21-300-900-2-1-U

21-300-900-2-1-U

Though it sounds and looks like a security code or some encrypted message, it is not. It’s five numbers and one letter—six different things that became very clear to me during the course of the most recent “Clean Water U” (CWU)—the five day intensive educational component of Living Waters for the World (LWW).

21 The last session of Clean Water U was the twenty-first. In our culture’s measure of human chronology, that means Clean Water U has reached “adulthood.” Though CWU may have reached adulthood, the staff and volunteers who animate its body, mind, and spirit know that maturity is measured by actions, not age; and wisdom is not so much possession of a subset of knowledge as it is the ability to effectively integrate ideas that are becoming available while humbly acknowledging the exponentially larger set of that which is yet to be known.

300 About the time you read this document, the documented number of LWW water filtration systems installed worldwide will surpass 300. Included in its 22 countries of installation are the first system installed in a country led by a Communist government (Cuba), and multiple systems in the USA (Appalachia). LWW has come a long way from the early years, when “the” team installed 11 systems in its first 6 years. That’s a lot of systems, a lot of relationships, and a lot of lives transformed (on both sides of the water tank). There are thousands more villages in need, millions more people needlessly dying and suffering from easily-preventable water-borne illnesses.

900 The number of people who have been trained at “Clean Water U” is now over 900. With October’s inaugural session of CWU-West, at Calvin-Crest, CA, ten miles south of Yosemite National Forest, LWW and CWU are more fully blanketing the world. On the final night of CWU, students are equipped to begin fulfilling their role as “Clean Water Ambassadors” (CWA), spreading the good news of LWW’s message far and wide. How many Clean Water Ambassadors do you know? How many more people do you know who could become CWAs?

2 Our congregation is working on its second LWW system. Partnered with our local Rotary Club, we are maintaining a relationship with the El Dios Vivo congregation in Guastatoya, Guatemala, where the first system we initiated has been operational since April, 2008. Partnered with First Presbyterian Church, Pulaski, TN, we are developing a relationship with the congregation of Temple Getsemani in El Jute, Guatemala. The Pulaski/Fayetteville team is working toward a November, 2009 installation/education trip. I pray that this number continues to grow until all God’s children have access to safe, affordable water.

1 The more I am immersed in LWW and CWU, the more I am aware of the oneness of it all. We serve one God. We are one people. We have one purpose: to spread the good news of God’s love in every tangible, life-altering way possible. Clean water is one of the most powerful tools I’ve seen. It breaks down the walls of language, culture, economics, politics, and social status. Being a part of sharing clean water gives people on both sides of the table an opportunity to experience the joy of God’s grace.

U This single letter is commonly used in our fast-paced, technology-driven world to represent “you.” When “you” is part of a conversation, it’s as personal as life gets. All of these numbers and the story they tell relate to “you.” Whether or not you ever attend “Clean Water U” or go to Guatemala, or contribute to the Mission Fund to support these projects and other mission endeavors, or take it as a part of your prayer life to specifically pray for the people whose hands and hearts are deeply invested in this mission, “you” are part of this and other work that define and give missional energy to our congregation. Thank “you” and, “Let Clean Water Flow!”

© 2009 Todd Jenkins