Water Advances The Gospel: FIA In West Africa

Aug 13, 2024

In the early 2000s, FIA was asked to assess the needs of missionaries serving in the Ivory
Coast of Africa. Leaning on the end of a shovel with the head worn-down to less than half, one missionary shared his efforts to hand dig a well. “We go 25 to 45 feet down or until we hit solid granite, but the people are desperate and will use everything and anything to get to the water. Sadly, most of these shallow wells go dry after all the effort.”

Every missionary interviewed, among every tribe, in every ministry, unanimously reported,

A Clear way to open hearts!

“There’s nothing more important to building relationships and opening hearts to the Gospel than bringing water to the people. We plan to drill or dig a well in every place we serve.”

An image of FIA team moving equipment with a crane.

FIA TAKES ACTION

Convinced of the great need for water and its direct impact on effective evangelism, FIA undertook the first well in Africa in August of 2001. Before truck engines could be turned off, villagers greeted volunteer teams with singing and dancing.

As the team worked, the pastor read Scripture, taught the people of Jesus, the Living Water, and explained how He alone can quench our spiritual thirst for eternity. When the drill finally punctured deep enough, a massive geyser of water burst forth, bringing more singing and dancing from the villagers.

The tears of our volunteers added to the water slowly seeping into the dry ground that day. One team member shared, “Aside from the birth of my son, there has never been such a perfect moment for me. This tangible demonstration of God’s power drawing people to Himself is amazing to see!”

EVOLUTION & IMPACT OF MINISTRY

Since those early years, FIA has drilled approximately 400 wells serving around 500 people through each well. That means, conservatively, close to a quarter of a million villagers have received clean water and a chance to hear about Jesus through FIA’s well-drilling initiatives!

We have seen churches birthed overnight, curses broken, collapsing wells restored supernaturally, and forgotten villagers given hope. Pastors have been encouraged and motivated, villages qualified to receive medical clinics/schools/child sponsorship programs because of the presence of a clean water source, and hundreds to thousands of people have seen the love of God displayed through the practical service of teams working side by side with nationals. We praise the Lord for what He has done!

WE NEED YOUR HELP

Please pray with us Currently, we need your help more than ever before. We are drilling in a very spiritually dark place where an overwhelming percentage of villagers (99.8%) are not receptive orrespective of Christianity. Instead of working through already established faith communities like in the Ivory Coast, we are now engaged in pioneering efforts to break down barriers to the Gospel.

Water is essential to helping a small handful of believers impact the worldview of Muslim villagers around them. Drilling also enables agricultural projects that empower these few Christ followers to share the Gospel with their people.

Water builds relationships Whether through a large-scale project like drilling for a school or clinic, or bringing water for a family to share with their neighbors, water is helping relationships to be slowly built and puts Jesus’s great love on display.

This month, our goal is to raise the funds for the first 4 wells of next year’s drilling season ($10,000 per well), and to support the ongoing field ministry development needs which includes community outreach and national training initiatives ($25,000 per year). This month we ask you to join us in addressing the great need for water and for Jesus in Africa!