A Toilet for a Rural Family

To provide for his family’s needs, Poe* dug a hole in his yard for them to use as a latrine. He, his wife, and three children used the hole for two years.

Unable to dig the hole deep enough or pay for equipment to finish the latrine, Poe’s family endured the foul stench and unsanitary sewage of this makeshift toilet.

But that’s not the end of the story. Poe was attending a Bible study in his village, and the group had been praying for a latrine for Poe’s family.

In God’s providence, we “happened” to visit the Bible study looking for a home to build a latrine.

Because of your generosity to this ministry, Poe’s family now has a sanitary toilet.

With the help of givers like you, a team of believers visits provinces with the greatest needs, looking for opportunities to share the gospel, dig toilets, and construct outhouses, all in sight of the villagers.

“That is what Jesus people do,” is a common phrase we hear.

Jesus says, “And the King will answer them, ‘Truly, I say to you, as you did it to one of the least of these my brothers, you did it to me’ (Matthew 25:20).

Thank you for doing “what Jesus people do” by faithfully giving to build toilets and bring the gospel to “the least of these.”

Please join us in prayer:

• Pray for a specific province where most homes lack latrines, and physical needs are significant. Ask the Lord to open doors for ministry there.
• Pray for new believers in this province to remain patient and faithful despite persecution from their neighbors and family members.
• Ask God to provide for church members’ needs as they build latrines for others.

Your gifts and prayers provide toilets for many, meeting physical needs and sharing the hope of salvation. Many have come to faith because of your faithfulness.

*Name changed

This project is crucial to our agreement with the government to provide sanitation in this country. Because of governmental approval, we can access any village we want to enter in this country. Over this past year, we provided latrines and clean drinking water to 20 homes in several provinces across Southeast Asia because of your gifts.

A Life Changed by Your Generosity. Arun* and his family were in great need of a bathroom. The father of four is a paraplegic from falling from a tree that he was picking orchids to sell. He broke his back and lay there for days. After he was rescued from the jungle, the village decided that his life was not valuable and told the wife (who had just birthed her fourth child) to lay his body in the forest and let him die. She decided not to do that. She heard about Christian people teaching health near her home and sent for help.

We found Arun lying on his floor with several bed wounds to the bone with maggots. He was near death from infection. We shared about Christ, and with tears, his family received and followed Christ that day. That was four years ago. We have walked alongside them through this injury, poverty, and despair, and their faith in Christ constantly grows despite being the only believers in their village. We had the opportunity this past year to build them a toilet in partnership with you and with the help of a visiting team.

Since receiving the toilet, his family, who live in a small shack, have met with neighbors in front of the toilet to do church. It is the only cement cool place at his home. God has provided for him and his family in amazing ways! We are so glad to be a part. Arun and his family are incredibly grateful for how you met their needs!

Thank you for your generosity and prayers. Your sacrificial gifts and intercession truly transform lives as we partner together to solve the world’s greatest problem, lostness.

Over the last year, we have engaged rural villages where there is great poverty. These areas are remote with challenging infrastructure. This year we were able to work in three villages and install 64 latrines that help more than 325 people!

In addition, we have encouraged these families to join health and hygiene projects that lead to opportunities to share the gospel and disciple those who believe.

We praise the Lord for you for your faithful support of this work. Your gifts have blessed so many with a safe toilet away from snakes and other creatures in these rural parts of Southeast Asia — a blessing that most of us in the western world take for granted. Not only that, but these latrines create the opportunity to share the gospel, and your generosity has helped open doors for salvation among these rural families! Prayerfully consider partnering with us in 2022 by making another gift and providing more toilets to families in need.

With the threat of COVID-19, we weren’t sure at the beginning of last year if this project would be able to continue. But through God’s grace, the government and villagers felt there was too much need for our work to shut it down and gave us permission to carry on!

This past fall, we built 64 toilets. Currently, we are in a village where there is a small house church with which we often partner. This church still needs good leadership, so pray with us for that need!

Thank you so much for your generosity which sustained our team during 2020. We are grateful for your financial partnership and prayers!

When we began this project years ago, we knew these communities needed toilets at their homes. Entire villages of hundreds of people had no toilets. Most years, the rains come and flood the fields with all of the wastewater around their homes causing horrible sanitation conditions that led to diarrhea and disease. But the villagers never mentioned sanitation as the reason so many were willing to microfinance and sacrifice to pay their half for a toilet. The reason: They were scared. Very scared. Snakes and wild animals could attack them while they were vulnerable. Teenage girls were not safe going “out back” alone. Many would dehydrate themselves to avoid the dangers.

Toilets can’t save anybody, but by meeting needs and being in their communities as one of them, opportunities to share the gospel surround us. We follow up with teaching groups. These groups listen to health lessons and hear the gospel. Over time, many of the villagers accept Christ and new groups and churches begin!

After starting several churches in one province, we began working with the men and women of the churches who were in poverty and needed jobs. We hired them to dig the toilets in their own villages and surrounding villages. They openly share their faith while they work. This is an opportunity to show mercy, love and kindness to those with whom they share their faith. Please pray for the believers who dig the toilets that they will share their faith boldly. Please pray that we will have teachers to follow up in each of these villages this year.

Thank you for your generosity to help us meet our financial goal for the past few years. We are moving forward to more villages in need in the next three years. With the impact of Covid-19 and a year of drought, the need for sanitation has increased exponentially. We will provide toilets to several villages this year in great need hoping to reach 100 homes! Thank you for your prayers and continued generosity.

Give today!