We've all taken a drink through a straw. Have you ever put your finger on top of the straw and taken it out of the drink? It's kind of weird how the liquid stays in the straw and doesn't fall out, right? Now, have you ever done that with crushed ice in the glass? Both water and ice stay in the straw!

Well, did you know that a similar principle can be used to drill a water well? If you get a pipe with a hard, sharp end, and slam it into a fluid-filled hole in the ground, the bits of dirt and rock you dig up can come out the top, clearing the way for the end to slam down even farther. Bit by bit, the hole gets deeper, and it can go deep enough to hit pure water in the ground.

All the material used to construct the drill, pump, well casing--everything--is available inexpensively in developing countries. Or, in the worst-case scenario, if a piece (or a tool) is difficult to find, it's easy to find an equivalent. Putting it all together can sometimes require a little bit of creativity, but this is easily learned through practice and getting familiar with the hydrological concepts behind assembling such a well.

This technology and methodology have been successfully used and promoted all over the world, changing the lives of people in places such as Bolivia, Argentina, Nicaragua, United States, Sri Linka, Tanzania, Kenya, Ethiopia, Cameroon, Sierra Leone, Togo, and Zambia.

Did you notice one of those countries is Ethiopia? This is where AIMS has been working and partnering with local ministries for years! Our idea for using this simple, grassroots method of producing a well is to equip Ethiopian missionaries with another practical way to show Jesus' love to people in unreached villages. This method is a good match for AIMS' partners, because they already have a heart to share Jesus' love in an incarnational way -- that is, humbly and servant-like, as Jesus did when He walked here on earth. A humble, serving approach is necessary to share this well-making method, and the missionaries have this attitude!

What a great opportunity to show the life-changing power of the gospel in a physical way! Families, villages, and cultures can be spiritually transformed by the Living Water of Jesus, and their physical lives can be transformed by being empowered to find and value clean water!

NOTE: More information and pictures can be found at: http://waterforallinternational.org