Kenya (MNN) —
“This area really missed out on all of the rain and water that they rely on for the entire year. So a lot of…the communities that we serve are really dry and in drought right now.”
“We’ve increased the water supply that we are providing. Normally, we ask our centers to collect a small fee for water so that they can prepare for ongoing maintenance and things. But we’ve stopped that so that water is free and accessible to everybody.
“We’ve also increased the amount of…meals that we are providing so everyone in the community is still being fed during drought because obviously, without water, that means they can’t sell their livestock. A lot of their sources of income have dried up, literally, because there’s no water. So we want to make sure that people are cared for in the most essential way possible.”
“One of the things that we’ve noticed with these new centers — once we establish where the center is going to be and we dig a well and make water accessible to everybody — we see that people who were miles and miles away are relocating…. They are coming closer to the source of water and the source of hope at our Hope Centers.”
“The word hope in our Hope Center means so much more than just water. The Gospel is key to that as well…. We want to see the Gospel flourish in every area of life.”
“When we first go into a community, we hand out audio Bibles. When you turn on the audio Bible and you show them how to use it…their faces light up! The Scripture is being proclaimed [and] they can understand because it’s in their native tongue.”
“We also are showing the Jesus film at all of our centers when we come in and when we start to develop them. So that’s a way for pastors to come and be connected with their local community in a way that’s outside of the church…. From there, people can get connected or make a decision for Christ.”
“We really start with giving access to water. So we show them how, just like Jesus transforms our lives and calls us to live clean lives, this water is being transformed too because of water filters or because of how we are accessing the water itself through the well…. Then we partner with local churches and pastors, or we plant a church if there’s none in that community.”
“Pray for rain. The next rain season isn’t really until March, but we are praying for God to deliver water at any time and to sustain people during the drought.”
