Clean Water U: Being Prepared
Anything can happen at Clean Water U. So it’s best to be prepared for anything.
It snowed the first morning of our training.
I was not prepared for that. Granted, Calvin Crest Conference Center where we held our training is at 5,000 feet in the beautiful Sierra Nevada mountains so weather can change pretty quickly. But it was June and the temperatures had been up in the 80s. So I was joyfully surprised to wake up to find everything covered in a beautiful dusting of snow. I took it as a good sign that anything can happen. I was talking to Gilbert, one of Calvin Crest’s awesome staff members, as we were getting everything set up for our group to arrive. If Gilbert were as old as he is wise, he’d be one of the oldest people walking the planet. “We have a small group this time—sixteen students,” I told him. “Sixteen people can change the world,” he replied, matter of factly. I smiled and thanked him for this reminder of how God works. Another good sign. Anything can happen.
I shared Gilbert’s words with our Clean Water U staff. As you can see from this photo, they were prepared (and excited) for pretty much anything to happen!
“Small but mighty” came to mind, not just for this particular training session but for all the water saints called to share the love of Christ and clean water with our sisters and brothers.
Small but Mighty Clean Water Fans
I love hearing from our CWU students. Their notes, whether they come via e-mail, our Facebook page, or snail mail, always bring a smile to my face. A few weeks back, I received such a note from Cathy Haynes, one of our June students. I asked her if I could share her words and she gave me permission to shout them from the rooftop so I’m sharing them with you here. Cathy’s mom, Martha, was a huge advocate for LWW. She would tell anyone within ear shot what God was doing through the small but mighty group of folks who dared to believe they could make a difference in the world. Cathy and her husband, Bo Platt, attended the June session to become part of the water team at Martha’s church. They will be installing a water system in Guatemala later this year to honor Martha’s life.
"I feel transformed; water has changed me! It was so inspiring to be around people from all walks of life who shared a high-level of commitment to working together to make our world a better place for all God's people - on earth as it is in heaven. I left transformed with a sense of contentment I have not experienced recently, renewed compassion for others and a high degree of competency and knowledge on how to make a difference. Is there a better gift one person can give another? I think not!"
- Cathy Haynes
As I was writing this blog post, I recalled something that happened during the Health Education presentation that seemed at the time to be more funny than significant. One of the Health Ed students had written underneath their health banners the words
“Clean Water for a Generation and Beyond”
We joked at the similarity to Buzz Lightyear’s famous catchphrase, “To infinity…and beyond!” from the Pixar movie Toy Story. I got to thinking about what is beyond infinity and what that might mean to us as we seek to serve God - the God who created us and infinity and everything that is beyond infinity. God’s mission is one of math beyond division, beyond our concepts of multiplication, one that goes beyond any limits we may set - for others or ourselves. Perhaps we best be prepared to be surprised by what God can do with a small group of people who set out, with God’s help, to change themselves and the world. With God’s love, anything can happen.
Kendall Cox is the Director of Education for Living Waters for the World. She’d love to hear from you - kendall@livingwatersfortheworld.org. Follow LWW on Facebook, Twitter or Instagram.
