19 and for me, that utterance may be given to me, that I may open my mouth boldly to make known the mystery of the gospel,20for which I am an ambassador in chains; that in it I may speak boldly, as I ought to speak.21But that you also may know my affairs and how I am doing, Tychicus, a beloved brother and faithful minister in the Lord, will make all things known to you;22whom I have sent to you for this very purpose, that you may know our affairs, and that he may comfort your hearts.
Paul was in prison, but he certainly was not isolated - he coveted the prayers of his readers and he desired to communicate with them, with the letter, and with the personal report of one Tychicus. He was committed to being a devoted servant of Jesus Christ and proclaiming the Word of God, but he also recognized he did not operate in a vacuum - he desired for others to partner with him in his work and to stand with him in prayer. Effective ministry is a collaborative effort - ministry can grow and thrive out of the bonds of community, and perhaps God is raising up people to stand and/or work with you to share His truth.
The opening words of Psalm 96 can inspire us today to see beyond ourselves and to recognize that God is doing mighty work in the world today:
1Oh, sing to the Lord a new song! Sing to the Lord, all the earth.2Sing to the Lord, bless His name; Proclaim the good news of His salvation from day to day.3Declare His glory among the nations, His wonders among all peoples.4For the Lord is great and greatly to be praised; He is to be feared above all gods.
It's not often that I get a chance to give some props to my alma mater in athletics, at least in some of the major sports - it's been a rather lengthy dry spell since we won a national championship in football in 1999, in the very first BCS national championship game. Our vaunted women's basketball program is still strong, but with the growth of that sport, the level of competition has risen all around us. Men's basketball, not since Auburn's new coach paced the hardwood has the University of Tennessee made the Sweet Sixteen. So, I am glad that my Volunteers are one of 3 SEC teams that not only made March Madness, but are still in it after opening weekend. By the way, the much-maligned SEC is one of 3 conferences with 3 teams to make it through, joining the Big 10 and the Pac 12.
The alumni magazine, The Torchbearer, has actually run what has become a series of articles about a organization that was founded by 2 UT alums, who have enlisted the help of some other Tennessee grads to bring fresh water to people in some impoverished area. In a follow-up to last week's World Water Day, I thought it would be rather timely to focus on this example of how creativity can be used to further a cause.
Here's the story: TivaWater International is a Knoxville-based nonprofit co-founded by businessmen Doug Harris and David Ragland. So far, due to the work of this organization, about 100,000 people in developing nations worldwide—and counting—are accessing purified water right in their homes, thanks to the invention of a filter that cleans water at the point it is used.
The filter is currently in use in Uganda, Kenya, South Sudan, Ghana, Guatemala, and Haiti and eliminates the need to boil water by burning charcoal or another form of fuel. It is equipped with a sealed outer container that holds up to five gallons of clean water at a time and keeps it from contamination.
The Torchbearer reports that the idea for TivaWater was born after Harris and a group of other Knoxville businessmen traveled to Uganda in 2008 to find opportunities to empower communities through economic development. They were struck by the need for clean water but unhappy about the available solutions. They found that many organizations already provided access to water through drilling wells, catching rainwater, or other water-harvesting technologies. But the water would become contaminated because it was often collected in dirty buckets or left out in the home uncovered.
TivaWater developed the filter to address those issues. Harris and Ragland reached out to Neal Caldwell (’54), a physics graduate and lifelong design engineer who owns the local manufacturing company where the filters are now produced. He created a marketable plastic filter that produces 99 percent water purity at the outset. The filter can provide five gallons of clean water every twelve hours. However, unlike other models, a user does not need to wait for all the water to filter because the TivaWater filter has a sterile holding container that provides on-demand access to already purified water.
TivaWater desires to engage young people in its mission and has been actively recruiting them. The organization took thirty students—a third of them from UT—to Uganda last summer to help distribute the filters and get a first-hand look at the organization’s work.
Well, my latest edition of The Torchbearer that arrived at our home had another TivaWater story. In a section called, "Students to Watch," it profiled Harrison Collins, a UT junior who has partnered with TivaWater in a creative fashion (pardon the pun). You see, designing a charity bow tie was one of the thirteen random things Collins set out to do during 2013. After connecting with the TivaWater staff, Collins had found his purpose.
He said, “Being able to go and sit down with the staff, see what they do, see their product, and hear about their vision—it’s something I really believe in." He contacted a company to produce ties based on his design sketches - they're red and blue and sport small emblems of the African continent. He says that, "This tie is something you can wear anywhere. It’s not just a one-time purchase. It’s an ongoing conversation piece.”
He said, “Being able to go and sit down with the staff, see what they do, see their product, and hear about their vision—it’s something I really believe in." He contacted a company to produce ties based on his design sketches - they're red and blue and sport small emblems of the African continent. He says that, "This tie is something you can wear anywhere. It’s not just a one-time purchase. It’s an ongoing conversation piece.”
Collins, a founding member of Beta Upsilon Chi, or Brothers Under Christ, the fraternity that moved into a recently vacated house in Fraternity Park, stated, “We want people to buy into TivaWater...It’s a great way for them to help provide water filters for people who are in need.”
Each bow tie comes with a small card informing buyers about their role in impacting the world by supporting the mission of TivaWater.
So, this week following World Water Day and the opening rounds of the NCAA tournament, I wanted to spotlight these guys who are affiliated with my university. And, there are several takeaways for each of us.
One of the things that struck me about this story was the networking that took place in a select group of people. Harris and Ragland have reached out to other people within the UT family, in a sense, to help them in the pursuit of a mission. And, I think this could speak to the concept of group dynamics - maybe there are people with whom you attended school, or in your workplace, or church, or other arena, that may share a common interest or goal that can be used for God's glory - as I mentioned last week, look up to God and then look around to the needs of those around you - AND you could expand that to looking around to people that may share a common heart with you for a particular cause.
Of course, one of the basic lessons from this story is that we serve a creative God who can inspire ideas that can be used to minister to others and further the Kingdom. TivaWater is partnering with churches and ministry organizations to not only help provide clean water, which is a huge need, but is a tool that is being used to share the love of Jesus Christ, to share the gospel. It's an example of a cause that is addressed with creativity and compassion. And, the student who designed and is marketing the bow ties to support the work of TivaWater and to help build awareness of the mission has demonstrated a willingness to reach beyond himself as a college student. We can be inspired to look for ways that we can be involved in allowing the Holy Spirit to use us to partner in His work.
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