Clean Water, New Life, and the Journey Home
As our week in Kenya came to a close, the final three days reminded us why The Filter Project exists. What began with follow-up visits ended with baptisms, celebration, and a long journey home with hearts that were both exhausted and full.
Wednesday: Strengthening the Shepherds
On Wednesday, the team from Germantown Baptist Church joined our missionaries in Kipsongo and Sirende for follow-up visits. These visits are the heart of our work. They are where relationships deepen, where families learn how to properly use their filters, and where the Gospel continues to be shared long after the initial distribution.
During one visit in Kipsongo, I sat with a family whose lives had changed in more ways than one. Both the husband and wife had come to Christ through conversations with our missionaries during follow-up visits. As we talked, they shared how much their home life had improved since receiving their water filter. Before, illness from contaminated water had been a constant struggle. Now their entire family was healthier.
Clean water had opened the door. The Gospel had changed everything.
While follow-ups were happening across the community, something equally important was taking place nearby. Dr. Matt Brown led a pastors conference attended by more than forty local Kenyan pastors.
Matt taught through the story of God’s covenants throughout Scripture, connecting the thread of God’s redemptive plan from Genesis to Revelation. The room was full of focused energy as men leaned over their notebooks, filling pages with notes. Questions kept coming, discussion grew lively, and the conference eventually ran an hour and a half longer than planned.
One pastor approached me afterward and said something that captured the day perfectly.
“It’s almost as if I had never read the Bible before today.”
For many pastors in Kenya, formal theological training simply isn’t accessible. Yet these men faithfully shepherd churches in the very communities where The Filter Project works. Strengthening these leaders strengthens the churches and the people we serve.
It felt like a powerful partnership.
Thursday: The Work Comes Full Circle
Thursday was distribution day.
Inside a local church building in Kipsongo, 160 families gathered to receive water filters. For many, this was their first time seeing the system that would soon transform their daily lives.
The Germantown Baptist team had the opportunity to observe how our missionaries conduct distributions each week. Some sat with missionaries as they entered family data into our system. Others helped assemble bucket filters or distribute deworming medicine to recipients. Many of the families receiving filters were curious about the tool that would soon become a central part of their homes. And they were incredibly grateful.
But the most powerful moment of the day came after the distribution.
Forty-seven new believers were baptized.
Each of these people had first received a water filter. Then missionaries returned to their homes again and again for follow-up visits. During those visits, the Gospel was shared. Bibles were opened. Questions were asked. And slowly, hearts began to change.
For me, baptism represents the full circle of our work.
A filter is delivered. > A relationship begins. > The Gospel is shared. > A life is changed. > And a new believer steps into the water in obedience to Christ. >
The baptisms took place right in the Kipsongo slum using a portable baptistery. There were so many people being baptized that the water eventually became muddy like river water and had to be changed halfway through.
But in Kenya, baptisms are not quiet events. They are celebrations. People sang loudly, drums beat, and the crowd danced and rejoiced as each new believer stepped into the water. Watching it unfold, I couldn’t help but think that the American church could learn something from our brothers and sisters in Kenya. Their joy in celebrating new life in Christ is contagious. Every baptism was powerful. Honestly, every single one of them made me think, this is why we do this.
One story that stood out was a young man named Derrick.
Derrick is twenty-two years old and has a deep love for music. During follow-up visits, missionaries had been discipling him and teaching him about Christ. His excitement for the Lord was contagious, and his mother often overheard the conversations taking place in their home.
When Derrick decided he wanted to be baptized, something unexpected happened. His mother stepped forward and said she wanted to join him. She chose to be baptized alongside her son, recommitting her life to Christ as well. Derrick asked us to pray for him as he seeks a path to use his musical talents to worship the Lord and provide for his family.
Another story came from someone many people might overlook.
Peter, who serves as security for our team in Kipsongo, had been watching the missionaries work since January. Over time, simply being around the team, hearing the Gospel repeatedly, and seeing the love and consistency of the missionaries began to impact him deeply.
Peter realized he was lost and needed Jesus. And on Thursday, he stepped into the baptistery to be baptized in obedience to Christ. Sometimes the people closest to the work are the ones most transformed by it.
Friday: The Long Journey Home
Friday began the long journey home. It was a sweet time of fellowship. We shared a final meal together at the Karen Blixen Estate, visited the Giraffe Centre, and spent a little time shopping before heading to the airport. Then the long journey began. Nine hours to Frankfurt. Eleven hours to Houston. And finally one last flight home to Memphis. By this point we were physically exhausted from the long days in the field. But spiritually, our hearts were full.
Watching our missionaries serve faithfully, seeing pastors strengthened, and witnessing dozens of people declare their faith in Christ reminded me why this work matters so much.
Trips like this renew my spirit.
They remind me that while my day-to-day work back in the United States often involves raising funds and telling these stories, the work happening in Kenya is changing lives. And it is worth every ounce of effort.
Looking Back
As the Germantown Baptist team returns home, I believe they leave Kenya with a deeper appreciation for the blessings God has entrusted to them. They have seen communities where clean water changes health. They have witnessed pastors eager to learn the Word of God. And they have celebrated new believers beginning their walk with Christ.
For me personally, this trip renewed my commitment to continue leading The Filter Project and raising the resources needed to expand this work.
Because there are still many families waiting.
And the story isn’t finished yet.