From the desk of
®
JOHN BRADSHAW
February 2025
Dear Partner in ministry, Water is essential for life. Thankfully, water is plentiful. If you or I need water, we simply turn on a tap. You might get filtered water from your fridge or buy bottled water—purified or distilled—with minerals, vitamins, or flavorings added. It can be cheap or expensive, local or imported, in plastic bottles or glass. Life does not go well without water. Thankfully, for most of us, that’s no problem at all. There is ordinarily more than enough water for drinking, bathing, washing your car, watering your lawn or garden, or even filling a pool. When It Is Written conducts a major evangelistic outreach in Ethiopia in April, we will meet people who have no access to safe, clean water. In fact, about half of all Ethiopians find themselves in that situation.1 Water contamination is a major problem. On our last mission trip to Ethiopia, we served over 17,000 people at the medical clinic we conducted, providing essential services that many people would otherwise never be able to access. We expect to do even more this time. But a lack of clean water means diseases such as diarrhea and cholera are rampant. In fact, diarrheal diseases are currently the thirdleading cause of death in Ethiopia. 2 But there’s something you can do.
1 https://www.worldbank.org/en/news/feature/2023/11/10/promoting-sustainable-andequitable-wash-in-ethiopia 2 https://data.who.int/countries/231