I am overjoyed at the opportunity we now have to work and learn skills out of a 30’ by 70’ workshop complete with classroom space. It is a basic shelter, but one which we intend to utilize to its fullest capacity in years to come. As a teacher, this allows me to instruct students safely and efficiently without spending valuable class time commuting off site, or setting up a tent. As one who helps maintain our facilities, I am confident that this shop will increase our productivity immensely as we work to improve our 60-year-old facility.

My hope is that we will never forget all the ways in which God has led us. The humble beginnings of our organization have taught us well, teaching us to be content whether we have plenty or are in need. I am incredibly grateful to have such a facility, and at the same time humbled by the responsibility we now carry to ensure that those with the most basic needs reap the benefits of its use.

Natalie facilitates a discussion on El Salvador's Violent History with her Social Justice and English class at CIS

On a national level, another event taking place in memory of the signing of the Peace Accords 20th anniversary was an apology given by Mauricio Funes, the President of El Salvador, on behalf of the Nation for the massacre of Mozote (a municipality of the department of Morazon), which occurred in 1981.  An  apology didn’t seem to suffice for many brutally killed, including 140 children.  The Civil War may have ended, but the people of El Salvador, Mozote, and individuals like Berta, are still hurting. They are still looking for peace.

Twenty years removed from the signing of the Peace Accords, a younger generation and I, discuss the idea of peace in the English and Social justice class I facilitate at CIS.  Many of the youth here lack understanding of their history even though it is recent in El Salvador’s past. The Massacre of Mozote has only just begun to be publicized this year. This generation, though sheltered from the past, recognizes an unrest that remains in El Salvador due to human rights abuses, inequalities, economic instability, gangs, and the highest violence rate in all of Central America. Not much seems to have changed in regards to peace for this country.  ‘The Peace Accords are just some good ideas on paper, we continue to fight many injustices here in El Salvador, we are still at war’, declared a student who shared a similar disposition with Berta.
After 5 months here I have also felt an overwhelming sense of hopelessness at times, and  have struggled with the idea of peace as a reality in El Salvador. In moments of complete doubt and  attitudes of indifference or apathy,  I remind myself, I know it’s possible.  I hold fast to the biblical education I have received. Jesus offers an alternative to this hopelessness, not only for his historical moment but for all historical moments, like this one today for El Salvador. Jesus was someone that lived out peaceful solutions of non-violence, equity and right relationships. I recognize there are many obstacles, and that peace is not a one time event, rather a process, a process we all must be involved in and strive for.
The students are right, peace cannot be achieved by putting hope in a list of reform policies on a piece of paper. Peace can be achieved through people. We ended our class brainstorming ideas of how to make reparation and peace practical in our lives through generosity and right relationships. They expressed hopes they had for their children, families, communities, and their country. I hoped with them.  I hoped Berta will live to see a better El Salvador. I hope our discussion will be seeds for change. And, I hope, my words don’t just remain as hopes on paper as well. I hope.

Written by: Natalie Musche

Joel Olson shares during a gathering at Old Hickory United Methodist Church

This month, the Southeast Asia team, consisting of 25 adults and 11 children, has coordinated with 5 local churches in the Nashville area to share about the history of our work in the region and what we are doing as a team to prepare for full-time deployment to the Philippines.  Our intent in partnering with the local church is to benefit them as they support us.  While sharing with the church provides them with the opportunity to pray for and contribute to our work abroad, we are also able to introduce the young people in these congregations to needs in the local Nashville area that we have encountered. Offering this awareness often opens the door for us to facilitate projects that enable them to meet the needs of the marginalized right in their own neighborhoods.

We do a lot as an organization to prepare for the work we will do on the field one day.  This does not mean we overlook the opportunities for service and partnership in ministry here and now.  We are thankful for the opportunity to work alongside local communities of believers to carry out the message of Jesus both here and abroad.

Written by: Jason Carpenter

Britt and Rafael with participants of the Envision Conference

One of the more exciting aspects of the week was working with other musicians.  We teamed up with three musicians from El Salvador to form a worship band for the conference.  This made for a really unique worship experience as we led songs in both Spanish and English every session.  It was amazing to observe everyone singing (or at least attempting!) in both languages.  Needless to say, our worship times were filled with humor, tears and many powerful moments with the Lord.  Despite all of our limitations with language, the power of music and friendship brought us together to demonstrate the unity we share in Christ.

Early in the week Rafael and I saw a need for the students to have a designated time everyday to share and debrief what they were learning and experiencing.  After speaking to the conference leaders we were given a time and space after every evening session to meet with a small group of students.  This quickly became the highlight of our week as we invested ourselves into this group of about 12 every night, sometimes until one o’clock in the morning!  We talked about the Bible, mission work, family and our hopes for the world.  We were all invigorated and challenged by our time together.

Besides working with the conference, we were able to reconnect with several of our friends in Sitio Nuevo, a small rural town outside San Salvador.  After spending a morning walking the neighborhood and checking on the land our movement recently began developing, we treated several of our friends to lunch and ice cream in Suchitoto, a nearby town.  Everyone was really happy to see us and looking forward to this summer when we will be returning to work in the community!

Written by: Britt Edwards

Lawrence's three daughters, Quinn, Genesis and Genevieve, will no longer be threatened by water scarcity and contamination.

Daily, these children walk miles to purchase and collect unclean water from this natural source, which, during dry seasons, is often too low to draw from.

According to the UN report on water scarcity, about 2.6 billion or 42 percent of the world’s population lacks access to basic sanitation, and the impact is staggering. Every week, an estimated 42,000 people die from water-related diseases, such as low-quality drinking water and lack of sanitation. Almost all of these people are from developing countries.

With the increasing scarcity of safe water in the Sub-Saharan region in Africa, Uganda is among the countries where access to safe water is a great challenge in most villages. Children and adults, especially women, walk miles and spend much of their time everyday fetching water from wells for domestic use.

In Bombo, Uganda, where our organization is working, water is mainly collected from a few wells, which, due to the increasing population in the area, can no longer sustain the increase in demand for water.  Therefore, water is expensive and hard to access.  Also, these wells are not covered, so animal feces, leaves, bugs, and eroded substances contaminate them. The safety of these water sources has been compromised, which further threatens the health of countless people.

In response to the scarcity of water and the issues associated with wells in Bombo, our movement has begun implementing an alternative method of accessing safe water for our friends in Uganda.  This last summer, a group of our East Africa cooperatives were trained in how to use a compressed earth block press to make bricks, which can be used for construction purposes.  The brick press forms an appropriate mix of soil, clay, sand, and either ten percent lime or cement into a compressed block. This building technique is protective against insects, heat, fire, and mold, and it is economically friendly. Thus far, they have produced one ton of bricks and used them to construct a water cistern for the Semakula family. It filters and reserves up to 7,000 liters of rainwater collected from the roof of a house.  This cistern will allow our friend Semakula Lawrence and his family to have clean water, as well as eliminate the expense of retrieving water from the well. Safe, clean water is essential to healthy living for all human beings.

Written by John Nyago

“I want to caution anyone from thinking…‘well, isn’t that cute what those ladies do’, because I want to tell you it’s one of the most important things that the world needs right now,” said Vicki Penwell, a Certified Professional Midwife, healthcare educator, and co-founder of Mercy In Action ministries in the Philippines.

Recently, Penwell spoke to 25 doulas, midwives, childbirth educators and volunteers at G.O.D. Int’l for 2 days of seminars on “Midwifery Volunteerism in Developing Countries”, hosted by the NOVA birth program. Attendees learned important emergency procedure skills, grew in their understanding and compassion for serving women in developing countries, and learned more about the political, economic and social issues surrounding maternal and newborn care.

Penwell encouraged the women to “just bump it up a notch.”

“Everybody needs to become certified and be trained to the highest degree to save lives…that’s where the carnage is happening.”

Penwell also spoke during a community gathering on November 18th:

“If I have anything that I can share in a short time it would be a few visual pictures, a few of the main scriptures that have influenced our lives and work, and some of the main heroes of the faith that have influenced my life.”

Complete with stories of hope, love, family and endurance of faith, Penwell highlighted the following topics: maternal survival issues, complications of hemorrhage and infection, as well as specific models for prenatal and postpartum care in developing countries.

For over 30 years, the Penwell family has dedicated themselves to caring for the poorest of the poor. Following the example of the Samaritan in Jesus’ parable in Luke 10, Mercy in Action has focused their efforts on the most vulnerable of society: maternal and newborn health, and primary healthcare for children under 5-years-old. Over 12,000 babies have been born, free of charge, at Mercy in Action birth centers throughout the Philippines.

All visitors and participants were moved by Penwell’s experience, wisdom, endurance and stories of a dedicated servant who answered Jesus’ call to serve the least of these. For a community of people seeking to bring liberation through education and service to mothers and children throughout the world, Penwell’s presence was a blessing, and at the very least, an inspiration.

By Leafa Vagatai

Because of limited availability, women often have to carry heavy jugs of water a couple miles to meet their family's need. In addition to the inconvenience of this, it is physically tolling.

More than sixty years ago the government of India began partnering with farmers in the northwestern region to increase farm productivity and crop diversity. By introducing high yield rice and wheat varieties coupled with government irrigation projects, farmers in the region dramatically increased the productivity of their farms. So much so that the state of Punjab is known as the “Bread Basket of India” providing over 60% of India’s wheat and 40% of its rice. The success of Punjab has encouraged the government to expand its agricultural development programs to the rest of the country.

Unfortunately, all of the growth has come at a great cost. As irrigation turns deserts into arable fields, as existing reservoirs are misused, and as industries drink deeper and deeper, India’s water is rapidly disappearing. India leads the world in depleting its natural water sources. The ground water level is dropping dramatically, in some areas as much as a meter every year. That means poor villagers are forced to dig their wells ever downward. Though farmers know that the water is disappearing, pressure from the government and concern for their children’s well-being compels them to continue misusing the water.

India’s water is being used faster than seasonal rains can replenish it. Almost 85% of India’s accessible water is contaminated. In a place where more than 200 million people have no access to clean water, every drop is essential. Improper sanitation and agricultural runoff allows for waste to seep into water sources making them unusable. A lack of legislation allows for big industries to drain local aquifers while contaminating rivers and lakes.

Water is vital for life; it is inextricably connected to a person’s well-being. Polluted water can carry a host of contaminants. Minerals and heavy metals can be deposited from industrial waste, Nitrates from agricultural runoff, and pathogens from improper sanitation; all wreak havoc on a person’s immune system. Every minute someone in India dies from a water related illness and almost 90% are children under 5. Thousands of people die every year because they don’t have access to the most essential element for life.

This most essential and abundant resource, the element upon which all life depends is denied so many. Thousands of lives are lost every year, simply because they have no access to clean water. We hear the words of Christ echo that he has living water so that no man will ever thirst. Though a metaphor, these words are painfully relevant to the reality faced by the majority of India’s marginalized people.

Alongside the Bible and other forms of development, India team members are learning about water, how to use it and how to preserve it. With sustainable agriculture, farmers can reap greater harvests using less water so their wells will not run dry. With basic sanitation, mothers will not have to fear giving their babies a bath. With simple interventions children will not die of dehydration, or diarrhea from waterborne illnesses. Water is a most basic right of all men, we can stop it from slipping through our fingers.  Our cups are filled so that we can bring living water to the thirsty.

by: Nick Moore

The summer of 2011 brought on many new challenges and experiences for our Latin America team as we lived and served in El Salvador.  Serving in this context requires a level of flexibility and ingenuity that we are joyfully embracing.  This video highlights one of the ways we are using our education to empower students at a school near our property in El Salvador.

Empowering through Education from Transit Labs on Vimeo.

With India's economic and population growth, land is becoming increasingly valuable. Though good news for farmers who often own land, it has often given rise to exploitation for those seeking to turn land into a city.

The English philosopher John Locke claimed that three unalienable rights belong to all human beings: life, liberty and property.  Long before the invention of the iPad or the SUV, land was the ultimate property that someone could possess.  Locke’s thought was that property, land upon which to earn a living or raise a family, was necessary for true human development and health. 

Josh at Equip International in North Carolina learning practical skills in well-digging.

According to UNICEF/WHO Joint Monitoring Programme (JMP), nearly one billion people live without access to clean water, with the majority living in Sub-Sahara Africa. Daily, five thousand children die needlessly due to waterborne illnesses. These are serious problems.

Seeing these issues has forced me to ask, “What responsibility do we have to meet the needs of these women and children? How can we help to change this sobering reality?”

G.O.D. Int’l is a movement that desires all people, without discrimination, to experience life to the fullest. The major difficulties associated with water collection keeps the impoverished and oppressed from experiencing this fullness. Life, health, and freedom for human beings is close to God’s heart. Collecting water from unclean sources causes physical harm, spread of disease, and death. This is an injustice, and change is necessary.

Recently, I attended a well digging training course. I was taught how to find water, drill for water using three different techniques, and extract water in order to provide clean drinking water for communities without it. This education to access clean water in areas that suffer with insufficient water sources is invaluable. Not only will we be able to help bring clean water to communities, but also we now have the capacity to educate, equip, and empower communities to access clean water themselves.

By Joshua Kurtz