Buckets of Water

I’ve been carrying a lot of buckets lately.  Buckets of water.  There is a water shortage in our area.  I don’t really know or understand the logistics of it all but what I do know is that on most days there is no water coming out of my taps.  Every 3 or 4 days the water is turned on for about 4 or 5 hours and then turned off again.  In the much-anticipated “water on” time we do as much laundry as possible  but our cistern is small and our family is big so we usually only have running water for 24 hours at a time.  So for only two separate days in a week there is water in our house and rest of the days we use buckets.  Thankfully we have access to a separate water supply on the property so on waterless days we go back and forth filling buckets full of water.  I wish I could tell you that I am thankful that we have any water at all and that I can stay positive about it, but that would be a lie.  The truth is that it drives me crazy!.  We need buckets to wash dishes, flush toilets and take “showers”.  More buckets to wash vegetables, small children and dirty floors.  So back and forth we go every day, trying to be as carefull as possible to not waste it  so that we don’t have to make extra trips back for more.  It’s not fun.  I want this to end.  As I use all that precious time carrying those heavy buckets every day,  I have time to think.

I think about water.

How wonderful it is.

How much we need it and how hard life becomes without it.

I’m blessed.  I have a plan B, a place nearby to go get the water I need.  Sure, it’s annoying and inconvenient, but it’s there.

I decided to do a little research about water as I know that most, if not all, third world countries have some water problems.  Did you know that…

1 Billion people in our world do not have safe drinking water. charity:water

Globally, diarrhea is the leading cause of illness and death, and 88 per cent of diarrhea deaths are due to a lack of access to sanitation facilities. –  UN water statistics

Today 2.5 billion people, including almost one billion children, live without even basic sanitation. –  UN water statistics

Every 20 seconds, a child dies as a result of poor sanitation. That’s 1.5 million preventable deaths each year.  –  UN water statistics

Diarrhea diseases can be reduced by more than 40 percent through the simple practice of washing hands with soap and water.  compassion

The average person in the developing world uses a little more than 2.5 gallons of water each day for drinking, washing and cooking. Whereas the average person in the developed world uses 13 gallons per day only for toilet flushing. compassion

Worldwide, approximately 425 million children under 18 do not have safe water. compassion

Aren’t those statistics crazy!  The fact that most people in Northern America waste more water in flushing toilets than most kids use in their entire day makes me so sad and mad at the injustice of it all.

Some times the statistics just remain numbers and we forget about the people.

Meet my friends in the community of Las Aves.  They have no running water in their community.  A truck comes every once in a while (some times once a week but other times every 2 or 3 weeks) to fill barrels of water.  The water is contaminated to begin with, and not suitable to drink.    On top of that the water is left uncovered where children with filthy hands often play.  The water is used for everything.  Bathing, cleaning, washing clothes, and cooking.  When is runs out they have to wait.  Some times they go an entire week or more without taking a shower  or washing dishes.  These are real people.  I have visited their homes.  They are not just numbers, or a percentage.

Good news is that you can help!

I found a few organizations who are committed to help people in poverty get the water they need…

Compassion’s Water of Life system – safe water for life (over 1 million gallons) for a child and their family in developing countries.  $79 to give a family clean water for life.    Consider raising money as a family, so that your kids can be aware of the problem and can be part of the solution

Or sponsor a compassion child, where giving clean water is included with your sponsorship.  Change the life of a child in poverty.  It will change you too!

Or check out Charity:Water where they are committed to giving 100% of donations to give people in need clean water. Watch this video for more info, or consider giving your birthday  to raise money or simply donate here.

So now that you know of this reality, will you do something to help those who live every day life carrying buckets of water?

I hope so.

Will you….

Support Us?

So many of you do already.  You support us by reading this blog, by praying for us, and offering us encouragement when we really need it.  Some of you even offered to support us financially this year, which blew us away… since we have never really come out and asked.

3 years ago we moved back to Mexico.  We came excited, expectant and with some savings to carry us through the first year in ministry.  I served at an orphanage, running a daycare program for kids in the community and Saul was working in our local church.  We spent half of the second  year in Canada when Brielle was born.  Saul went back and forth a few times to finish a couple of jobs he had in Canada, and we had enough money to live off for the rest of the year while Saul built the house for Altagracia.

This last year has been really hard.  We joined a new ministry, and we are very grateful for the support they have given us but it’s not enough to make ends meet.  We lived off that, plus the support that started coming in (from new and old friends from our home church and others we have met here) and the rest by faith.  We have seen God provide for us in miraculous ways.  He has never let us down.   We have always had what we needed but it has not been easy.  Looking back I wonder how we made ends meet.  Well I KNOW how, there is no other explanation but that God made it happen.  Now with 4 kids under our roof, we realize we need to ask for help.  We know we are called to be here.  At this point Saul can not balance both an outside job and ministry.  We are asking if you would consider supporting us in our ministry here.  We would love for you to be more involved with what we do, by supporting us financially.  We just can’t do it alone.  We are so thankful we know so many others who are passionate about serving Jesus, and loving people like we are.

Maybe you know us from church, and have heard us share our hearts to serve the people here?

Maybe we met you here, this past year, and you got to experience hands on how we serve?

Or maybe you have never met us in person, but have gotten to know us over this blog and would like to be more involved?

One way or another God has placed you in our life, and we are thankful for you.

The cost of living here is very small compared to what it costs to live in Canada or the US.  What we paid for just rent and utilities in Canada, covers all of our monthly expenses here.

Would you support  us monthly?  If this is something you are interested in, our home church, North Edmonton Christian Fellowship (NECF), receives support on our behalf (all donations come with a tax receipt).

If you think God is leading you, your church or your family to support us in this way, it’s really easy.   You can send cheques to our home church at this address.

NECF

9004 153 Av. Edmonton, AB

CANADA

T5Z 3L6

You can write the cheques to the church (NECF) and specify that it gets to us.

Or you can do it online here.  Just click on donate now.  Click on Fund/Designation and choose “Saul and Amber” and enter the required info.

Every month, the church deposits what came in into our account.  So that’s how it works!

Thanks for considering our need.

Love Saul and Amber

Different

Many of you already read the unedited, photoless version of this post when I accidentally posted it last week.  Sorry about that… but please feel free to comment, since you were not able todo so after I removed it.  As always I love hearing from you!

I cannot tell you how good it feels to be home.  If you could have heard me when we crossed over the border, into the country I now call home, you would have heard a loud sigh of contentment.  Our time in Canada was wonderful.  It was restful, refreshing, fun, and memorable.  We needed the time away as a family.  We came home renewed ready to jump back into our busy and often stressful life here.  As we drove home I just felt so happy to be going back.  I simply love my life serving with my family in Mexico.

I am starting to realize that the longer I am here, the less I feel at home in my own culture.  This time more than ever, so many things stood out to me.  My view of the world had changed so much, and I am just not the same person I was a few years ago.  If you have never lived in a third world country you probably have no idea of what I am referring to, so let me give you a  few examples of some things that stood out to me in the last few weeks…

• Why does everyone buy cases of bottled water… when the water that comes out of their sinks is FREE and perfectly clean for drinking?  I wish I could drink water from the tap at home, and that I wouldn’t have to worry about cleaning my fruit and vegetables with it, or  if my kids swallowed it in the bath.  I don’t get why people spend money on something that is free and taken for granted.

• Overwhelmed.  Is exactly how I felt whenever I walk into a grocery store.  Oh my goodness.  SO many options.  SO many things we don’t need.  SO much of it goes to waste.  I looked at all those people, with carts full to the max, knowing they probably have a whole cupboard full of food at home.  I wish they could see how other people live in the world.  Wait a minute, I used to be the exact same way.  I just had no idea what life really is like in other parts of the world.

• It is almost impossible to live without a cell phone.  We experienced that first hand.  I have always wanted an iPhone, and I still do, but do people really need to have them at campfires, when you are eating, and even at church (yes some people use bible aps, but others do not)  Oh and kids have cell phones now?  What?  This world is changing so much faster that I realized.

• Wow it’s hot outside but am I the only person who doesn’t feel comfortable wearing short shorts, small dresses, and low-cut tank tops.  Did I just see an old man in a speedo jog past?  Shudder.  Where we live, people have their clothing on when they go in the water at a pool or at the beach.  The culture is conservative when it comes to clothes, and I have come to prefer it.

• I used to walk into a store and see so many things I “needed”.  I would spend half of my time in a store looking at all the wonderful new things, while I inwardly talked myself out of or into buying them ” It’s too much money, wait till it goes on sale, well I guess I could treat myself to that, what a good deal, I just have to get it”  Every time I walked into a store this time, I felt overwhelmed with gratitude for the things I already have.  I have a decent home, clothes for every member in my family, food in the cupboard, what else could I possibly need?

People sometimes look at me and say things like ” Thanks for what you do, you sacrifice so much” or “Yours kids have given up so many things so live the life you do.”  I appreciate the encouragement, but inside I laugh a little.

If only you knew.

If only you know how much I have gained.

If only you knew the joy I have experienced in letting go, and choosing to see life different from most people.

You should try it.  You don’t have to be a missionary to experience the blessing of a life lived in simplicity.  The more you are willing to look at our culture and see it for what it really is, the sooner you will be willing to make some changes that could impact your life.  It is not easy-going against everything the media tells you that you need to be and do.  I didn’t start this journey on purpose.  The more I adapt to my life here, the more the old parts of my life  slowly fade away until now only the really important things matter.

I have gone through media detox. I know longer believe the lies the media and my culture are telling me.

I don’t need bigger better and more.

Beauty has nothing to do with your body, clothes or makeup.

 Time is made to be invested in people not wasted on entertainment.

Church is not a place I go to once a week.

Life is not meant to be spent for my selfish pleasure.

Living a life for Jesus, and loving others, is much better than anything else the world is trying to sell me.

I challenge you to see things different.

Beauty from Ashes

There is an orphanage down the road from us.  It is a very special place to me.  It’s where I first fell in love with Mexico, and its beautiful children.  It’s where I learned spanish and learned a lot about ministering to children, especially broken ones.  It’s where I met my two oldest children and where they spent most of their childhood.  It’s where I have spent countless hours loving, teaching, and holding so many children that I have fallen in love with.  But then something I never imagined possible happened this year.  The door was closed and my family and I were not longer allowed to be involved with any of the children in the place we have loved so very much.  We were completely heartbroken.  The reasons are complicated and to be honest we do not fully understand why this happened.  I have stopped asking questions and have decided to trust God, and He has given us peace.  But it hurts.  It hurts every time I see a child from the orphanage at church with big brown eyes asking me why  I don’t go and play with them any more.  It hurts when some of them ask to come to do crafts at my house and I have to say no, when everything in me wants to say “Yes, of course you can”.  It hurts every time I have to tell Kayden we can not go play with his friends anymore, and have no answers when he asks why.  It hurts every time I pass by and I am reminded I am not allowed there any more.  It hurts.

Thankfully God is faithful, and He specializes in making  beauty from ashes.  He really does “work all things for good to those who love him” even the ugly painful things.  Since I suddenly had a lot more time to do new things I slowly got more involved with kids in nearby communities.  Kids in humble living conditions, often left alone to fend for themselves all day while their parents work.  So many children uncared for and unloved that there are not enough orphanages to hold them all.  Once again my heart broke.  I have seen and heard things I never wanted to believe possible.  I have watched  a young girl being beaten in the middle of the street by her own mother and brother.  I have met a 13-year-old mother whose one year old baby shares the same father as her.  I know an 8 year girl who not only cares for her 4 younger siblings, but does the laundry and cleans the house too.  Another child has often had rocks thrown at her head by her own father and grandmother.My eyes have been open to the realities of child trafficking, the many children getting high with anything they can find but usually glue and paint, and the commonness of unwanted and uncared for children who spend most of their days wandering the streets.  Horrible, tragic things, that happen not only here but in so many other parts of the world.  Only now they aren’t just things that happen somewhere far away, they have happened to people I know and I can no longer live my life in ignorant bliss.  These are people with names, with sad eyes, and hopeless lives. People that need Jesus.  So even though I long to visit the hurting children who have found a haven down the road, my eyes have been opened to thousands more who haven’t been so lucky to find a safe place to sleep at night.  I want nothing more than to live my life so heartbroken for the lost and forgotten that I can no longer live  another day without doing something about it.  That is the beauty of living for Jesus.  Even when it hurts.

 

It would have been easier to say no

So Friday afternoons are supposed to be “mine”.  Time for me spend some lovely time in a local coffee shop just me and my little mac, catching up on e-mails, blogging, or whatever really.  Last Friday afternoon I had to run an errand first, if you can call it that.  A family I am getting to know, who I met through my friend Carla, is really in need of help. 6 kids, one single pregnant mom, no one to provide for the family.  The oldest came to me for help, she wanted food, anything to help them get by until her Mom has the baby and can work again.  She was going to drop out of school, so she could start working to support the family.

It would have been easier to say no, I couldn’t help them.

But I didn’t.

I contacted my friends in Canada, asking them of they could help them through this time.

It would have been easier for them to say no.  They have 4 kids of their own, bills to pay, a family to care for.

But they didn’t.

With the support from my friends I can buy this family food every week.  I offered to pick them up to take them grocery shopping.

It would have been easier to say no.   I could have dropped off the cash and let them deal with it.

But I didn’t.  They needed propane too, and asked if I could bring the tank to fill up.

It would have been easier to say no.  They could have dealt with it later.  My car was full as it was…

But I didn’t.

At the store I let her fill the cart with what she needed.  It would have been easier for me to say no, do it my way, or you don’t need that much.

But I didn’t.

I was in awe of what they eat in a week, mostly beans, rice, and tortillas, no fruit or vegetables.  A bit of cheese and some hot dogs and sliced ham, and cereal for a special treat.  A cart full to feed 7 people for only $55 dollars.

I drove them home.

They invited me in.  It would have been easier to say no, I had to go do something important.

But I didn’t

I sat down in their home, watched them excitedly put away the groceries on the meager shelves, noticing they had no fridge to store anything in.

I was able to encourage the mom, who has had a very hard life, and has had a hard time setting boundaries with her babies daddy, who is an alcoholic, and refuses to support the family.  I listened to her story.  I encouraged them to trust God, and to look for a church in the area.  I reminded them that they are not alone and God would provide for them.  I promised to return the next week.

I left knowing “my” time was long gone, but yet I was smiling.

It would have been easier to just say no to is all.

But I am so glad I didn’t.

 

Wednesday

I have a new little project I’ve been doing every Wednesday.  It’s in a favorite little community of mine, called Las Aves.  In the ministry where we work we have a clothing room where we store donated clothes, blankets and other household items.  It was getting a little too full, so I decided to start making an effort to give some if it away.  So for the past 3 Wednesdays I have filled bags of clothing for families.  Thankfully I have help.  Last week a couple of friends (Moms like me!  Yeah for Moms)  and all our kids went out.  Every week we take down the names, ages and sizes of a few different household.  The following week we prepare clothes bags for each one of them and bring them out to them.  Then we start again with new families.  I am enjoying getting to know different families in the community.  Something small to help people who really need it.  It’s also a great way to get our kids involved in giving to others in need.  I am already looking forward to next Wednesday!

Honoring Emma

Baby Emma was due to be born on December 24th, but she wasn’t.   Saddly for all us who were so eager to meet her she’s in heaven.  Her parents, our really good friends who also met here in Mexico, wanted to do something to honor their sweet little daughter.  They asked friends and family to do random acts of kindness in honor of Emma so they could fill a special stocking to open the day of her due date to remember how their daughter’s life impacted others.  I was so touched by their desire to find and make good out of a very difficult and painful situation, and wanted to be part of it.   On December 23rd, with another family who was visiting,  we honored Emma.  We got the kids involved, by getting them to ice and decorate cookies.  Then we drove to a  nearby park, where every Friday local women set up a market to sell handmade goods.  These are the very people who my friends spent many years loving, serving and reaching out to.  We handed out cookies and hot chocolate.  Their were many smiles and thank you’s from young and old alike.   So glad we had the opportunity to do this!   Honoring a sweet baby girl with love and  sweet treats for hardworking often forgotten people.  Honoring my heartbroken friends, who choose to love and do good even when it hurts and it would be easier to focus on themselves.   Honoring a God who loves us (the rich and poor, broken hearted and whole) all the same.

Christmas Outreach

  Last Saturday we went with the youth in our church to a daycare in a poor community to do a special outreach.  I love this part of Christmas.  I love that we take the time to give to more to others, sharing the gift of Christ’s love.    It’s one of my favorite things about this time of year.    We played games, cut hair, painted nails, sang songs, and gave out candy and clothes.  My kids came along too!  It’s so important to me that they learn how to give to others.  Kayden and I went through all his toys to see what he could give away, the day before of the outreach.  I was expecting a battle.  He usually hates parting with his things.  I was so happy and proud to see that he has matured and was more than willing to give a whole laundry basket full of toys.    He truly realized how much he had and wanted to help those who had very little.  I was one proud Mama.  We ended up leaving the toys for the pastor to give away the next day, I kind of wish he could have given them away himself.  Oh well. The point is he gave.  Here’s a glimpse of the morning…

Sometimes I hide

Sometimes I hide from the people I want to help the most.  I stay home, keep busy doing other things and basically avoid the needs around me.  What kind of missionary am I?  I ask myself often.  The truth is I just don’t know how to help, so I stay home.

When you think of helping some one, what do you think of doing for them?  If you are like me, and I guess most people, you want to give them something.  Think about it.  When we help some one, especially someone a lot less fortunate than us we want to give them a gift.

Food. Blankets. Clothes. Toys. Candy. School supplies. Money. A car. Anything,

In the end we feel good for helping someone and as a bonus are free from something we probably didn’t use or want anymore.  It’s a win win situation right?  Not really.

I often go and visit a certain community, it’s fairly poor and I got to know a few families there  when we built the house for Altagracia. I love visiting the people, but I hate the expectations they have of me.  I drive up in my shiny SUV, and am  immediately surrounded by children and their mothers too, if they are around.   They wait expectantly as I open my door to see what I have inside, wondering what the white girl brings today, is it cloths, food or toys?  Some days I do bring some of those things.  Other days I just bring myself, offering my time to visit with them.  Either way it is never enough.  Next comes the questions…

Hermana (sister)do you have backpacks?  My kids need some!

We need a tarp for our leaky roof, can you get us one?

I need baby formula for my baby brother, can you help?

Do you have clothes?

How can we have a house built?

We need blankets, it’s cold!

My kids need school uniforms…

It goes on and on and on.

I usually have very few of those things to offer them. But the truth is, NO amount would ever be enough.

I drive home in my SUV, now covered in thick red dust,  my heart feeling a little more broken because I know I’m not really helping.  As much as I want to be a super missionary, and bring a load of great donated “stuff ” to give away to the poor, I know it’s not enough.  I have seen countless missionary groups come here to “save” people, and without them knowing it they have left doing more damage than good.  Sure they brought some great “gifts” to give people, told them that Jesus loves them but in the end, sadly, not much had changed.   You see, after the same situation has been repeated over and over again the poor are no longer thankful.   They are expectant.  They no longer humbly ask, but beg, demand, and even fight for what is theirs.  At the end of the day, they are just as poor as they were before, and even worse as they depend on the missionary, not God.  Kind of a hard thing to swallow… especially if you have gone on a short-term mission trip before.

Now I am NOT saying we should not give to the poor.  And I am not saying we shouldn’t go on mission trips.

We should.  Jesus says so.  Their will always be people who really need the basic needs in life to simply survive, and we should be meeting those needs, and many people genuinely appreciate it.

What I am saying is that we have to do MORE.

I am so tired of helping people in poverty, I want to help them get OUT!

Now the questions is, how do we make that happen?

I don’t want to hide anymore.

I hesitated.

It was 45 minutes before the evening church service and I was actually ready.

The kids were bathed and dressed, I had my nice shoes and sweater on, and we were sitting down for a snack before we left.  Saul had left already, he was leading, and I admit I was pretty proud of myself for having it all together for once.  Then Kayden said ” Mommy some one is calling you at the gate”  I quickly went out the back door to see who it was.  It was a family who lived in a town nearby…. I immediately knew why they came, they wanted a ride home.  I greeted them warmly and invited them inside.  Looking at them I suddenly felt embarrassed about by nice clothes and fully furnished home.

I have so much.

After some small talk they asked f I would give them a ride home.  I hate to admit it but I hesitated.

It seemed like an inconvenience.

I would be late for church, all my effort would go down the drain, they lived about 15 minutes away.  But I could not say no.  If I did not drive them they would have taken the bus and then have to walk about an hour, in the dark, up a very steep hill in the cold and wind.  I quickly picked up my kids and their snacks and we all piled into the car.  I started to ask the hard-working single mom about her work in the fields.  I knew she worked long hard days that started early and ended late… I just never imagined how hard and how long they truly were.

She gets up at 3:30 am to make tortillas for her children so that they will have something to eat in the morning.  She gets on the bus to work at 4:30.  She works all day in the heat, dust and wind, usually bent over in a field planting, picking or weeding.  She gets home at 6:00pm.  She cleans the mess her children made while she was gone, makes them dinner, walks to pick her son up from his bus stop (he goes to school in the afternoon and doesn’t get home until after 8), takes a shower(from a bucket) and finally goes to bed around 9:00 or 10:00.  She sleeps a few short hours then starts it all over again.

I felt so ashamed.

How could I feel even a little inconvenienced for taking a small amount of time to help this lady out?

So what if I was late!  How could I be sooooooo selfish?

This lady deserves so much more than I was offering.

It was an honor to be able to serve her.

I know the things I share are sometimes sad and hard to think about.  They are for me too.  I do not share them to make you feel bad or guilty of the blessings you have been given.  I share them because the more I know, see and hear the more I want to love, give, and change.  I hope you want that too.

I think if we all took the time to listen to some one elses story, to see the needs of the people around us, to hear their cries for help and hope would have no choice but to be moved by compassion and love to do something about them.

It’s much easier to close our eyes, ears and hearts isn’t it?