WELL. DONE.

(This video was part of the presentation we watched on October 31, 2010. This was when God placed on our hearts and minds the urgency of the world-wide water crisis. If you have not viewed it before, please take a few moments to better understand this monumental problem facing much of the world. )

In less than seven months God has moved in a mighty way and we have achieved our goal of raising $5,000 to provide a clean water well to a village in Sudan. We hoped to complete the goal of raising $5,000 in one year, but God had even greater plans for this project. Through God’s grace, gifts from many people, and the generosity of a matching donor, we have raised double our goal in nearly half the time. Neverthirst now has $10,000 that was raised through this project, which is enough to complete two clean water wells in the country of Sudan that needs them so desperately. Praise be to God!

Leslie and I visited with Natalie from Neverthirst this week and she gave us some information on what happens next. I will try to be as brief as possible while being as informative as possible.

In short, we can expect the project to be completed in 8-12 months from now. As you may or may not know, the southern part of Sudan has seceded and is now its own country known as South Sudan. There is a possibility that there will be some complications that arise in dealing with a new government, so it could be more than 12 months. The general process of the next several months will be:

Scheduling-Schedule this drilling project along with others that are being funded in Sudan.

Drill Location-Work with the community to choose the ideal place for the well so that the most people can benefit from the location.

Permits-Obtain permits from the region and village. Time to receive the permits varies depending on the local government.

Training-Work with local pastors and churches to help train the community to maintain and care for this new water source.  This helps ensure the sustainability of the water project for years to come.

It sounds a bit complicated, but this is a good thing. By insisting that the project is done right, it increases the chances of longevity and gives the church a greater opportunity to reach the community for Christ and care for the poor.

Once the project is complete, we will receive a finalized report that will include: images of the new well, images of the beneficiaries, testimonies from the community, the technical information of the well, general community information, and how the gospel component was integrated. Unfortunately we will probably not know the name of our community until we receive this report in 8-12 months.

Again, thank you to all of you that have participated in this project through donations and prayer. For these two wells, all that is left to do is pray. We pray for all the components and work that needs to be done to bring these wells to fruition, but more than anything that the Holy Spirit would be at work in these communities stirring the hearts of these people so that they would be receptive to the gospel message when it is presented to them.

While the fundraising aspect of this project is done, we believe that the severity of the clean water crisis throughout the world dictates that we must continue to sacrifice our resources to bring clean and living water to people around the globe. In the next few weeks we will begin another project to raise funds for another well to be placed somewhere around the world. The physical and spiritual needs around the globe are simply too urgent for us to turn away. I hope you will continue along with us as we begin this new journey soon, and join us in praising our Father for what he will do through these efforts.

May Update

Our total is now up to $4,164. We are getting very close to our goal of $5,000. Praise the Lord for the resources he continues to provide through so many people who are obedient to his command. We are now 83% of the way to our goal in 172 days, less than half a year. We are hopeful that we will reach our goal by the end of June.

April Update

We are now over the $4,000 mark in less than five months. God has truly blessed this project and we are on pace to conclude this effort in much less than the one year that we planned.

One of the coolest things about this project has been seeing all the people that God has brought alongside the three families that originally began this journey. The latest group is from Charles Henderson High School in Troy. Karla Johnson is an English teacher that coordinates a Books of Hope project every year to raise money to send student-written and illustrated books to needy children in Africa. This year in addition to the books they are also raising money to donate to our well project for the people of Sudan. They held the first of two five-mile walk-a-thons on Thursday March 31. Eighteen students, teachers, and administrators participated and we are hoping for another good group for the second walk-a-thon. We continue to praise the Father for the many different people he is using to help bring clean and living water to the people of Sudan.

March Update

As of March 1 our new total is $3,701 raised for the villages in the Sudan. We praise our Father for those that have contributed financially and through prayer. We are currently 74% of the way to our goal of $5,000 in only 106 days. Praise be to God

February Update

Our total as of February 1 is $3,375. We continue to make great progress towards our goal of $5,000 through the support of so many different people. We praise God for his blessings on this project and for the many lives that are, and will be, affected through it.

During January Leslie and I were invited to go share with the children of Bush Memorial Baptist Church. We were able to give a brief presentation about our project to bring clean water and the Gospel to the people of Sudan. They are going to partner with us this semester and raise money as well. We are thrilled to have these young ones as part of our growing team that God is using for his purpose in a country thousands of miles away.

When we made the choice of which country we wanted to be involved with, it was somewhat of a random decision. Neverthirst partners with three countries, and Sudan seemed like the best fit for us. Little did we know that we would be getting involved in this country during one of the most important times in the history of the country. As you man know, Sudan held an election during January to determine whether the southern part of the country will secede and become its own country. You can read more about it here, and some insight into the Christians in Sudan here.

Please join us in praying for Sudan as they move through this process, and particularly that the movement would take place without violence. Also please continue to pray that the Holy Spirit would move in the hearts of the communities in Sudan where these wells will be placed. We do not know the location yet, but God does. We pray that hearts would be tender to the Gospel when it is presented along with this clean water.

Recession? Not for God.

Happy New Year to everyone. New Year’s Day is a time to reflect on the year that was and look forward to the year ahead. For this project, the reflection does not go back very far. It was October 31 that we felt God calling us to make an impact for His kingdom in Africa through clean water and the Gospel. November 16 was the day we made that “public” by sending e-mails to friends and family and starting this blog. Since that time God has truly accomplished more than we could have possibly imagined. In about a month and a half, God has provided $3,160 for this project. In a period of about ten days in December the total moved from $760 to $3,160. One could make the argument that this is one of the worst times in history to raise funds for a project like this. With our country in a recession and the holidays approaching we weren’t expecting this type of generosity. Early on we were concerned with how much needed to be raised each month, and hoping we could stay “on pace” to have this accomplished by November 16, 2011. Clearly God has blown that “pace” out of the water. We have seen God use so many people for His glory through this project. Not just through dollars, but through conversations and prayers as well. We are so thankful that we chose to be obedient to God’s command for our lives and anticipate what God has in store in the future for this project.

As joyful as it is to reflect on the past two months, looking to the future is so exciting. Possibly the best part about getting closer to our goal of $5,000 is that we are getting closer to finding out specifically which villages in Sudan will be getting these wells. (Notice that was plural. We began this project to provide one well for one village, but because of the matching donors God has brought along to partner with us it will now be two wells for two villages.) This means praying for a specific village, and specific people groups, and specific pastors as they share the Gospel with these people. It will also mean we will all get to see photos of the work being done and the people being impacted. Also it will give us a destination that we hope to one day get the privilege to travel to and continue to impact for Christ.

December Update {God Multiplies}

(Please note that any time you wish to give you may reach our donation page by clicking on the picture on the right sidebar)

We originally planned to update the blog each month with progress and news from this project, but so much has happened in the first few weeks that we could not wait an entire month.

In a little over two weeks God has already used this project in ways we never could have imagined. God has brought people along to partner with us in ways we couldn’t have predicted. Within an hour after we made the first post on the blog, my brother Daryl called me. He graduated from UAB in May at the top of his class and married his wife Haley in August. Haley is still in school at UAB and Daryl has been unable to find a job. On the phone he told me that God had been stirring their hearts about giving above their tithe, but they didn’t really know what they were supposed to give until they read about this project. I would have never expected God to use Daryl and Haley, one without a job and one still in college, to partner with us to meet the needs of these people in Africa, but He has. It has also created many opportunities to have great conversations with believers and non-believers about what God is doing.

The most exciting news came this morning. There is a person who has committed to MATCH ALL FUNDS RAISED FOR THIS PROJECT! We were truly overwhelmed by this totally unexpected commitment. I didn’t mention this in the first blog post, but it seems more relevant now. The cost to drill a well in Sudan is actually $10,000, but the organization we are partnering with (Never Thirst) has a partner that matches all donations used in Sudan. Therefore if this project generates $5,000, the Never Thirst partner matches the $5,000 and there is now the $10,000 needed to drill the well. So now we have two partners matching all funds raised.

My thought went to the feeding of the 5,000 and how Jesus took very little and multiplied it to meet the needs of so many. While Jesus met the immediate needs of 5,000 people, the ultimate purpose was to give glory to the Father. It is overwhelming that God is doing the same thing through this project! For example, when someone makes a $25 donation, the matching partner for this project adds $25 to make it $50. When the project is complete, the Never Thirst partner matches the $50 to make it $100. It is amazing to me that God can take my $25 donation and make it $100 so that people in Africa will have clean water, will hear the Gospel, and that ultimately He would receive glory. We are so privileged that God allows us to partner with Him in this. Essentially God is going to take $5,000, which would normally only be half of what is necessary to drill a well, and turn it into $20,000 which will drill two!

Please continue to be in prayer for this project and for two things in particular. We want to be very careful that ALL glory, honor, and praise goes to the Father. We are thankful for everyone that is involved in this project, from the workers in Africa that will dig this well, to the workers at Never Thirst, to everyone who makes a donation or says a prayer, and for those matching these donations. However, as grateful as we are to them, they deserve no glory and honor from this. This belongs only to God. Next, continue to pray that the Holy Spirit would stir in the hearts of these people in Sudan that they would be receptive to the Gospel when it is presented to them.

As of today, December 1, there has been $635 raised (before any matching contributions). To raise the $5,000 in one year we need to be on pace for $417 per month, so we are ahead of that pace right now.

Finally, several people have asked about whether donations are tax deductible. I should have mentioned this earlier, but all donations are tax deductible. If a donation of $100 or greater is made, Never Thirst automatically sends a receipt for the contribution. If the amount is less than $100, you will need to send them an e-mail or give them a call, but they will be happy to send you the documentation you need.