TERRELL, TX – The Bucket Ministry. That’s an unusual name. It is an unusual ministry. According to the group’s website, their mission is “sharing the Love of God through the gift of clean, safe drinking water.”

The Bucket Ministry was created in 2012 following a trip by several Christians to the Amazon regions of Brazil. The ministry works “alongside domestic and international mission groups, churches, and other organizations to use clean water filtration systems as a tool for sharing the Gospel of Jesus Christ.”

A lot of missionary and humanitarian organizations include a focus on providing safe drinking water in the remote regions of the world where the poorest people live. So, what makes The Bucket Ministry different?

The Three Non-negotiables

Regardless of where or with whom The Bucket Ministry serves, its heart is firmly established on three non-negotiable items.

1. The Gospel of Jesus Christ will be shared whenever a filter is distributed.
2. Recipient data will be collected.
3. Follow-up visitations will be conducted (at least three in the first four months).

These non-negotiables serve to …

• … keep the ministry focused on the primary mission of sharing the Gospel. Faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the Word of God. Leading people to Christ is the goal. The gift of clean water is a tool, not a purpose.
• … hold those serving accountable. Well-kept records are essential for any well-run business or ministry.
• … ensure that those who have received the Gospel are being discipled and are growing in the grace and knowledge of the Lord.

The Clean Water System

The Bucket Ministry’s name comes from the type of system they distribute. The organization learned early on that the Sawyer PointONE^® filter, originally developed for use in kidney dialysis, is the most reliable system available at an affordable price.

The hollow-fiber, micron filter system is attached to buckets to be delivered to families in the far reaches of the globe who need to hear the Gospel. Typically, five-gallon buckets are used because of their portability.

The single bucket and filter system is 100% effective in clearing bacteria and parasites from the native water supply. The system has the capacity to deliver a million gallons of clean water for as long as 30 years.

Recipient Mapping

As mentioned earlier, The Bucket Ministry collects information from each of the recipients of the bucket filters.

That information is used in the follow up process (by in-country partners) to monitor the recipients health (physical and spiritual). Not only that. Using leading-edge technology, the ministry is now able to link donors directly to where their resources “went to work.”

Supporters of the ministry receive a personal access code to an online recipient mapping program that identifies the locations of their donated bucket filters and receive real-time information about the families to which they have given clean water for their health and safety and the Water of Life for eternity.

Read more news on the Clean Water Crisis on Missions Box.