Lost Luggage

Another successful day in St. Marc. Robinson and the guys (Doyle Sr. and Steve) left early this morning to run down to the airport and see if the lost luggage had made it in. It had! On their fourth stop they found the 10 feet of 3" pipe they needed to complete the baler for drilling the 4" well. They made it back to St. Marc this afternoon and commenced to see if the rig was going to run after sitting for three years. The little diesel motor took right off and purred like a kitten. The rig is now set up over the existing 2" well that has cracked casing. They will pull it out of the ground in the morning and set the steel casing in it's place. Dad is hoping all the plastic pipe comes out so he can show the guys what went wrong when they were putting the pipe in the ground. The well pumped a little water, but when done right will pump much more. They are hoping to have the 2" well drilled tomorrow. The goal is to have a 2" well with a hand pump on it that the church family will be able to pump water out of even if the electricity is out, the 4" well will get a submersible pump that will run off a generator or when the power is on to fill the 500 gallon distribution tank daily to give fresh drinking water to the mountian people. They will actually be able to give out much more when the power is on, because they will be able to fill the tank in less than an hour. It will be an awesome ministry. Fresh water is a life force, and in third world countries, is very difficult to get any, much less what you actually need. So much sickness is contracted through bad water. As you wander off to your bed tonight, and grab that last sip before you tuck under the covers, give God thanks for that little thing, because in lots of places tonight, it's the biggest physical need there is! The "Water for Life" ministry (who's rig we are currently borrowing) shares the story how a fresh water well in a village in Haiti closed a local hospital! Our bodies need a lot of water to subsist, we have come to take it for granted in our country, in Haiti it is still a substantial need. We are grateful to be working in this endeavor. The guys are thrilled how things are going, and so are we! Steve sends out a 'hello' to his family, keep up the prayers, he is feeling them! After 10 years in Bolivia, I think he is feeling quite at home on this trip! The picture in this blog is another glimpse into the devastation of the earthquake taken on the road by one of our guys. This too is a staggering reality. For many of these people, they will probably never experience a recovery from this disaster. Keep our dear friends in your prayers! Blessings to all!