Cuba’s Continuing Struggle for Clean Water

It has been said that the average American uses up to 88 gallons of water per day. Whether this water is used for showering, brushing teeth, washing clothes, dishes, or watering plants, water use is usually taken for granted in the States. Not so in Cuba.

Access to clean water in Cuba is a process involving many different professions such as inspectors, fumigators, and truck drivers. Almost 50% of Cuba’s available clean water is lost because its pipes are old and leaky. The remaining available water must be inspected and often fumigated to rid it of mosquito larvae. Areas with clean drinking water usually only have it available for a few hours a week, and residents must collect all the water they need during these times. Water-trucks are often used to deliver water to those who have no access to it.

The Bible gives us an example of a woman who was also searching for water. When the Samaritan women met Jesus at the well, He said to her:

“Whosoever drinketh of this water shall thirst again: But whosoever drinketh of the water that I shall give him shall never thirst, but the water that I shall give him shall be in him a well of water springing up into everlasting life.” John 4:13-14

Jesus offered a different kind of water to this woman, the kind that would completely satisfy and meet her spiritual needs. When the woman realized that Jesus was offering forgiveness for all the sins she had ever done, she left her waterpot behind and ran to tell her neighbors. She realized that this water was much more valuable than the water in the well.

As troubling as the Cubans’ daily struggle to receive pure water is, they will always thirst for something more significant if they do not hear the gospel and how payment for their sins has already been made.

Please pray for Cuba that they would not only receive water for their physical needs but, more importantly, that they would also hear of the water that Jesus gives, a well of water springing up into everlasting life.

Author: Bethany Bloom