Charlie and Mary Kay Jackson have ministered in Accra, Ghana since 2006. Both engineers, Charlie is Assistant Professor of Arts and Sciences at Ashesi University, where he witnesses to future Ghanaian leaders through his servant attitude. Mary Kay works with Methodist Development Relief Services and Pure Home Water, two charitable organizations that focus on bringing potable water to the rural poor in Ghana.

Ghana, located in sub-Saharan Africa, has a population of more than 25 million residents. More than 80,000 children, ages five-years old and younger, die each year in Ghana because of preventable diseases. Twenty-five percent of those deaths are caused by malaria, and another 18 percent are caused by diarrhea. Together, these two diseases make up 43 percent of the death rate, and both are water-related illnesses.

UNICEF and the World Health Organization – in their Joint Monitoring Program Report, “Progress on Drinking Water and Sanitation 2012” – reported that 86 percent of Ghanaians have access to improved water sources and only five percent are drinking surface water from lakes or streams. “While progress has been made, that means that 1.25 million people, most of them in the rural north, are still drinking very contaminated water,” said Mary Kay Jackson. 

“Having access to improved water sources means an enclosed well, borehole, or pipeborne water within one kilometer of their house. However, no one counts the wells that are contaminated or the pumps that are broken and deducts them from the list. No one thinks about the many neighborhoods of Accra that technically have piped water, but where the water only flows for a few hours a week.”

“Ghana is actually one of the poorest performing countries in the area of sanitation. Only 14 percent of Ghanaians have access to improved sanitation – a toilet or latrine in their house or compound.”

In 2010, Michael McIntyre, the senior pastor of Living Word United Methodist Church in Wildwood, Missouri, started praying about how to involve missions into the DNA of his church. After praying and fasting, he felt the Lord tell him to provide water in northern Ghana. Through a series of contacts, McIntyre became connected to Mary Kay Jackson.

Jackson did not have any water projects in the north identified at the time, but promised she would look into the needs and get back to McIntyre. Less than one week later, the superintending minister of the Methodist Church Ghana told Jackson he knew of two villages that needed water. “It was clearly a God thing!” she said.

McIntyre and two staff people, his associate pastor and director of multimedia ministries, came to Ghana to explore the projects. They met with the Northern Bishop of the Methodist Church Ghana, superintending ministers in the north, as well as other people and started to access the needs and build relationships. McIntyre was clear that he wanted this to be a long-term partnership.

Back in Wildwood, McIntyre began to raise awareness in Living Word United Methodist Church. Each Sunday of Advent, he connected his sermon message with the water needs in Ghana. The multimedia director created several videos for the congregation to be able to see the water crisis and its effects on the people of northern Ghana.

McIntyre also challenged the congregants to think about their Christmas budget. He asked them to consider giving half of what they would spend on Christmas as a present to Jesus and the children of Ghana. The church made cards available for those who would want to make a donation in memory or honor of someone. Living Word took offerings at their Christmas Eve services. The congregation hoped to raise $20,000 or so for two to three boreholes. However, after all of the donations were counted, Living Word had raised more than $186,000!

And with that, The Ghana Project was born.

In 2011, The Ghana Project was able to construct four boreholes in two communities.  Construction began on the first half of a Senior Secondary Vocational School in one of these communities. This particular village has never had a high school. The school will start classes in the fall of 2012, enabling Ghanaians in this area to receive an education beyond middle school. The Project also funded a community latrine in another village.

Living Word sent two mission teams to Ghana to see the projects and build relationships with the people in the communities affected. One team painted the Bolga Methodist Primary School and spent the week playing with the children. They also dedicated the boreholes and broke ground on the school. The other team investigated new projects, helped complete the construction of a chapel in Paga, and paid for a teacher to work at another Methodist High School. 

Jim Harfst is a member of Living Word and currently serves as chair of the Ghana Steering Committee for The Ghana Project. “I realized how much help we can be – how much change we can accomplish with efforts small and large. The Ghana Project and this team from Living Word or, more precisely, God working through us, have already accomplished miracles,” said Harfst.

Scott Watson is a member of Living Word and a member of one of the short-term teams that traveled to Ghana. “Our investment in Ghana seems like a small drop in the bucket, when the need is so great. But Jesus takes our investment and uses it to impact far more people than we can imagine! For example, a borehole costs roughly $8,500. Yet God uses that seemingly small investment to improve hundreds of lives by giving access to life-sustaining water. Instead of consuming contaminated ground water, villages can escape needless illness and death that comes from waterborne diseases,” said Watson.

Cesi is a five-year old who attends Living Word. Her mother said, “A salesman came to the door before Christmas and, after I told him we weren't interested, Cesi added, ‘We are giving all of our money to the Ghana kids!’” Cesi was insistent about having a lemonade stand to raise money for The Ghana Project. Since December in Missouri is a little cold for a lemonade stand, her parents set up a virtual lemonade stand on Facebook. People made donations through buying Cesi’s virtual lemonade, all of which went to the Christmas Miracle Offering for The Ghana Project. She raised $368.

McIntyre decided to have another Christmas Miracle Offering for The Ghana Project in 2011. The church itself had experienced financial difficulties in the previous six months, including staff reductions, but they decided hold the offering for The Ghana Project anyway. “I told several people up north to pray, and they did. God blessed the project again. This time the church raised $201,000! So, we will finish the school this year, take on four more boreholes, build another chapel, and help the Navrango society buy land for their school,” said Jackson.

“God is not through with us yet and we cannot wait to see what He will do next! The next team from Living Word arrives on Sunday, and I am preparing to be blown away, yet again, by God and His infinite compassion for us and for northern Ghana!”

To see the videos Living Word created, go to http://www.youtube.com/user/livingwordumc and watch any of the videos with “Ghana” in the title. To read more about the project, go to http://www.helpghananow.com. 

To make a donation to the Jacksons’ “Ghana Water Projects” fund, which addresses water needs around the country, visit themissionsociety.org or link here and make a donation to special project #620.

My wife and I recently traveled to the Dominican Republic.  We stayed at an all-inclusive resort for my cousin's wedding on the beach.  I was proud and happy to stand with him as the Best Man.  We all had a wonderful time.

But the contrast between life as a guest at a private beach resort and the life of a typical Dominican resident was clear and striking.  And being a part of The Ghana Project, I couldn't help but compare my own temporary lifestyle of the rich and famous to the lifestyle of my friends in Bolgatonga or Sakoti or Yagcuri, Ghana.

When our plane landed in Punta Cana, we breezed through customs and immigration, met our travel agency representative, and were shown directly to a chartered van.  We were driven to the resort where more security guards checked the list and found our names among the expected guests and raised the gates.  Up the winding driveway, we were dropped off at the bellman's station and welcomed with a complimentary glass of champagne.

Most Dominicans and most Ghanaians will never experience the freedom of travel that we take for granted.  As Americans, we are welcomed with open arms in nearly every country in the world.  Others are, often, viewed with suspcion, however, especially in the United States.  Our walls are kept high and barriers remain in place to, rightly or wrongly, prevent visitors from overstaying their welcome here.  Even if they had the necessary documents and permission to travel, the airfare alone would almost certainly be prohibitive.  And the cost of four days at an all-inclusive resort . . . well, you get the picture.

After checking in, we were shown to our room.  In addition to what you would expect in any hotel, we had a balcony overlooking the one of two enormous swimming pools on the property, a whirlpool tub, a basket of fresh fruit, a bottle of champagne, more liquor than the two of us could drink in a decade or so, and a mini-fridge fully stocked with beer, soda, and bottled water.  All of this, we were reminded, was included, and everything would be replaced or restocked as needed.  If that wasn't enough, there were eight restaurants and ten bars around the resort where we could eat or drink anything or everything we wanted.  Or we could order room service 24 hours a day.  All included.  Games, pool, swimming, horseback riding, batting cages, live shows, and other activities . . . all included too.

And all of it reaching a level of extravagance that a typical Dominican or Ghanaian could not believe.  How could a person whose local water source is a contaminated well in the middle of a dusty pasture - who has to walk miles to reach a borehole with a hand pump each morning and night to survive - imagine the luxury of a mini-fridge full of bottled water?  Or even the running taps?  How does a whirlpool make sense?  What about all the booze?  And people scrambling to bring food to your room when you don't feel like walking down the the restaurant?  How in the world is it right to enjoy such luxury when others are starving, or thirsty?

The contrast did give me some mixed feelings.  It wasn't as easy to allow myself to induged and pampered and catered-to as it might have been - but I did it - as probably any of us would.  I won't dare to compare my "difficulties" in dealing with my over-exposed privilige to the day-to-day difficulties of the people living in the Dominican Republic or in northern Ghana.  None of them, and none of you, should feel sorry for me.  That's not my point.  My point is to show the contrast between the life that I have been blessed to lead as one of the lucky ones and the life led by so many others around the world.

Since I've been home, I've also realized that while the life I led for those few days in the Dominican was outrageously luxurious, the lifestyle that I lead as a typical suburban American is also outrageously luxurious when compared to people living in other parts of the world.  I have running clean water, available and affordable healthcare, plenty of food in my refrigerator, multiple bedrooms in my home, electricity, two cars, and on, and on, and on . . .

When we arrived at our vacation resort, the bellman greeted us genuinely saying, "Welcome to paradise!"  Since then, it has dawned on me that in reality, I already live in paradise.  And so do you.

In my mind, the privilege we experience as the result of the happy accident of our being born in this country requires us to help those who weren't so lucky.  If you realize how lucky you are, please commit to helping The Ghana Project or another charity.  There are plenty of people in need.  And your help can make a real difference.