Pure Water Brings Life To Body And Soul In Ethiopia
By KEN BECK
“To me water is life. Some of the areas where we have visited, it is unbelievable to see people drinking water from a pond that looks like coffee, full of germs. Many children and old people are dying from drinking polluted water,” said Behailu Abebe, 66, one of the patriarchs of the Churches of Christ in Ethiopia.
Abebe knows from first-hand experience how important pure water is to his northeastern African nation, just as he knows how important the pure gospel is as Christ promised that those who drink from Him will never be thirsty again.
Abebe oversees five schools for the deaf, preacher training schools and evangelism work of the Church of Christ Mission in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia’s capital city, which has a population of 4.5 million. He has seen the church grow from 10 congregations in 1968 to more than 900 today.
He first partnered with Healing Hands International in 1999 when a drought struck the country.
“I asked for assistance, and Brother Dave Goolsby came to Ethiopia with Don Yelton and John Ed Clark to see the school. We traveled together to areas where we have farms and visited churches and homes and met people who were starving,” recalled Abebe.
“Dave told me, ‘We have a program that will help in the long run: drip irrigation survival gardening.’ When he first mentioned it, I didn’t think it would work. He shared with me that we could dig wells and use drip irrigation, and the people will have food.”
With five preacher training schools in Ethiopia which graduate 120 preachers a year, they selected 12 preachers and brought them to Addis Ababa for a two weeks of training in drip irrigation.
“We encouraged them to go back and implement what they were told in their own back yards so that people could see how they could feed their own families. When the community saw how it worked, they wanted to learn, and preachers started teaching them the courses,” said Abebe, who has received honorary doctorates from Harding and Abilene Christian universities.
“Now there are thousands of families who have learned drip irrigation survival gardening and are feeding their own families, and they have cash enough and money (from selling produce) to help send their children to school and improve the situation. Drip irrigation has changed the lifestyle of people in many communities.”
Along with the drip irrigation training, Healing Hands has partnered with the churches in Ethiopia by supplying a drilling rig for a water well development program.
Curt King has drilled 268 wells in the country, but the equipment is beginning to show the wear and tear of thousands of hours of use.
“We’ve really used it,” Abebe said. “We know the old rig is going to quit one day, so Healing Hands has another rig to send into our country. I told them not to send it until I get a permit for duty free, so we now have the permit.
“We want Ethiopians to be trained to drill. Curt has trained three Ethiopians, and he is also a mechanic. We need him to continue training.”
Abebe was in the United States this summer to discuss the shipping of the drilling rig and parts needed as well as discussions with Healing Hands about the organization being responsible for driller King’s support. He has also spoken at more than three dozen American congregations about the church in his country.
“The work in Ethiopia is unique. There have been no American missionaries preaching in our churches since 1975 after Communists took over the government. (The government is now back to a democracy.) We are getting the gospel to our own people,” he said..
“The water wells are probably one of the greatest gifts given to my people. I appreciate so much Healing Hands and such a great life-saving program. One of the best things the church can do is give people good clean water and having the drip irrigation method also helps give them food with which they can feed their family, sell produce and pay for the church,” said Abebe, as the wells and drip irrigation have helped provide water to 1.5 million Ethiopians.
“I have tried to do as much as possible to help my people. With the remaining life God allows me, I would like to still serve my God and my people. I want to see the work done and that people are saved,” says Abebe, who knows the healing power of God that can begin with a gift of clean water.
