This past spring, students and leaders from the Sunday morning high school education class raised $5,000 to help drill a well in Africa through the ministry, Water Wins. After the money had been collected and sent, an opportunity arose for a few students to travel to Nigeria to see the well we had supported. My sister Kirby and I, along with our dad, five other teenagers, and two guides, set off to Nigeria at the end of July.Our first flight landed in Amsterdam, where we spent the night after a bit of sight seeing. We noticed that the people seemed very purpose driven as they shoved through crowds or biked past us with a warning stroke of their bell. The cold reception was kind of unexpected and shocking, as the Dutch population of Holland, Michigan tends to be quite friendly.
Early the next day, we departed for Nigeria. After six hours of flying time, we caught our first glimpse of Africa. The Nigerian people we met welcomed us with open arms and smiles. They were genuinely happy to see us, even though our flight had been delayed four and a half hours, and we arrived around 2 a.m.! The next day we drove a van to the village of Komfany, nine hours away from Abuja. There lived the staff of Water Wins. They too were incredibly glad to see us, and all throughout the week they sought advice and input from even the youngest of our group. The message of Christ has been spreading in Nigeria thanks to the Water Wins team. Places that had been touched by their hand, most often had the exuberance of a new Christian community. The village where Calvary's well had been built, however, was still an African traditionalist village. There the people were grateful for the first well, but yearned for another. They seemed to have trouble understanding why we wouldn't drill another.
It was great being able to see the impact that Water Wins is having on their community and the communities around them, and I was glad to have taken part in their efforts to bring clean water to a village. It was also good to be reminded of the excitement for God that newer Christians often have. The general hospitality of the African culture, mixed with the new Christian energy, was definitely intoxicating and I think that all the Americans on the trip learned a little something about how to treat a brother or sister in Christ.
Story by Kaylie Wierda
