Aquaduct: Mobile Filtration Vehicle

Check out this innovative idea.


My personal thoughts believe it's more impractical than practical, but I love that minds are being used to solve basic problems.

Here are my concerns on the Aquaduct (for those that care).
1. The majority of people in 3rd world countries live on hills, in crowded cities and/or down narrow foot paths. Leaving those who really need the bike unusable. Also I can't honestly see any African using it.
2. What are the costs and accessibility for repairs?
3. It seems heavy and difficult to ride. It supposedly carries 20 gallons of water which would be 166 pounds (this I figured from the video, they mentioned the average family of 4 needs 20gals of water per day and later mentioned that the Aquaduct could provide all a family needs in one trip).
4. It is the slums that have major sanitation problems, the source of the water is key. Wells provide cleaner water to start from than gutters or polluted rivers, obviously. So we need to educate and provide alternative water sources and cheaper ones. I am amazed how much it cost to dig a hole in the ground.
5. After watching the video a few times I have to be bold enough to ask if they have ever been to a 3rd world country. I am not accusing them for action rather the importance of seeing things with our own eyes first.
6. We love to develop large organizations that can make a significant difference but they end up being controlled by donors desires instead of the practical needs.
We see it and have seen over and over here in Africa.
7. God has already provided a solution for clean water, the sun. If you place a clear bottle of water in direct sun light for 6 hours it kills every bacteria harmful to man. There is a huge profit to be made on "bottle water" when simple education could be cheaper and instantly usable. Think of the cost to produce bottle water; plastic, molding plastic, fuel cost for delivering the bottled water, personnel, etc.

Those are my immediate thoughts. What tends to be more of a concern (in my thinking) is infrastructure issues. History proves that the problem lies NOT in available resources rather the many hands it must go through to reach the ones in need. Everyone gets a cut of the pie and the starved are left with crumbs.

The reason I hit this so hard is because I would love to see a practical solution to a practical need. If you have one or would like to start one, let's talk. The challenge is put forth.

Maybe the best option is to actually build an aqua duct that brings in clean water to villages and slums.

OK I am going on and liable to be disliked even more.

Blessings
Heath

Trust and Faith

Here I am again, on the edge of the cliff I asked God and Heath to take me to 10 years ago! I have been begging God to give me more faith and ability to trust as we prepare to jump one more time. I don't want to worry my way through this next transition. I want to SOAR in FAITH with great expectation of what He will do, not flounder in fear of what MIGHT happen if he doesn't come through! So in the begging, I am looking at every turn for examples in the natural of what faith and trusting in God looks like in the supernatural.
My favorite picture is from Heath and Asher in the pool. The other day as Asher was on his tummy "superman style" being propelled through the water by the strength of his Papa, I was reminded that this was true trust. Asher doesn't know how to swim. But he wasn't doing ANYTHING in that deep water to keep himself afloat except trust that his Papa was going to hold him up. He wasn't even holding on! He was just enjoying the ride.
Then I remembered a moment from my childhood. My dad was trying to teach my younger brother how to swim (sorry little brother!!). I remember my brother holding on to my dad's neck for dear life and begging him to take him to the edge!! He was NOT enjoying himself and in fact, I think he left a few scratch marks on my dad's neck! That would be the picture of worry and fear.
I have had moments in the last few days where I am definitely leaving claw marks on Abba's neck and I'm screaming in his ear to find some edge for me to put my feet firmly on. But as I'm praying for more faith and trust, he is teaching me again how to take my thoughts captive. The more I think of what He has miraculously done for us in the last 10 years and the more I meditate on who HE IS as my God and my Abba, the more relaxed I get. That's when I can almost feel like I'm letting go and enjoying the ride!

So that's trust. But what about faith? Well, I felt like God said that faith would be the same picture only Papa is invisible in the pool. Asher could only hear Heath's voice and still be able to get on his tummy and trust the strong hands of his daddy to propel him through the water even though his eyes couldn't see him! Hmmmm. That would look like insanity to any onlooker. A two year old jumping into a pool because he says his daddy is in there!! Then it would look miraculous if he really was afloat "superman style" being propelled through the water with no effort of his own!
So that's where we are. We believe Abba is in the pool and we believe we hear him asking us to jump in once again. To you, it might look (once again) like insanity! I think faith generally does appear to be insanity to the onlooker. But I am determined to exercise faith AND trust this time. Faith is urging me to jump one more time and trust allows me to enjoy the water without having a death grip on Abba's neck! And once again, I am sure it will appear miraculous to all the onlookers!

But, I'm still learning . . . . soooooo, PLEASE pray for me! I love you all! Thanks for your love and support!

Emie

"This is a hold up!" (aka Locke and Load)

It was bound to happen sooner or later. South Africa is known for its murders, thievery, petty crime, and just plain stupid robbers. The capital, Johannesburg, is supposedly the worse city in the world averaging 50 murders a night. In Nelspruit I get the low down from the security guards who patrol our house at 2am because some dog tripped the alarm, “people get knifed for cell phones and shot for cars.”

We needed cash to pay the clinic. I told Emie and the kids to wait and I would walk around the corner to the ATM. The bank machine is located right in front of a major grocery store and people are everywhere. I have used this ATM many times and never felt any threat. Today I felt the need to watch my back.

The ATM’s are actually little cubicles. You walk into a frosted glass box closing and locking a door behind you. There are security guards on patrol 24/7 standing less than 10 feet from the machines. They seem to be more secure than Fort Knox, except when they get blown up by the really smart thieves (happens almost weekly, in daylight mind you). All the precautionary features were in place today; the frosted box, the doors and the guards. I checked my back as I went in.

I had a split second thought I should close the door. Yet, I did nothing with it. I want to live in peace and not fear. Today I was taking on all those professional thieves with my stubbornness. I would succeed with my withdrawal and be out in less than 39 seconds, no worries.
I took out my wallet, pulled out my debit card and began to put it into the electronic money tree.

At that same moment I felt a firm hand grasp my shoulder. He had slipped past the guards, and into my frosted box. Adrenaline instantly rushed through every vein of my masculine physique. A deep male voice reached my ears and I heard, “this is a hold up!”
I spun around and thrust my forearm into the throat this 6ft 3 Goliath. I pushed with every ounce my buck 30 body could give. The struggle began and I was bound to win. At least I was determined to show it with my eyes. They were fierce! My knife was in my pocket ready for action.

As the struggle quickly unfolded my neurons where communicating, STOP! It wasn’t a “hold up” it was Michael. A friend who soon realized that I would rather fight than flight and he started laughing and walked away yelling, “close the door!”

Had the battle waged on I would’ve been a pile of meat loaf. But I was going to give everything I had learned from Bruce Lee, William Wallace and Maximus combined.

Michael was lucky because I was about to open up a can of whoop arse!

It ended as soon as it begun, so . . . The End.

He@th Locke

He could not rise above convenience!

“He could not rise above convenience” is what Stephen Ambrose wrote about President Jefferson’s inability to act on his “words” concerning slavery. Jefferson left it to his successors to resolve.

I have ruminated on those 6 words this past week. Convenience kills me; it kills us and it destroys faith. I believe God set up life for those who are willing to rise above convenience. He says it like this, “to those who overcome.” To those who can get pass the unknown, the uncertainty, and the un-money (had to go with it), a whole new world opens up. A world without limits, endless possibilities and memorable adventures awaits any individual who can trust.

This past year has been a challenge for me (family included) in getting over conveniences. I, like many, enjoy stability, finances, reliable cars, routine, running water, options in the food groups, and the vast array of entertainment America has to offer. On the other hand I, maybe unlike some, can’t stand sitting behind a desk 8 hours (for any salary), driving on pavement everywhere, wasting time in front of a TV, shallow conversations, saving all my money for when I am to old to do anything with it and the mundane that America offers. This unwillingness to be “normal” catapults me to soar above conveniences. It’s either that or suicide (not literally mom). I must live abundant life, full throttle, go big or go home!

For some conveniences are daunting to scale. They have built that wall too high and thick: the kids, retirement, the job, grandma, debt, etc, etc. It’s time for a sledgehammer to make the Christmas wish list next year!

For others the fear of living in slavery brings resolve for immediate action. 2007 was our pay off for destroying our wall of convenience. Many have followed us every step of the way and asked the Lord to spare us from our insanity! Thanks!

This past year has taken us to paradise (yes, better than Hawaii) in Pemba, Mozambique. It was an answer to 10 years of praying . . . we were finally living overseas! It was there we worked with orphans, hosted the world for chocolate cake and the Holy Spirit. We saw people delivered from demons, healed, saved and set free. We grew in the prophetic and released others into it. We met amazing people who brought Jesus closer and the world smaller. We watched our kids struggle and come alive in a foreign country, witnessed amazing provision for airfare and other basic necessities. We drove Land Rovers, hunted hippo, killed snakes, rats, and caught lizards. We swam in the Indian Ocean, caught and released crabs as a game, BBQ-ed overlooking pristine beaches and had our first family dog (but not our last). We endured spirituals attacks, great arguments, sleepless nights, banditos, and intense humidity all to conquer in Jesus’ name.

We left for South Africa on vacation never to return to Mozambique. We got mixed up at the wrong guest house but the right one in the long run! We hosted more amazing missionaries from around the world, birthed our fourth child, cooked more than Emie ever wants to again, and realized Jesus is speaking the same message the world over. We swam until our bodies were prunes; kids got great tans, went on 3 safaris, visited a reptile park and gazed upon waterfalls that give the Columbia River Gorge a run for its money. We read dozens of books, colored, studied, wrote, painted 3 masterpieces and received revelation for 18 business plans. We would never have experienced this as a family if convenience won out and we said no to Africa. What could you be missing out on?

As I sit and wonder what returning to America in 4 weeks will bring for the Lockes, I find myself longing to stay in the conveniences of our current situation, Nelspruit, South Africa! Cheap living, sun, and a little routine sounds nice. It is weird to feel nervous returning “home,” but I do. No job, no income, no home, no car, no microwave, nothing known and uncertainty might have something to do with it. This is what I love right? Well, to be honest, not tonight. Tomorrow it may bring adrenaline, but right now it seems un-supernatural. It feels like convenience is winning in the first half, but he won’t in the second.

Many have asked and more are wondering what are we going to do when we return. This is where convenience begins to loose his hold. We are going to “do” the same thing we did before we left and the same thing we did while in Africa. Love, serve, bring the Kingdom, set people free, heal the sick, cast out demons, and never settle for slavery. We are going to fight so we experience what the Word of God says we can experience. We will walk in freedom and freedom will walk in us. We will not do things because they have always been done a certain way. We will teach as directed, preach when prompted and share when moved. Christianity is life, it doesn’t end or begin, it always continues. Our geographical location only brings new adventures and amazing stories but never a new Jesus. We live the same everywhere and anywhere He calls us to (this is why missionaries are not better than you).

These past 6 months God brought me more clarity to his plan for the Bride. I see it. I feel it and I can almost smell it. I understand it more now than if I had succumbed to my conveniences a year ago. 2008 will be a melding of the last two years with all that the Holy Spirit has been pouring in and letting out of me. Two roads are about to merge becoming a superhighway with a tornado ripping down the middle. Wait and see!

President Jefferson was not a hero. His greatest achievements were mere words (and great words they were), he wrote a lot and lived none of it. “He could not rise above convenience.” Another man did though, Abraham Lincoln! He chose the unknown and uncertainty. His ability to overcome opened up a whole new world, one free from slavery.

We have two options, live in convenience and be remembered only for our words or overcome and never be forgotten for our actions. What will people be ruminating about you in a few hundred years?

Blessings
He@th Locke

Offspring

Happy New Year

Hey Team Africa,
Happy New Year! I won't send a list of names to reveal the people who joined us in fighting on Christmas!! Thanks for your vulnerability! Needless to say, we weren't alone. (I was fairly certain we weren't!) Conclusion . . . we're all real! We're all human. I recently heard a sermon about Jesus coming NOT to make bad people good but to make dead people alive! Think about it for a minute. When I give my life to Jesus, he doesn't take the bad in me and try and make me better/good. Nope, he takes me dead in my sin and spirit, and makes me ALIVE in HIM! I have gone from death to life. This truth has been extremely liberating for me in the last few weeks. It frees me from the works mentality that I wrestle with. I think Jesus doesn't care so much about how "good" I am as He does about how ALIVE I am in Him and let His Spirit be in me?! If I'm letting His Spirit be fully alive in me, then I will do the will of the Father in the power of the Holy Spirit and without the works mentality! When I'm worried about being bad or good, it causes me to have the mental checklist, the rules in the forefront of my mind, and then judgment of others increases if they don't follow my rules for goodness! Just plain bondage! I want FREEDOM and LIFE!

Anyway, I hope you are ALIVE and the people around you experience HIS LIFE in you in the midst of your realness. I don't ever want to pretend I'm good or have it all together. . . . because I'm not and I don't. We are on a journey together, friend. Just ask anyone who has to live with us! But I am alive. So I don't have to hide my wrestling and struggle from you. As Hebrews 10:14 says, "For by that one offering He perfected forever all those whom he is making holy." In the spiritual realm, I am perfect forever because of the blood of Jesus. And on earth I am being made holy by the blood of Jesus and His Spirit within me. So let's be made holy together and not be afraid to be real and vulnerable with those we are in community with. Vulnerability frees those around us to be real, to be honest with who they really are and what they really wrestle with. Then, in the safety of true community, we let the Holy Spirit work out those things in us. Often he will use those around us as iron sharpens iron. We love you and consider you our "safe community" to be real with!

My commitment to vulnerability and realness runs deep. I have seen too many very ordinary people labeled "extraordinary" because of their ministry or position. They are put on pedestals and become idols for those who feel a lesser call or lesser commitment or even lesser as people in the Kingdom of God. With Paul, I want to be able to say this: "I don't want anyone to think more highly of me than what they can actually see in my life and my message." (2 Cor. 12:6) Heath may call me pessimistic! I prefer to call it realistic. You could all write of the glories of your week or month and sound stunning (try it . . . you'll be amazed how great your life sounds!!). It may just give you a more realistic picture of how much of life has to be left out when a missionary or minister sends out an update or stands in a pulpit for a couple hours a week or a musician gives an interview, etc. Nope, grass is not greener, I'm not better, and we're in this together! So, be free this year to follow in obedience wherever and whenever the Lord leads! You have what it takes to be a radically obedient lover of Jesus! All you need is the Holy Spirit ALIVE in you! And if you have said YES to Jesus, YOU HAVE WHAT IT TAKES! Go live it (and take a few people with you)!

Enough of that: Here's a quick update on our kiddos.
ABIEL: Her favorite color is now green (no longer pink). She's a fish and would spend the whole day swimming. But since she can't, she spends the rest of the day reading, doing art, or learning new crafts (sewing, cross stitch, weaving, etc). She's become quite good at naming all the birds who come to our yard to sing, eat and bathe! She LOVES all the people who come through the house and is quite the little hostess! She misses her friends in Oregon very deeply and is excited that we are planning to go back soon. She is an INCREDIBLE little mommy with Eilanna! Makes life a lot easier for me! I can't believe she'll be 9 this year!

JUDAH: He looks like a California boy with his blond hair and dark skin! He too is a fish and has learned to swim here at the pool! He's quite brave and is keeping up with Abiel very well! He is learning to read and driving us all nuts asking us what everything says!! He is so inquisitive and LOVES to learn about anything to try and keep up with his sister!! He is very loving with Elianna and learning how to be friends with Asher. He is a movie man and will quote a whole movie for you if you let him! (Don't!) I can't believe he's almost 6 !

ASHER: He is coming into his own little personality! Watch out world! He's a little parrot and mimics anyone who's talking! He's also coming up with some really clever and cute sayings lately! The other day, Elianna was crying and I told him we needed to go get her before she cried her head off! He said, "Elianna's head comes off?"
Heath asked him to pick up his toys one night and Asher replied, "Jesus doesn't pick up!"
He was playing hard outside and came in to say, "I have a tummy ache in my knee!"
He is now concerned and caring toward Elianna and is very protective of her if he thinks someone holding her is going to walk away with her! He lets me know where she is all the time! He is keeping up with Judah and can wrestle him to the ground! Judah may be in trouble in a year or two! He's adorable.

ELIANNA: She is by far my most high maintenance baby! I think Heath's description of her being our little tornado of Grace was too prophetic! She LOVES to be held and HATES to be ignored (me too but I don't scream about it . . . well, most the time I don't!). She is a princess and wants to be treated that way! She is beautiful and has started responding to us with smiles. She is getting more and more fun as the weeks go by! I can't believe she's already 7 weeks old. She does sleep pretty well at night for which I am grateful. I'll try and get Heath to post some more pictures of her on our blog soon.

We love you all. Happy New Year! It has been said that 2008 is the Year of New Beginnings!
Love in Jesus,
emie for the locke fam

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