there walks 7-10 miles a day to gather water, which is not as clean as it needs to be. They are greatly in need of a clean source of water, and these water wells will provide life to them.

So, I am walking one day each week for about 3.5 miles carrying an empty bucket one way, and five gallons of water the other way. Last week I weighed the water jug and it weighed 44 pounds. By the end of my walk I can feel every ounce of that water as my forearms burn and my elbows ache. But it is so worth it!

Each week, people have stopped me to offer assistance. I know I must look strange walking down Hwy. 84 carrying water, but I guess I look desperate as well. They have all been very friendly, offering rides or whatever they can do. It gives me a chance to put down the water for a moment, which is nice, but I also try to tell them what I am doing and for whom I am doing this (very quickly as they are usually on the edge of traffic).

Some are more interested than others, but they all hang on to the end of my explanation. Then, I thank them for their offer, and off we both go. Last week, two African American young men stopped me, and, of course, they got to hear the story. What struck me was they were very moved and offered me what they had: a balled up dollar bill. That dollar seemed like $1,000,000 to me. The load was a little lighter after that, and carrying every ounce is oh so worth it.

Please give all you can to Epworth’s Living Water Project. You are saving

precious lives and making the world a better place to be.

It cost a lot of money to build a well and we are hoping to raise enough among our friends, church, and community to cover the cost. So far, about $1,000 has been raised. We greatly appreciate anything you can contribute to this effort.

The address to mail your donation is:

Living Water Project
Epworth UMC
P.O. Box 1134
Jesup, GA 31598