Thirsty!

Last night I awoke in the middle of the night. As I tried to rouse myself from a deep sleep state- I thought, “What has happened that I am waking up- what is wrong?” There was a burning in my throat and my mouth was chalky- I was thirsty! It took a few minutes of being squished between the tolerance of the uncomfortable and the familiar feeling of quenching my thirst before I decided that the benefits of getting up outweighed the costs. I dragged myself out from the covers, across my bedroom floor, down the hall, and into the kitchen. I was so tired- and this was tiresome. This is why I normally kept a glass of water on my nightstand every night- but I must have forgotten.

I fumbled through the kitchen cupboard for a glass and trudged over to the fridge. Cool air and light poured onto my face only to reveal that although we have two water purifying pitchers in the refrigerator- both were empty. I was going to have to resort to tap water, how problematic. I ran the water for half a minute in order to get the coolest possible water. I took a huge gulp. Ah- satisfaction. In that moment, I honestly thought that the process was incredibly inconvenient- and the fact that one of my roommates had refused to refill the pitcher almost disrespectful. How egocentric and small minded I was being.

It is when I think about our amazing partner Water First that I remember to put things in perspective. Covenant World Relief is partnering with a community in Kelecho Gerbi, Ethiopia to achieve a clean water source within a ten minute walk for any resident in the town. In order for that to happen, five miles of pipeline must be dug. Right now, the women in the community walk that distance for water and when they get there they do not find refrigerated, purified water; they find a muddy, contaminated river. They then carry the 40 pound containers of water back to their homes for their families use. The community has pledged to dig the five miles of trench needed in order to install the pipeline in under 12 months and they already have 2.5 miles of the trench completed. The community is pulling together to create a water committee and a team of hygiene promoters to go out into the community and teach their neighbors about the importance and value of changing some of their basic hygiene routines.

Let us remember this community and the amazing patience, perseverance and dedication that God is instilling in these people. Let us remember to praise God for their collaboration and that we have partners like Water First to accomplish amazing deeds that further the kingdom of god and effect an entire community of just over four thousand residents. Let us remember to support the effort for clean water in Ethiopia and other CWR projects around the world. Let us remember to be not only thankful for the blessings that we do have, but resourceful and responsible with them as well. Let us remember to be thankful and amazed by Gods overflowing grace when we are thoughtless with his kingdom, even in the middle of the night.

A video about CWR’s water project in Ethiopia is available here.

Donations to CWR for water can be sent by check to our office with “water” in the memo-line. Call us to learn about giving online.