“Eyi Ni Lidri” – Water is Life! Part Two

By Carol Lee

“When the well’s dry, we know the worth of water.”

Benjamin Franklin

There really is no need to convince people of the importance of water. Most are acquainted with the rise of panic when they turn a faucet on and nothing comes out, even if the inconvenience is short-lived.

No need for statistics. No need for pleading. People get it! YOU get it! No one knows that better than Jacob and I as we have seen your response to the expressed need through our newsletters, posts and pictures. Your hearts have been “flesh” and not “stone” and the result is that 10 Boreholes (water wells) have been drilled in the Metu Mountains in very remote villages and 1 in Fodia, the village Reaching Africa’s Unreached (RAU) resides.

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Recently, we made known to you the need for a borehole in the village of Kendi (which has 3,000 members) in Moyo Sub-County. In a matter of days, the funds were there. In a matter of weeks, the funds came in for 2 (out of 10) other boreholes in villages formally requested for consideration of need by the Moyo Local Government. We have a great desire to answer that plea for help for the relief, health and joy of the community members–especially the women whose job it typically is to carry the water to their homes.

Additionally, without even requesting, funds were pledged for a borehole in another village in the Metu Mountains — Abeso. If any place ticks off the boxes of the need for clean, accessible water, it’s Abeso: remote with rugged terrain (check), no borehole (check), only available water is a 15-20 minute walk to a stream which becomes a trickle in dry season (check), animals and people use that water source for drinking, bathing and washing–meaning that the water is likely to be contaminated (check). It was the truest, joyous privilege to visit with the village members and announce that money has been provided for a borehole!

In the last few weeks, Jacob, Mindra (a RAU co-worker and Local Government leader) and I have taken trips to 4 places–Kendi, Eria, Pacuahwi and Abeso–to survey the situation, document with photos, engage in fact-finding and explain the 5-step process of getting a new borehole situated in their respective villages. For the sake of sustainability, we have found it necessary to allay misunderstandings and ensure realistic expectations so that each village takes ownership of the gift they have been given. Lately, Jacob has used the metaphor of a “leg-up” to help them understand that RAU (the pipeline through which your gifts are delivered) provides the initial significant boost (monetarily speaking) and then the borehole belongs to the village members (meaning, they must collect money for ongoing maintenance) and not to RAU. This has been an effective strategy in the places where boreholes have already been drilled and they are doing an awesome job of maintaining the boreholes in working condition.

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Lord willing soon, Jacob, Mindra and I will visit other villages on “the list” to set in motion the process of providing other boreholes, the beginning of which is to fact-find and then to fund-raise. There are 7-8 other villages we know of that are in desperate need of boreholes.

Our prayer is that you will not grow weary in well-doing (Galatians 6:9-10) but that you will see the temporal and eternal value in this endeavor. (The boreholes have been a source of physical blessing but also an open door for the presentation and display of the Gospel of Grace.) Paul commends the churches in Macedonia for not only their generosity but their motivation and attitude in giving: “We want you to know, brothers, about the grace of God that has been given among the churches of Macedonia, for in a severe test of affliction, their abundance of joy and their extreme poverty have overflowed in a wealth of generosity on their part. For they gave according to their means, as I can testify, and beyond their means, of their own accord, begging us earnestly for the favor of taking part in the relief of the saints— and this, not as we expected, but they gave themselves first to the Lord and then by the will of God to us.” (2 Corinthians 8:1-5)

Would you consider helping and also passing on this information to those outside our small circle of friends who also may be interested in providing funds for these wells?

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  Tax deductible charitable donations may be made via PayPal or check. To do so, please click on the PayPal link below. PayPal deducts a small amount from each gift as a processing fee. All gifts given through PayPal and by check are tax deductible as Reaching Africa’s Unreached has 501c3 tax exempt status as a charitable organization.  If you wish to write a check you may write it out to R.A.U. and mail it to Lifegate/RAU Bibles, 395 Lifegate Ln., Seguin Texas 78155.  
PayPal Link for donations : https://www.paypal.com/cgi-bin/webscr?cmd=_s-xclick&hosted_button_id=WAR99DL4JFWXQ

 “There is no success without sacrifice. If you succeed without sacrifice it is because someone has suffered before you. If you sacrifice without success it is because someone will succeed after you.” (A. Judson 1788-1850)

With love and godly affection,

Jacob and Carol Lee

www.ReachingAfricasUnreached.org

Tax deductible charitable donations may be made via PayPal or check.  PayPal also has a way to make recurring monthly gifts. Recurring monthly gifts are very helpful to the ministry. To do so, please click on the PayPal link below. PayPal deducts a small amount from each gift as a processing fee. All gifts given through PayPal and by check are tax deductible as Reaching Africa’s Unreached has 501c3 tax exempt status as a charitable organization.  If you wish to write a check you may write it out to R.A.U. and mail it to Lifegate/RAU Bibles, 395 Lifegate Ln., Seguin Texas 78155.

PayPal Link for donations: https://www.paypal.com/cgi-bin/webscr?cmd=_s-xclick&hosted_button_id=WAR99DL4JFWXQ 
Go to RAU’s Facebook page for up to date reports, pictures, musings, and exhortations: www.facebook.com/ReachingAfricasUnreached 

RAU YouTube Videos: 

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCRmHafoBSemE7jS8kEHCG6Q/videos

RAU’s Mission and Vision Statements/Statement of Faith:

 https://reachingafricasunreached.org/about/

The greatest evil is having the gospel and not doing everything within our power to get it to those who do not have it!

Sowing seeds of love and kindness should not be separated from preaching the gospel of sovereign grace but completely intertwined with it!

When at least 35% of the world; “the unoccupied fields”, have no access to the gospel, we (believers) must all do all we can to reach them. We who are saved owe the gospel to every lost person, most especially the 2.4 billion who will not hear unless someone breaks into their “unoccupied field” with no thought of their own life!

I am sure that none of us will say when in heaven that we prayed too much, we sacrificed too much, proclaimed the gospel too much, and were too passionate to get the gospel to those who have little to no access to this gospel of grace. Let us together press on to make it our  ambition to preach the gospel where Christ has not been named!

Our goal in our gospel witness is to take our eyes off the “risk” and place them on the cause for the risk. When God compels us like this he often will not tell us the risks…after all there are no risks for the all-knowing, all-powerful God. So let us be AMBITIOUS (Romans 15:20) to see that ALL are reached with the gospel of grace (Romans 1:16) in ALL places…there are no closed doors to the gospel, just some which are more difficult to go through!

Jacob Lee