Advent Conspiracy: Jacob's Well Pokot Water Project

We shared last Sunday (week two of Advent) that we have determined the water project our church will help to fund. The decision was an easy one to make.

Last week we had the opportunity to host Pastor Edward Simiyu from City Harvest Church in Nairobi, Kenya. The Jacob's Well Amahoro Team met Edward in Kampala, Uganda, last May. After the conference concluded, three of our group traveled with Edward back to his home in Nairobi where we spent three days learning about the challenges and opportunities he and his church face. They have an incredible ministry to people infected with HIV/AIDS. In fact, that is not even really an accurate way to describe what they are doing. They have an amazing community and their community includes many with HIV/AIDS. As a result they are figuring out what it looks like to be the body of Christ to those among them with this disease. They are also involved in economic development through micro-finance. These are things we witnessed while we were there.

It was when I was sharing with Edward about the Advent Conspiracy and Jacob's Well participation in it that I learned that he is also involved in helping a remote community in northwest Kenya. The region is called Pokot and is considered by many to the "wild-west" of Kenya. It is a very unsettled and violent area with few resources. Though many pastors and missionaries have been killed there, and the military will not enter apart from armed air support, Edward has made significant relationships with many men there and has been asked by them to help them develop their community. This is going to involve a number of things (schools, medical clinics, e.g.), but first it is going to require access to clean and accessible water. This where we get to come in. Ultimately this region will require five wells to sustain the community. But for now we are excited to see how God will use the people of Jacob's Well to partner with our friend Edward and his community at City Harvest Church.

I will share more of this story in coming days, but for now let me share the video we showed on Sunday. The video shows Edward and a village in the Pokot region where a lack of water is a real problem. The video concludes with Edward and members of the community praying for the ground where a well will hopefully be dug.