Steeves' Summary #5     Water!         June 19, 2004

“Everyone who drinks this water will be thirsty again, but whoever drinks the water I give him will never thirst.” John 4:13-14a

A two minute walk behind our house takes us to the edge of a small lake. A few weeks ago we took our canoe down to the lake for the first time this season. Gliding along in a silent canoe is a wonderful way to see God's beautiful creation. The kids enjoyed our stop at “blueberry island” in the middle of the lake.

Water, so necessary to life, so taken for granted. There is water everywhere in New Brunswick. You can't walk through the woods for more than five minutes without coming across a stream of some size. Water in Kenya is a different story. According to CIDA, only 42% of rural Kenyans have access to clean water. It is common for women to walk for 5 kilometers to reach the nearest water supply. Water is precious, often shared with livestock, and is usually contaminated.

When I think of water in Kenya, I always think back to Doc Propst. Doc was a larger than life figure to me when I was growing up. Lore had it that he built his 1956 Mercedes from two junked ones. I always knew Doc as an engineer, someone who was always building things that actually worked. At some point I saw a photo of Doc with a stethoscope and said “Doc is a doctor?” Doc was indeed a medical doctor, as well as a mechanical engineer. He grew up in Kenya, the son of early AIM missionaries. He returned to Kenya around the time of WWII to serve in medical work. In traveling around the country doing medical clinics, he saw just how much disease was caused by contaminated water. It was also difficult for missionaries to start new work in areas where there was little water.

In 2001 I was visiting some friends at the AIM retirement center center in Florida. At every turn we met someone whom I'd known when I was growing up. We walked around the corner of the workshop and Clarence asked me “Do you remember Doc Propst?” What a thrill to meet someone again who had been such an unknowing influence on me.

Doc changed the world one person and one project at a time. He left a legacy of self-powered water pumps and clean water across Kenya. I think of Doc and pray that I can make a difference in Kenya as well -- one person and one project at a time.

Orientation

Thursday our family leaves for Toronto to attend orientation. Two weeks will be a general course about cross cultural ministries run by Missionprep. The third week will be with Africa Inland Mission. All three weeks will be held at Tyndale University College & Seminary. Our children will be attending a special program to teach them cross-cultural living, and it sounds like fun! All of us are looking forward to move into a new phase of our preparation. We will finally meet some of the staff from AIM and CBM with whom we have been corresponding for the past two years. We are also looking forward to meeting other missionary candidates at the course. We will still have full access to our regular email address. We always appreciate receiving emails.

Financial Update

We are supposed to leave for Kenya in August. We have 32% of our monthly finances pledged to maintain us while we are in Kenya, and 72% of the funds required to get us to Kenya. I was asked if we could use small pledges. By all means! Our ministry will be more effective with more people involved. Individuals have pledged between $5 and $100 per month for the two years we are in Kenya.

I've had a couple questions on the “mechanics” of giving. AIM is a registered charitable organization. Any donations sent for us via AIM or CBM are tax deductible. If you feel led to give monthly, please fill in a pledge card and send the pledge card to AIM as soon as possible so they know what finances will be coming. Once they receive your pledge card, they will send you information about giving. The monthly gifts expect to begin once we are in Kenya. If you need any help, we'd be glad to answer any questions.

In Christ,

Michael

	Michael and Bernadine Steeves 113 Pauline St. Saint John, NB E2J 3K8 (506) 658-6081 steeves@kijabe.org www.kijabe.org
	Africa Inland Mission 1641 Victoria Park Ave. Scarborough, ON M1R 1P8 (877) 407-6077 (Toll Free) aimcanada.org
	Canadian Baptist Ministries 7185 Millcreek Dr. Mississauga, ON L5N 5R4 (905) 821-3533 www.cbmin.org