Africa Beckons

Dear friends,

The days pass faster than I've ever known them to - and the only thing
I mourn is the lost chance to connect more often with dear friends, to
hear the daily ins and outs and comings and goings of your life.
Though each one of you is scattered across this country and across
this globe, you remain with me - in my thoughts, in my prayers, in my
hopes and in my curiosities.

I apologize for being out of touch for so long, but on the eve of my
departure for Africa, I wanted to celebrate with you the things that
God has been doing this past year.

It's almost been a year now since I moved out to Nashville to join up
with Jars of Clay to pursue this dream and vision for the Blood:Water
Mission - for clean blood and clean water in Africa. The work is
certainly hard, and it has stretched me more than ever. I have been
given the most wonderful people to work with on this mission and
cannot believe how supportive everyone has been to Jars and to me. It
is such a rich experience, and I couldn't ask for a better way to
spend my days. A little more sleep would be nice, but I love what I
do. And God, as always, has directed every moment of this journey.

A year ago, I never could have imagined that we've been able to build
the foundation for an effective organization that is essential to
addressing the HIV/AIDS crisis in Africa. I couldn't have believed
that our message to Americans and to the church about HIV/AIDS and the
problem of unclean water would be so rich and transformative for each
participant. And I certainly couldn't have fathomed the fact that our
first quarter funds would provide clean water for 35,000 Africans.

Tomorrow, I fly back to Africa. Currently our Blood:Water team is in
the Sudan, just south of Darfur, where we have put in wells for 15,000
displaced Darfuris. They will meet up with me in Kenya and we will
spend time living in the villages with our African friends and
partners who have received the wells, or will be receiving them in
October. My time will be in different parts of Kenya, Uganda and South
Africa until July 6th. I consider it a complete gift to be able to
return to a place I love, to nourish existing relationships and build
new ones, and continue on this path to finding ways to help end the
atrocious suffering and injustice on this continent.

I will do what I can to keep you updated while I am in Africa. I will
not have regular access to email, but will certainly send something
along as often as I am able.

I ask for your prayers as we continue to move forward with Blood:Water
Mission. Thank you for your love and support. I am so thankful for
you.

Much love,

Jena