Drawing Water from "God's Well"

We all know how important water is. But to really understand it, we have to put ourselves in the position of a person who just doesn’t have access to it.

And that is the case for many, many people around the world. The water that they do get is rancid…it’s dangerous…and it’s hours and hours away.

Work Without Water

Stefano knows firsthand how difficult life is without water. At 14 years old, he remembers his mom spending her days walking from hut to hut, collecting from neighbors any drops of water they could spare.

Even so, by nighttime his mother rarely returned with enough water for cooking, leaving Stefano and his six siblings with hungry, rumbling tummies.

“You could see the food (like porridge),” Stefano says, “but you could not eat it because there was no water.”

In his village in Tanzania, the children’s days revolve around shepherding their family’s livestock.

And with no water or shade to relieve them from the blazing African sun, it was all too common for the little ones to die from heatstroke in the fields.

"God's Well"

That was before we drilled a fresh-water well in their village….one the people declared is “God’s well.”

Now, thanks to the financial gifts of our friends and partners, Stefano’s family has plenty of water for drinking, cooking and even washing. And since the well was established, not one person there has died from dehydration.

Not only that, so much more has been flowing forth to the Datooga people.

Providing such a basic necessity like fresh water gives us a tremendous opportunity to share Christ, especially in remote villages like this one, where there were previously no believers.

The water well has paved the way for Hand of Hope to build a nearby school, where Stefano and more than 100 other children receive nutritious meals and learn about the love of Jesus.

Many children are turning away from the witchcraft that their families—for generations—have practiced, and they are following Christ.

Life-Changing for Women

Just a few steps from the same well is another scene that’s quite a contrast from decades’ past, as Maloo, Grace and Hospital waited their turn to fill bowls and jugs with pure water.

Hospital was there to wash her laundry. Grace and Maloo would load up their donkeys with containers to carry home. And all could drink.

It used to take the women a day and a half to find water…water that was dirty and full of disease. And when they finally did reach a small pool, the animals took priority…in fact, the women were the last to have a drink.

After such a grueling journey, they often slept at the waterhole, putting themselves in danger of being attacked by hyenas and baboons in the night.

At that time, water was only for cooking and drinking...to use the precious resource for bathing just didn’t make sense.

This led to many skin conditions, infections and diseases among the people, especially affecting children and pregnant women.

There was no water to wash newborns, and many mothers were so dehydrated they lost their babies while giving birth.

But thankfully, these women and children are now thriving because they have access to clean water. There’s water to drink. There’s water to make meals. There’s water to clean with. There’s water and food to draw children to an education, and there’s water to draw people to church.

It’s just one step after another that started with digging a well. And what God does next…the reach is unending.

You can help us reach more people around the world by giving a special gift today. Visit joycemeyer.org/GiveHope