This past week we went to Lineville, AL to participate in SIFAT. SIFAT, Servants in Faith and Technology, is an organization committed to giving third world countries the best principles to thrive in their community. We were at SIFAT from Wednesday through Friday. We arrived Wednesday afternoon and we were quickly told to grab only the necessities: a Bible and sleeping bag. We spent Wednesday evening engaging in an eye opening experience where we had to trade and barter for food like people do throughout the world. There were about ten or so huts in their world village. We got to see how homes are built in countries such as Nigeria, Nepal, the Philippines and Liberia. We slept out under the stars in one of the homes from throughout the world. It was an awesome day! Thursday was spent learning basic principles about how to obtain water safer and more easily, and how to purify water quicker. It was really interesting to see how difficult it is for others to get water. We learned about malnutrition among the people of developing countries and how basic plant leaves can satisfy the required nutrients that many lack. Thursday night we were split into six groups of five and got to go into the slums to experience; what one BILLION people live in daily. We had to fend for our families and tried to get water, food and shelter. It was definitely an eye opening experience and we struggled to understand how we allow this to occur and what our call to action is. Friday we helped clean up the SIFAT campus and left around noon. SIFAT helped us bond as a class as we walked through this experience together! It was truly eye opening!
Stephen Hargis