The prayer of the children

My senior year of high school back in 1995-1996, I made the all-state choir. I had to go through a series of multiple auditions to make the choir. Then they sent me the music and I practiced, practiced, practiced. We all met together on a Thursday and rehearsed for two days before performing a concert on Saturday. This was a great experience.

One of the songs that the men from the group sang at the concert was a song called "The Prayer of the Children." It literally brought the entire auditorium to tears.

I hadn't thought about this song in some time. As I was reflecting and praying about Haiti and the devastation there, this song popped back into my head. I did a YouTube search to see if it had been sung by any other groups, and sure enough it was all over the place.

I picked this group's arrangement because it was closest to what I sang in high school. Listen to the song and read through the lyrics as a prayer of and for the children in Haiti and around the world.



Can you hear the prayer of the children on bended knee,
In the shadow of an unknown room?
Empty eyes with no more tears to cry,
Turning heavenward toward the light.
Crying, Who will help me to see the morning light of one more day?
But if I should die before I wake,
I pray my soul to take?

Can you feel the hearts of the children
Aching for home, for something of their very own?
Reaching hands with nothing to hold on to,
But hope for a better day.
Crying, Who will help me to feel the love again in my own land?
But if unknown roads lead away from home,
Give me loving arms, away from harm.

Can you hear the voice of the children
Softly pleading for silence in their shattered world?
Angry guns preach a gospel full of hate,
Blood of the innocent on their hands.
Crying, Jesus, help me to feel the sun again upon my face.
For when darkness clears I know youre near,
Bringing peace again.

Dali cuje te sve djecje molitve?
Can you hear the prayer of the children?

Haiti and Psalm 23

As I was preparing a bible study during the week the earthquake hit Haiti, I began to think about verses that were relevant to the situation there. Psalm 23 kept coming to mind, and I kept dismissing it. Everyone knows Psalm 23 and in many circles it has become so commonplace or people have become so accustomed to it that it is almost trite. People can recite it from memory, but it has lost much of its significance because of it overuse. However going back and exploring the verse in light of the desolation in Haiti brought new meaning to it for me and my bible study.

Contrasting the images of devastation on the television and internet with the prayers and singing you heard in the background was truly a living manifestation of Psalm 23. As the Haitian people watched their already difficult world crumble around them and the death toll rose, I saw the valley of the shadow of death there. And yet the Haitian people sought consolation in God, despite losing their homes, their family members and their sense of safety, they knew that God’s rod and staff would bring them comfort and that they would eventually return to green pastures and still waters.

Their sense of hope in the midst of chaos demonstrated through their songs, prayers and interviews truly embodies Psalm 23 and brought it back to life for me.

More Haiti Reflections, and the Dominican Republic too. . .

This is video from the border of Haiti and the Dominican Republic (DR) from CNN. It is from the town of Jimani on the border betwee the DR and Haiti. Healing Waters has a water system in Jimani.

I spent 5 weeks in the DR last summer and was blown away by the poverty there. In all of my experiences and travel in Latin America in the past decade, including visiting and/or doing development projects in half a dozen countries, I had never seen poverty as severe as what I saw in the Dominican Republic.

Now Haitians are fleeing Haiti because they see more opportunity in the DR. This is a remarkable comparison to me. The poverty in the DR is stark and overwhelming, but compared to Haiti it is almost a paradise.

This really makes me stop and pause and pray for our brothers and sisters in Haiti and our brothers and sisters in the DR who are trying to help the people of Haiti. Amazing.

Haiti Reflections

This will be the first in a series of reflections and thoughts on Haiti:

A Friday Morning
January 22nd, 2010
by Gail Rodgers

Have you, or a friend or family member, been personally affected by the tragedy in Haiti? If you’d like to speak with someone privately about it, contact us today.

This morning I turned on the coffee pot and headed for the shower. The warm water was instantly there. Clean hair, fresh towels, clean clothes … and coffee. Then I flipped on CNN.

The mass commotion on a main street in Port-au-Prince drew my attention. The camera zoomed in on a young man threateningly holding up a broken piece of concrete as a weapon.

As the images flash by it’s hard to imagine that this chaos is happening right this moment as I sip my coffee. It troubles my heart to see fellow human beings in such a depth of despair with little hope.

That devastating earthquake in Haiti is overwhelming. The pain is unbelievable, and the anguished faces etch their outline on our memories. They are hungry. They are thirsty. They are frantically looking for loved ones. They have not so much as a blanket or a change of clothes much less a meal to eat. The help is coming, yet the need is so very great.

It’s easy to turn the TV off and continue on into my day. Can I shake off the uneasiness? Can I push the images of the wailing faces to the back of my mind and hurry on? I am so far removed from the chaos. I am so helpless to aid the breaking hearts …

The sun is shining. It’s a good day to wash the car perhaps … and on we go with our own lives. On we MUST go with our own lives. Thankful for today. Praying a prayer for Haiti that is hard to even find words for. What can I do?

I stop at my laptop. A quick search brings me to a donation page and before I leave I hit the button and send what seems like such an insignificant gift is the face of such need.

Yet my donation will join with many others and together they WILL make a difference. Together we, who have the privilege of going about our daily routine, will stop to share what we can with those who so desperately need it.

Sip your coffee with a grateful heart, yes. But take a moment to be the hands and feet of Jesus in Haiti today. It’s what Jesus calls us to do.

Lord God, Thank you that we can represent You in Haiti today by giving what we can to be Your hands and feet to the hurting. Flood our hearts with generosity and care. Be very present in the midst of that chaos and make a way for help to flourish. In Your name we pray, amen.

Question: How does our faith compel us to help others? (Consider for example Romans 10:23-24: “Let us hold unswervingly to the hope we profess, for he who promised is faithful. And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds.”) Could you spare some funds to help in Haiti?

Doing development work without doing more harm

Photo of a boy in Chiapas outside his home. His family receives water from the Aguas de Unidad / Healing Waters Project in his community. Before the project this boy was sick a lot and his growth was stunted. Since the project opened he has been much healthier and is growing normally.

I was forwarded the article below by the CEO of Healing Waters, Ed Anderson. It really cuts to the core of issues around development and how important it is that we are aware of what we are doing, sustainability, appropriate technology, and community involvement. Below the article I have posted some of my own thoughts and commentary.


Help That Makes a Difference: Change our Worldview


The goal is not to turn Kampala into Chicago. The goal is for both Kampala and Chicago to look more like the New Jerusalem.
Brian Fikkert, co-author of When Helping Hurts posted 12/15/2009 09:50AM

What's the biggest change needed in how charities and federal agencies deliver aid to developing nations? Brian Fikkert, co-author of When Helping Hurts, David Beckmann, president of Bread for the World, and Dale Hanson Bourke, author of The Skeptic's Guide to Global Poverty, suggest the best way to help.

"We were happy in our village before you folks told us we were poor. We didn't have many things, but happiness doesn't come just from having more material things. What makes you think we want to become just like you?"

The audience, a group of American donors and development leaders, looked bewildered as Emily, a community development worker from Liberia, took her seat. Finally, one of the U.S. donors spoke up. "Yes, of course we share your goals, Emily. That's why we keep on bringing you more capital and technology." Emily listened helplessly, realizing that her message had fallen on deaf ears—again.

Americans are the richest people ever to walk the face of the earth, and we coexist with 2.6 billion people living on less than $2 per day. The situation is simply immoral.
We must do more, but we must do it differently.

For the past 60 years, the majority of American assistance has flowed out of a materialistic worldview, which assumes that wealth is produced by material things, namely capital and technology. In this view, America is "developed." We have arrived, and they have not. The assumption is that if we provide them with more capital and technology, they will be able to be just like the U.S.—a country where families and communities are disintegrating, where addictions are on the rise, where mental and emotional illnesses are exploding, and where rampant consumerism is
bankrupting all of us.

The need for more capital and better technology persists. People really do need improved access to clean water, better health care, decent education, and a living wage. But they, and we, need something far more profound. Whether we realize it or not, we all are longing for an intimate relationship with God, for a sense of dignity, for community and belonging, and for the ability to use our gifts and abilities to develop creation. The goal is not to turn Kampala into Chicago. The goal is for both Kampala and Chicago to look more like the New Jerusalem.

The practical implications for providing aid are enormous: Spend more resources on supporting people-empowering processes and less on bricks and mortar; help people to steward the gifts and resources they already have; include the materially poor as full participants in selecting, designing, implementing, and evaluating any intervention; build the capacity of indigenous churches and Christian organizations to work in highly relational, gospel-focused ways; promote the use of spiritual tools—prayer, meditation, fellowship, and Bible study—in addition to material tools in all
poverty-alleviation efforts; and embrace that both they and we are fundamentally
broken and in need of the healing that only Jesus Christ can bring. We are all developing nations.

There are a couple of quotes in this article that really speak to me. The first is the quote from the Liberian aid worker. We have a tendency to try to "fix" problems from a very "westernized" and "first world" perspective. If we could just get a laptop and cell phone in the hands of everyone, wouldn't life be better? The reality is that those of us engaged in development work need to go into communities and ask the locals what they want instead of telling them what they need. This simple, basic rule of good development work is so often overlooked. We have an overwhelming desire to fix problems, we forget to stop and ask what problems the community feels are most in neeed of fixing.



The next quote from this short article that really resonated with me was, "Americans are the richest people ever to walk the face of the earth, and we coexist with 2.6 billion people living on less than $2 per day. The situation is simply immoral."



This quote is spot-on. There are so many severe problems associated with poverty that could be fixed so easily like irradication of basic diseases, providing safe drinking water, etc. Very basic investment in the community, and community involvement are key to resolving these problems.



The next quote was so good they used it as the byline for the article, "The goal is not to turn Kampala into Chicago. The goal is for both Kampala and Chicago to look more like the New Jerusalem." WOW! These guys got it right. It is not that every country and city needs to look like a first-world destination, but the basic needs and human rights of every person must be realized, which would look an awful lot like the New Jerusalem.



Some thoughts for reflection. Enjoy!

New year, new perspectives. . .

After a month and a half long hiatus from blogging, I am back. For those of you who have been encouraging me to write and post, thank you for your encouragement.

A lot has happened in the last month and a half. Most importantly, my wife and I had our first child. Esther Margaret Allen-Pickett was born on December 17th, 2009 at 1:50pm. She weighed in at a healthy 8lbs 8ozs and is doing great! She is quickly approaching three weeks of age and she changes and grows every day.





This year I am going to be doing a lot of posting about being a new parent and the daily miracles I am experiencing. I will also continue to post about global poverty issues, the global safe drinking water crisis and my work with Healing Waters International. I will not be traveling to the field for a few months as Jessica and I settle into our new lives and roles and parents, but will be back in Latin America before too long.

The first thing I want to share with you about our miraculous bundle of joy is the history of her name, Esther Margaret. The post below was written from Esther's perspective with a little help from her mom and dad. Enjoy!

The Story of My Name: Written by Esther with help from mommy and daddy

Monday, December 21, 2009

The big day has come and no longer am I just “Lil’ AP,” but I am now officially Esther Margaret Allen-Pickett. Outdated, old-fashioned, and maybe some might even say obscure, but my parents thought long and hard about this name. There are many special people who are a part of me; however, my parents figured that a name with an infinite amount of letters might not be the nicest “Welcome to the World Baby Girl” present they could give me.

My first name, Esther, comes from my dad’s paternal grandma. She was a great lady who lived to be 99 (less than two weeks shy of her 100 birthday). She had a kind and gentle spirit, an unassuming manner, and was the eternal optimist. If you could only use one word to describe her, it would be "kindness." My dad’s favorite memories of her involve, Chinese Checkers, pecan pie, love for dogs (I think this is where my dad gets his), weekday afternoons, and New Mexico style enchiladas. My daddy wrote a blog post about her last year that you can read by clicking here.

This is a picture of Daddy and Esther, Daddy's Grandma

My middle name, Margaret, comes from my mom’s maternal grandma. She was also an extraordinary woman. Whose strength carried her through many trials and tribulations. If you could only use one word to describe her, it would be “spunky.” She never took no for an answer, was hard as nails, but had the patience of a saint when it came to her granddaughters. Some of my mom’s favorite memories of her involve bicycle riding, cards, swimming in the river, the library, and chocolate chip cookies. This is a picture of Mommy, Grandma Char and Margaret, Mommy's Grandma with my big brother Sol

It feels like a lot to live up to (these two remarkable ladies), but I know that they, along with all of my past and present relatives and friends are with me. With the help of this great village, I know that I too will be an exceptional woman.

The church's role in healing, meeting people's basic needs and reconciliation

A reflection from Henri Nouwen… good for the church and for organizations like Healing Waters.

"A Ministry of Healing and Reconciliation"

How does the Church witness to Christ in the world?

First and foremost by giving visibility to Jesus' love for the poor and the weak.

In a world so hungry for healing, forgiveness, reconciliation, and most of all unconditional love, the Church must alleviate that hunger through its ministry.

Wherever we feed the hungry, clothe the naked, visit the lonely, listen to those who are rejected, and bring unity and peace to those who are divided, we proclaim the living Christ, whether we speak about him or not.

I think this is a representation of what the church's role is, and what we are all called to do as Christians. Just my two cents.

In Christ alone, my hope is found. . .

A few years ago Eric Moe was leading contemporary worship at Wellshire, as well as leading the youth praise band that lead worship with the youth group every Sunday night. He started rotating "In Christ Alone" through the song list. I loved this song as we sang it each week. Then this Sunday, the handbell choir at Wellshire played an amazing arrangement of the hymn "In Christ Alone." The music was glorious, and it got me thinking about the lyrics too.

I did some research, thinking that this was an old hymn set to a more modern score. As it turns out it was written in 2002 by a guy named Stuart Townend: "Stuart Townend is a British Christian worship leader and writer of hymns and contemporary worship music. His songs include "In Christ Alone" (2002, cowritten with Keith Getty[1]), "

A common and sometimes accurate criticism of contemporary worship songs is that they are very repetitive and not very profound. That is true many times, but not in this case. These guys really knocked it out of the park with this song, rivaling any old hymn in depth of message.

The lyrics for this hymn are below and below that is a video of the Newsboys version of the song. I encourage you to read through the lyrics as a prayer of hope and thanksgiving. Stop and pause as you read, really reflect on them. Then if you want, listen to the song and continue to meditate on the lyrics. This is some powerful stuff!

In Christ alone my hope is found
He is my light, my strength, my song
This Cornerstone, this solid ground
Firm through the fiercest drought and storm
What heights of love, what depths of peace
When fears are stilled, when strivings cease
My Comforter, my All in All
Here in the love of Christ I stand

In Christ alone, who took on flesh
Fullness of God in helpless babe
This gift of love and righteousness
Scorned by the ones He came to save
‘Til on that cross as Jesus died
The wrath of God was satisfied
For every sin on Him was laid
Here in the death of Christ I live

There in the ground His body lay
Light of the world by darkness slain
Then bursting forth in glorious Day
Up from the grave He rose again
And as He stands in victory
Sin’s curse has lost its grip on me
For I am His and He is mine
Bought with the precious blood of Christ

No guilt in life, no fear in death
This is the power of Christ in me
From life’s first cry to final breath
Jesus commands my destiny
No power of hell, no scheme of man
Can ever pluck me from His hand
‘til He returns or calls me home
Here in the power of Christ I’ll stand

My Birthday Wish. . . Access to safe drinking water for 10 more people!

The last time you had a glass of water, where did you get that water from? Did you get it from the faucet in your home? Did you have a glass of water at a restaurant?

When you drank that water, did you stop and ask yourself if it was safe to drink? Did you think about whether or not that water was going to make you sick?

Most of us don’t ask those questions; in fact those questions do not even cross our minds. We have the privilege of living in a country that distributes safe drinking water through our taps 99% of the time. We don’t have to wonder if the water is going to make us or our families sick; we don’t even think about it.

In much of the world, that is not the case. Over one billion people lack access to safe drinking water, and billions more have “access” to buy safe drinking water at the store, but they don’t have the resources to pay for it. It is hard to buy bottled water when you live on less than $2 a day. As a result, they drink dirty contaminated water. And they give that same contaminated water to their children, not because they want to, but because they have no other options. And they live most of their lives in a constant state of sickness.

One organization working to change that is Healing Waters International. Their mission is to empower local ministry partners to bring physical, social and spiritual transformation to poor communities by providing sustainable, safe water solutions. Their vision is to see safe water provided in the name of Jesus in every poor community of the world. And the way they pursue that mission and vision is unique and exciting. I really believe in this organization. (Conflict of interest disclosure statement, I work for them too!)

So my birthday is on Sunday. The Big 3-2 !!!! I have enough "stuff" so I would rather support this cause for my birthday. Every $50 donated to Healing Waters provides another person access to safe drinking water FOR LIFE! I hope to provide 10 more people access to safe water for my birthday, so I am trying to raise $500. Every little bit helps, so please donate! (The link to donate is below)

http://apps.facebook.com/causes/birthdays/213213

I believe that access to safe drinking water should be a basic human right for every person on this planet. Healing Waters is working towards that while also empowering local partners to bring physical, social and spiritual transformation to their communities. And their model incorporates long-term sustainability, so their projects continue to keep on distributing safe water, years after they are installed. It doesn't get much better than that!

Back from Guatemala, Snow Boots and Flip-Flops and other contrasts

I arrived safely back from Guatemala on Thursday night. It was great to be back with Jessica, Lil' A-P and Sol. We are mid-way through Week 34 of the pregnancy and cannot wait to meet our little girl.

Today I took a "travel comp" day to get caught up on things around the house and run some errands that I had neglected during my trip to Guatemala. I raked the leaves in the yard, cleaned the house, did some small home improvement projects and got caught up on work at Wellshire Presbyterian Church where I am the Youth Director.

The temperature today in Denver was in the high 70s. Just last week I was shoveling 20 inches of snow off my driveway and sidewalk. I love living here in Denver, a city of contrasts. We have almost two feet of snow one week and I am tromping around in my Sorel snow boots and the next week we have temperatures in the high 70s and I can walk around in my flip-flops. A few winters ago, I even went skiing on a Saturday and golfing on a Sunday.

These contrasts in temperature and weather are not so common in Guatemala. The weather tends to be pretty even keel there. However Guatemala is a land of contrasts, just not contrasts of temperature.

The contrast in Guatemala is the incredible wealth and the oppressive poverty. Last time I was in Guatemala I was visiting a coffee plantation. I saw workers in the field that were making an average of $300 per month, just a little more than minimum wage in Guatemala. While I was talking with one of the plantation workers a loud noise caught our attention. It was the owner of the coffee plantation, arriving to work in his own private helicopter.



The wealth in Latin America is impressive, even by our own standards here in the United States. One of the richest men in the whole world, Carlos Slim, is a Mexican. The upper classes in Latin America live well. Which is why it contrasts so much with the impoverished masses, the folks we have the privilege of working with in Healing Waters International.

I never cease to be amazed by the spirit of the people we work with. Despite extreme poverty contrasted with such wealth, the people we work with have profound faith and an incredibly positive outlook.

The class system in Latin America is not as rigid as the caste system of India, but the chance of moving from the lower classes to the upper classes is pretty slim. Despite this, and despite having this class contrast front and center every day with helicopters landing in coffee fields and Land Rovers and Mercedes driving by urban slums, the people we work with find joy in their lives, their families and their faith.

That is one of the things that drew me to Latin America originally and keeps me coming back. That spirit, the sense of faith and community, and the general sense of joy.

So as I settle back into my life here in Denver, trying to decide whether to wear my flip flops or my snow boots, that contrast will make me grateful for my time in Latin America and the people I am privileged to work with there.

Corriendo por todos lados en Guatemala! (Running all over the place in Guatemala!)

The past few days in Guatemala have been incredible! Whenever I am working in the field, I try to make the most of my time which usually means working 12-15 hour days. Fortunately most of my trips to the field are two weeks or less, so I am able to keep up a schedule like that. Being in the field always recharges my batteries and gives me a chance to see the work we are doing in Healing Waters International up close and personal. It is incredibly energizing and so the long days don’t tire me out.

Monday was a great day. After meeting with the staff in the morning, I jumped into a meeting with my two employees responsible for prospecting new partners and communities for water systems as well as managing the relationships with the partners after the water systems have been installed. We spent three hours talking about the process of finding and qualifying new partners and communities for systems. It was a great dialogue and I really enjoyed hearing their perspective and spending the time with them.

After a quick lunch of delicious tacos at a taco stand, we headed back to the office and met with a representative from Willow Creek and Red del Camino. We spent about an hour in the office talking with them and then left to visit our newest water system.

On the trip there, we stopped at a gas station for a few things and I got out of the car and left the keys in the car. Well, as it turns out the alarm system in our cars here in Guatemala automatically lock the doors about a minute after you leave the cars. So the gringo made a rookie mistake and got the keys locked in the car (although I can’t say I “locked the keys in the car” because it was the car that locked itself automatically.)

This provided some amusement for everyone and also provided us a little more time to chat with the great folks from Willow Creek and Red del Camino. We sat at some tables and chairs in the gas station while we waited for the other set of keys to be delivered from the office.

After that we visited the newest system in Comalapa. The system is really an impressive one and the folks from Willow Creek and Red del Camino had lots of great questions.

Finally we drove back from the system to Antigua for the night. The system is about an hour from Antigua on a very windy road, and it was raining pretty hard. So it was one of those “white knuckle” drives and all of these news articles kept flashing through my head about missionary team members and NGO employees who died in fiery crashes on twisty mountain roads in Latin American countries. Fortunately none of that came true, and my year of experience driving in Ecuador along with all of the driving I have done in the Dominican Republic, Mexico and here paid off. I got us all safely back to Antigua!

Tuesday I spent the day meeting one-on-one with my staff members. The meetings were very productive and I was able to get a real sense of the day to day operations here in Guatemala. We have been without a National Director here for almost six months and I have been filling in for that time. Unfortunately some things are hard to do as the acting National Director from my desk in Denver, so these trips to the field are extremely helpful for a variety of reasons. I was here for a week last July-August as well. I wish I could spend more time in the field and with my great team here.

We drove into Guatemala City for lunch and had Ceviche which is one of my all-time favorite dishes. It is also a little bit of a risk to eat ceviche in a city that is not right on the coast, but so far I seem to be doing fine!

Last night I had the opportunity to spend some time with a missionary family down here. Jackie and Levi run the Sharing His Plan ministry here in Guatemala. They have been living here for four years and have quite a ministry going. They had helped us advertise our National Director position through a Intermission listserv that Jackie moderates and through that process I had come to know them digitally and was blessed to finally meet them in person. They have three beautiful, spirited and well-behaved kids who I got to eat dinner with.

After dinner with them, I headed to the airport in Guatemala City to pick up Jake, the Director of Field Operations for Healing Waters. He and I are going to spend Wednesday working with the staff on strategic planning, our 2010 plan and budget and a few other things.

So far the trip has been nothing but blessed. Thank you for your positive thoughts and prayers. This is my last full day here and I head back to Denver tomorrow (Thursday.) This is the shortest trip I have taken to the field, but with Jessica being 33 weeks pregnant, I am grateful for that. I would love to spend more time here with my staff and at our water projects, but I am also anxious to get home to be with my beautiful wife.

Thanks for reading and LET THE CLEAN WATERS FLOW!

Back in Guatemala, the kindness of strangers and a soggy suitcase. . .

I am back in Guatemala again. This is my fourth visit this year! (and my last with Lil A-P coming in December.)

I am constantly amazed and blessed by the kindness of strangers. On my flight yesterday from Denver to Dallas I started talking with the guy across the aisle from me, his name is Eric. I told him about the work of Healing Waters and why I was headed to Guatemala. He was on his way home from a business trip and a trip to visit his family in Colorado.

He gave me a code to use the wireless on the flight for free. So I was sitting on an airplane, 35,000 feet above the ground, and was able to chat with Jessica, do e-mail, and watch the Broncos game from the comfort of my exit row seat. Pretty cool stuff!

But it gets better. Once the flight landed in Dallas and we were walking off the plane, Eric says, “Can I get you into the American Airlines Admiral’s Club for your layover?” That is the private first-class lounge in the airport. Eric explained to me that his job didn’t always generate a lot of good karma, but he thinks that my job does, so he wanted to help me out and “pay it forward.”

So we went into the Admiral’s Club and watched some football. We talked a bit more and discovered we are both Labrador aficionados, he has a yellow lab and we have our black lab. He also has a 19 month old daughter, is first child, and Jessica and I are expecting our first child in December. Eric is an incredibly nice guy. He had a rather short connection so he left after about 30 minutes but I had a 3 hour layover, so I was able to sit in the lounge, catch up on e-mail with free wireless, have a few free glasses of iced tea and some snacks, and escape the fray of the airport.

It was like I got a little mini-vacation in the DFW airport before heading to Guatemala for work! I am constantly amazed and blessed by the kindness of strangers.

My flight arrived in Guatemala City at about 8:15 last night to pouring down rain. When my bag came out on the carousel it was kind of soggy. The drive from Guatemala City to Antigua was uneventful, although I was fortunate to have a driver and not be driving myself in the pouring down rain along the windy road to Antigua.

I got to the hotel Hostal las Marias (my home away from home here in Guatemala, I have stayed here almost a month over the past year if you add up all my trips) at about 9:45pm, touched base with my wife and my staff down here and went to bed.

Today is an exciting day. I have a staff meeting in the morning with all of the Guatemala Aguas de Unidad staff. Following that I am working with two of our team members down here on the process of finding new communities and new partners for water systems. We call this our “Pipeline Process.”

In the afternoon we have a meeting with a representative from Willow Creek church. This is a big church out in Chicago that focused on water issues for their global missions conference this year and raised funds to sponsor 5 Healing Waters systems in the Dominican Republic and 3 Healing Waters systems in Guatemala.

We are going to meet with one of the Global Missions guys from Willow Creek and the National Director for Red del Camino Guatemala. Red del Camino is an organization that networks churches with a shared vision for serving their communities. We are hoping that Red del Camino can find some good church partners for us to partner with for new water systems in 2010.

We are also going to visit our newest water system in Guatemala, one that was sponsored by Willow Creek. The system is in Comalapa. You can see some photos of the community by clicking here. It is a charming town of 15,000 that is about an hour outside of Guatemala City.

I am really excited for these meetings with the Willow Creek people and the Red del Camino people. I cannot wait to see what might come of the synergy between all of our organizations!

Thanks for reading the blog. LET THE CLEAN WATERS FLOW!

Snow Day in Denver and Matthew 25. . .

I am sitting here at home writing this blog post today. Ed Anderson, my CEO at Healing Waters International called at 10pm last night to tell me not to come into the office today because of a pretty big snowstorm that started last night and is supposed to get worse as the day progresses.

The office for Healing Waters is on the campus of Lookout Mountain Community Church in Genesee. The church gives us office space up there, it is very generous of them. Genesee is about 15 miles west of Denver up in the foothills. So when we get snow in Denver, we REALLY get some serious snow up at our office. It is almost 2000 feet higher in elevation up at the office.

So I am working from home today. The change of scenery is nice and Sol (my black lab) is curled up at my feet. (Although that is not all that different from a normal day because Sol comes up to the office with me most days, Healing Waters is a dog friendly workplace.)

Snowy days like this make me think about our field offices in Mexico, Guatemala and the Dominican Republic. Some of our field staff and most of the people that benefit from our water projects have never seen snow.

This makes me realize what a true life of privilege that I live. Here I am sitting in Denver with six inches of snow on the ground and watching it fall. On Sunday I will be hopping on a plane and flying down to Guatemala for work. When I am there, we stay in Antigua, which has an average late Oct. temperature of 75 during the day.

Beyond being able to jet-set around for a change of scenery and weather, I am really privileged to be able to go to my sink for a glass of water. Just like the people who get water at our projects have never seen snow, they have also never been able to get a glass of safe drinking water from the taps in their home (if they even have taps in their home.)

So my snow day is making me reflect on my privilege in life. And with privilege comes empathy and responsibility.

Empathy arises from a profound realization of intrinsic interconnectedness between all humans, a sense of connection that God calls us to recognize. As a result, I feel the suffering and pain of others - to varying degrees - and am called by something very deep inside to do what I can to help them.

Jesus words in Matthew 25:34-40 really speak to me on this point. The version below is from The Message:

34-36"Then the King will say to those on his right, 'Enter, you who are blessed by my Father! Take what's coming to you in this kingdom. It's been ready for you since the world's foundation. And here's why:
I was hungry and you fed me,
I was thirsty and you gave me a drink,
I was homeless and you gave me a room,
I was shivering and you gave me clothes,
Iwas sick and you stopped to visit,
I was in prison and you came to me.'
37-40"Then those 'sheep' are going to say, 'Master, what are you talking about? When did we ever see you hungry and feed you, thirsty and give you a drink? And when did we ever see you sick or in prison and come to you?' Then the King will say, 'I'm telling the solemn truth: Whenever you did one of these things to someone overlooked or ignored, (to the least of my brothers and sisters) that was me—you did it to me.'

So that is how a snow day in Denver and Matthew 25 are related.

Below is a video that we filmed at our office in Denver back in September. Ed Anderson, our CEO wanted to record a message for the inauguration of our 35th water system in the Dominican Republic. The day we decided to record the message we were getting one of our freak Colorado September storms. Kind of puts the snow day, and the work we do for Healing Waters in perspective. Enjoy!

Some great quotes on social justice, global missions, prayer and service

I am the interim youth director at Wellshire Presbyterian Church. For the past few weeks, with the help of Holly Inglis, our Director of Christian Education, we have been doing a really cool series with the youth group on prayer.

The first week we focused on "prayer for self." We set up prayer stations so the kids could focus their prayers. I built a cross out of rough-hewn 4x4 cedar and the kids were able to write their prayers on a piece of paper and then nail them to the cross.

Last week we focused on "prayer for others." The kids braided together strips of cloth representing themselves, the person they were praying for and God, symbolizing the way that prayer can bring us together and in closer relationship with God.

This week we focused on "prayer for the world." One of our activities was praying over headlines from the paper and quotes about service, global missions and social justice, and then lighting a candle and placing it on a big world map over the country or region the kids were praying for.

A couple of the quotes that Holly found for this activity are below and I wanted to share them with you. They really resonated with me and I hope they are meaninful for you too:

“It is not how much we do,
But how much love we put in the doing.
It is not how much we give,
But how much love we put in the giving.”
-Mother Teresa


“Nakedness is not only for a piece of clothing;
Nakedness is lack of human dignity”
-Mother Teresa


“If we pray, we will believe;
If we believe, we will love
If we love, we will serve.”
-Mother Teresa


Christ has no body now on earth but yours, no hands but yours, no feet but yours,
Yours are the eyes through which is to look out Christ’s compassion to the world;
Yours are the feet with which he is to go about doing good;
Yours are the hands with which he is to bless humanity now.
-Teresa of Avila (1515-1582)

A huge "shout out" to Holly for all of her help with this series we have done on prayer. She is a genius with a servant's heart. I am blessed to work with her. Thank you Holly and thank God for Holly!

Patience and a Father's Love

Watch this touching video clip given above which shows a conversation between a father and son.

This Greek short film (with English subtitle) was made in 2007.

Father and son are sitting on a bench. Suddenly a sparrow lands across them. The old Father asks son, “What is that?” to which the son replies “A Sparrow” and looks back into his newspaper. After sometime his father again asks him “What is that”. A little annoyed, son replies “I just told you father, its a sparrow”.

Then, the sparrow flies to the other side and sits there. The father repeats his question “what is that?”. This time, son replies “A sparrow father, a sparrow…s-p-a-r-r-o-w……” and when again the father repeats his question, son is filled with anger and says “Why are you doing this Father? How many times I told you its a sparrow!!!”

Father gets up and goes into the house to take his old dairy. He comes back and asks his son to read a passage from the dairy, which goes like this “Today my youngest son, who a few days ago turned three, was sitting with me at the park when a sparrow sat in front of us. My son asked me 21 times what it was and I answered all 21 times that it was a sparrow. I hugged him every single time he asked me the same question again and again without getting mad, feeling affection for my innocent little boy.”

This video really convicted me. I need to learn patience and practice patience more with the people that I love.

This is the kind of father that I had, and this is the kind of father I want to be.

Thank you Dad, for having such patience with me. Thank you for setting this example for me.

Thank you God for giving me a father that had that much patience for me and modeled that.

I pray that I can live up to my Dad's example and have that much patience with my children and with the rest of my family.

Boring. . . finding joy in the mundane

I stole the text below from my friend's blog, but think it is relevant and right on. Enjoy!

Well today I was in the midday doldrums in need of a spiritual zap. I was working on some tasks that are certainly important to keep things running smoothly, so that is good. But sitting in front of the computer can suck my brain out. The mundane is where we live most of our lives, and in this place we learn to love God, and serve people, even though we don’t always feel like it. This is called having character. Or most days, building character. For this I rejoice, because I love Jesus, and want to learn to love Him more. I want to learn character through the testing pressures of life, including functioning in joy during mundane tasks. I do though fail in this assignment regularly. The stir-crazy revivalist in me wants every moment to be a world changing, earth shaking, devil blasting, holy ghost hoedown. But not every moment of my life fits into that category. As Mike Bickle of the International House of Prayer puts it “We focus on establishing our identity in God as we are faithful to serve in the mundane.”

It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick. . .

The sermon at church on Sunday was based on Mark 2:13-17. The text is below:

The Calling of Levi
13Once again Jesus went out beside the lake. A large crowd came to him, and he began to teach them. 14As he walked along, he saw Levi son of Alphaeus sitting at the tax collector's booth. "Follow me," Jesus told him, and Levi got up and followed him.

15While Jesus was having dinner at Levi's house, many tax collectors and "sinners" were eating with him and his disciples, for there were many who followed him. 16When the teachers of the law who were Pharisees saw him eating with the "sinners" and tax collectors, they asked his disciples: "Why does he eat with tax collectors and 'sinners'?"

17On hearing this, Jesus said to them, "It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick. I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners."

What an incredible relief! Jesus came for me, not just despite my sins, but because of my sins. This does not mean that I cannot intentionally keep in sinning, but it does mean that Jesus walks with me no matter what I do.

I am already accepted right where I am. Praise God!

Healing Waters Article in my hometown newspaper the AZ Daily Sun!

Below is an article that was published in the AZ Daily Sun, the newspaper in my hometown in Flagstaff, Arizona. I was back in Flagstaff last weekend doing some friend-raising and fund-raising for Healing Waters, and visiting my awesome parents. (Love you guys Moms and Pops, thanks for a great visit!)

I was the keynote speaker at the Missions Brunch at my hometown church, Federated Community Church. I also spoke to the Flagstaff Rotary Club, the great folks who sponsored me and Jessica to live in Ecuador back in 2001. In addition I met with the wonderful people at Faith Works to talk about Healing Waters and hear about their short-terms mission trips they run. Finally I met with the campus ministry group at NAU, where a great reporter from the Arizona Daily Sun joined us and wrote the article below. The original article on the newspaper website is here, but I copied and pasted the whole thing below. Enjoy!

On a mission for clean water


By BETSEY BRUNER
Sun Staff Reporter
Saturday, October 17, 2009


When Greg Allen-Pickett was working toward his Ph.D. in international studies at the University of Denver several years ago, he decided to toss out theories and get his hands dirty.

Inspired by a talk he had previously heard by a Healing Waters International representative, Allen-Pickett decided to leave school and join the nonprofit organization, which is based in Golden, Colo.

Two years later, Allen-Pickett, who was raised in Flagstaff, returned this week to his hometown to give several talks about the mission of the project, which creates clean-water systems in three Latin American countries.

A DAILY REALITY

When traveling, people from wealthier countries sometimes think they are the only ones who get sick when they drink water in Third World countries.

"The reality in 90 percent of the cities in Mexico, Guatemala and the Dominican Republic, the water coming out of the tap is so contaminated, you can't drink it, no matter what your nationality," he told a gathering Monday night at the Campus Ministry Center at NAU. "The daily reality is they just can't go to the tap and get a glass of drinking water, and they have to treat any water they are going to cook with, too."

The Campus Ministry venue was chosen for a talk because members of the ministry had traveled in March to Guatemala with Healing Waters.

His parents, Dean and Cindy Pickett, still live in Flagstaff and came to hear the talk at the ministry.

Allen-Pickett, who received a Rotary grant in 2001 to be a goodwill ambassador in Ecuador, also gave a talk Tuesday to the Flagstaff Rotary Club.

BAD WATER-BORNE ILLNESSES

In a PowerPoint presentation, Allen-Pickett showed a variety of water-borne diseases that affect people worldwide: Cholera, E. coli, salmonella, parasites, tapeworm, giardia and fecal coliforms.

Healing Waters statistics show that more than 1.6 million children under the age of 5 die from water-borne illnesses each year, and that diarrhea from water-borne disease is the second leading cause of morbidity and mortality among children.

Allen-Pickett, 31, is the field operations manager, which requires him to spend several months a year visiting Healing Waters field offices. His wife, Jessica, a high-school English teacher in Denver, sometimes accompanies him on trips.

Work in the field includes distribution of free drinking water, raffles for free 5-gallon water bottles, bottle sterilization and the installation of water-purification systems in local churches.

"I'm so happy doing the work I'm doing right now. It's very fulfilling," he said.

CHURCH PARTNERS ESSENTIAL

The partnership with churches is essential to the success of the mission.

Allen-Pickett, who attended Federated Community Church while living in Flagstaff, told people at the talk that churches are ideal locations for water projects because they are stable, trusted and located right in the middle of communities.

"The revenue the church generates goes back to the community," he said. "There is no conversion talk. The Bible doesn't make health contingent on believing in Jesus. It was just, 'Come to the church, get some water.'"

He said Catholics and Protestants in Latin America are often at odds with each other politically. But working together on clean-water projects can unite them in a common purpose.

The relatively simple concepts of water purification can be complicated by government regulations, he said, but Healing Waters workers have received phenomenal cooperation from the Mexican government.

"It's an enormous problem, with one in six lacking access to safe drinking water," Allen-Pickett concluded. "But I don't think this is a story of sadness; it is a story of hope and opportunity."

Betsey Bruner can be reached at bbruner@azdailysun.com or 556-2255.

To learn more

For more information about Healing Waters International, visit the Web site at http://www.healingwatersintl.org.

Guest Blogger: Our Dysfunctional Christian Hearts

Below is a blog post from John Bell, senior pastor at Wellshire Presbyterian Church. He is brand new to the blogging world and his blog is still in Beta mode, so he hasn't made it public yet. As one of his "beta testers" I read this post and thought it was worthy of getting some public circulation, so here it is. Stay tuned and once Pastor Bell goes public with his blog, I will be adding it to my blog roll over in the right column. Without further ado, Pastor Bell's post:


This will not surprise anyone in my family: I was born with a small, hard heart. Literally. Most hearts are about fist size. Mine is roughly the size of a tennis ball. I have a congential heart defect. In a small section near the heart, my descending aorta never really grew from birth, and my heart remained small. It had to work extra-fast to pump the blood through the narrow place, so it became hard. This condition is called coarcation of the aorta. Had I been born 10 years earlier, I most certainly would have died as a young boy; however, the development of the heart-lung machine and new surgical techniques in the 1950’s now give people like me a second chance. Once my defect was discovered, my activity was limited until I had corrective surgery at the age of 11. More on this later … I’m sure.

Like the Grinch who Stole Christmas, who’s heart was two sizes too small, my heart is still naturally hard and naturally small. Therefore, I need lots of exercise and some medication to be heart healthy! (Notice I didn’t say a strict diet! I don’t have a problem with cholesterol. Don’t take away my macaroni and cheese! In fact, my daughters once dubbed me “Cheese Boy,” because of my love of all things cheese.) If I don’t exercise, mentally and physically - and probably spiritually too, I start to wear down, get crabby and easily can become Grinch-like. The medication I take keeps my heart soft and pliable, the way a good heart should work. My doctor at the Mayo Clinic says that with proper exercise and medication, I should live long and prosper. (Well, live long at least. Prosper may be a different issue.)

There is a lesson here for all of us. Metaphorically speaking, I believe that everyone is born with a congenital heart defect, and that none of us have hearts that work properly – without “exercise” and “medication.” It is clear that we weren’t born right. Jimmy Buffett says (sings!) that it’s clear the cosmic baker took us out of the oven a little too soon. Theologians have long called this the doctrine of original sin. We are not able to do the right thing all the time, we are not perfect, we somehow always fall a bit short of the expectation, we are born with a screw loose, we are flawed, we do not love as we ought to love: we were all born with slightly defective, broken hearts …

And we need “exercise” and “medication.” I do not know what this might be for you, but for me it means I have to set aside time and find ways to work at loving others. Love is not just a feeling, an emotion; love is an activity. It’s not enough to say that I love my wife; I have to occasionally do the dishes or clean the potty to prove it. It’s not enough to say that - like Jesus – I love the poor, I have to give up an occasional day off to work on a Habitat for Humanity house or travel to a remote part of the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan and live among and assist an oppressed people for a couple of weeks. Love requires exercise. “Medication” for me means that I have to try to keep my heart open and soft, alert – and not allow it to become hard and callous. It’s easy to read the paper or watch the news and become jaded and cynical, effectively shutting down the heart by closing down that which we call: compassion. “Medication” (Bible reading? Prayer? Meditation? Worship?) keeps my heart soft and open, sensitive to the needs of others, alert to the presence of The Spirit.

My heart requires “exercise” and “medication.” Otherwise, I become Grinch-like, with a heart two-sizes too small and in danger of living a bitter life of cynicism, fear or self-hatred. I imagine your broken heart needs some work too! Love does not come easily or naturally to any of us. It requires time, work and discipline. Exercise your heart today: tell someone that you love him or her and … throw in a random act of kindness!

My second post. Whew. It’s 4:20 a.m. Time to head to the gym and hop on a cardio machine!

The Spiritual Practice of Justice

There was a great insert in my Sunday bulletin at Church that I wanted to share with you:

There can be little growth in holiness without growth in a sense of social justice.
-Edward Hays in "A Lenten Hobo Honeymoon"

We must be for the poor not simply a handout but a voice on their behalf where the poor are not heard and their pain is not registered. If we are to really minister, it is up to us to first be transformed ourselves so taht we can then be really transfiguring.
-Joan Chittister from "In the Heart of the Temple: My Spiritual Vision"

Develop a daily cue to remind yourself to practice justice

• Every time you take money out of your wallet, it can be your cue to "practice justice"
• Every time you start your care, it can be your cue to "practice justice"
• Every time you see someone in need, it can be your cue to "practice justice"

Pick your own cue and use that to keep your calling front and center.

Reflections

• Identify an injustice that troubles you. What first made you aware of it? Reflect on one action you have done or can do to combat it.
• Do you think that all people are born with a yearning for justice, or does it have to be taught? Think back to your childhood and recall your most vivid experience of justice or injustice. How can you participate in teaching justice to a younger generation

I really got a lot out of this bulletin insert and wanted to share it with you. There was also a great Psalm that someone quoted this week that I wanted to share in light of this social justice posting and the healthcare debate:

Happy are they who consider the poor and needy! The LORD will deliver them in the time of trouble. The LORD preserves them and keeps them alive, so that they may be happy in the land; he does not hand them over to the will of their enemies. The LORD sustains them on their sickbed and ministers to them in their illness.

God is calling us to take care of the poor and needy and promises to take care of us when we do. We are called to care and to be the hands and feet of God, ministering to the disenfranchised, the hungry, the weak and the sick. Let us not forget.