In America, I turn on the faucet to the right and a rush of water spills out of the silver spout. I rinse off my store bought vegetables, grown and harvested by farmers or imported from other states then boxed and shipped to my local air-conditioned grocery store which keeps the vegetables fresh by spraying a mist of clean water every few minutes. I fill my pot with the same water that comes out of the sparkly spout and when I’m finished with my meal, I turn on that faucet again and let the water run to soak and wash my dirty dishes. The used, dirty water magically disappears down a silver pipe. I wash my hands with this clean water and soap. I don’t give a second thought to where my water comes from, I don’t worry about parasites or bugs in my water. I don’t think twice about whether my water will make me sick or if there will be enough for me to use. As long as I pay my water bill on time, I should have water running through the pipes and I trust that the city is regulating the sanitation and purification process of the water that comes through the pipes.
On the contrary, in Cambodia there is a significant shortage of water, let alone clean water safe for consumption. Water is stored in huge drums outside of the home, often uncovered where insects reside, mosquitoes are born, and other environmental debris nest after the wind has blown them into the drum. From this drum, a family waters their agricultural plantation, cooks, cleans, bathes, and even drinks. Water is collected from large collecting containers that gather rain water, if there is rain. Although it is rainy season in Cambodia, we have had 3 nights of rain the entire time we have been here. This drought has created undue hardship or farmers as their crops are drying up and ponds and rivers that provided water for the rice paddies are dried up and cannot be replenished. Even the village chief doesn’t have enough water for his greenhouse and the herbs have withered and died. When we first arrived, we were advised to use only 1 bucket of water to bathe in keeping with the water conservation methods of the Khmer people in light of their water shortage. Other than collecting water, this village of over a thousand people has 3 wells, which provide much needed water. As privileged American missionaries, we walk to the market 20 minutes away to purchase bottled water that we trust has been purified to our health standards. The children diligently searched through our trash to pick out our emptied bottles, presumably to be recycled, so we started to set them aside for them to pick up. Without running water in the home, we run outside at all hours to get water for our use. Water… the shortage of water is a major problem that plagues the millions of farming families in Cambodia, contributing to the poverty of its people.
I have no physical water to offer Cambodia. But what I do have is living water. God calls himself springs of living water (Jeremiah 2:13, John 4:10). Water is the source of life. Without water, a person cannot live more than 3 days. In the same way, without Jesus we are spiritually dead. Water can only temporarily quench our thirst, but Jesus says that those who drink of the living water will never thirst again (John 4:13-14). As a Christian, I am also empowered with this living water (John 7:38). I have the gift of living water which completely satisfies and never runs dry.
