Read 2 Corinthians 9:13

Ministry: Tackling water poverty in one of the world’s most forgotten countries. Our goal? Clean, lasting water for every man, woman, and child in the Central African Republic.

Missionary: Jim Hocking

I’m an ordinary man, serving an extraordinary God. And looking back on my life, I am still amazed at how He used a simple act of obedience back in 2004 to dramatically change the lives of those living in one of the poorest countries in the world.

For most of my working adult life, I was a missionary in the Central African Republic. I personally saw what the lack of clean water was doing to Central Africans and, when given the opportunity to take over a water well drilling business from a friend, I hesitated. I had never ever drilled a water well in my life! How was I supposed to be obedient in doing something I had no clue how to do? Being obedient to trust that He would provide knowledge, wisdom, and training I needed was very difficult for me. I didn’t know how to start a nonprofit or how to raise funds for expensive water wells. I didn’t know what would happen with the national staff. How was I going to take care of them financially, let alone the impact this would have on my wife and family? I had a lot to process and wrestle with God about.

A few weeks later, following the Lord’s lead, we moved forward with taking over the drilling and maintenance business, renaming it to Water for Good. As trusting and obeying goes, it wasn’t all smooth sailing, but the Lord was constantly by our side. Through rough terrain, a civil war, figuring out how to get supplies to a landlocked country, and many other obstacles, the Lord has blessed Water for Good’s efforts by allowing almost a million Central Africans to drink clean water on a daily basis. To date, we employ 81 Central Africans who have drilled 1,017 wells and maintain 1,869 water systems. We will not stop until the whole country has clean water! Please be praying for our team as this year has brought many challenges, including a COVID outbreak for our drilling and maintenance team, as well as rebel activity, causing safety concerns.

My prayer for you is that you make the conscious decision to serve our Lord Jesus Christ, asking God to use you in an extraordinary way as an ordinary man or woman. All He needs is a willing son or daughter who wants to serve Him. Take the pressure off of yourself to do “big things” and put that expectation onto God. He can use your “yes” in ways you would never imagine.

To learn more, visit our website at https://waterforgood.org/ or join us on social media @water_for_good

Jim Hocking