So, I've really been hung up in my thoughts about how far a $1 goes in some corners of the world. I've been amazed by how much can be done with so little and far that $1 can be stretched. So I wanted to look further into exactly how these small $1 amounts can affect/change life for others. So I started searching and found some interesting things......
Of course I started with Haiti since that is where I will be in 3 weeks if God wills it. So about Haiti:
***The unemployment rate is over 80%.
***More than half of Haitians live on less than $1 a day.
***There are few paved roads, an inadequate supply of potable water, minimal utilities, and depleted forests.
***About 60% of the population lives in abject poverty.
***Less than 20% of Haitians age 15 and over can read and write.
***Fewer than 75% of children attend school.
***40% of the Haitian population does not have access to primary health care.
***One in twenty Haitians is infected with HIV/AIDS.
***Only about 50% has access to clean drinking water.
( go here for more info: http://www.wfp.org/stories/haiti-10-hunger-facts )
Yeah....so I saw on the wfp.org webpage a story about a 9 year old girl who raised money with her friends at school. They collected just over $1,600 and it will provide 6,000 meals. 6,000 meals!!! I have to say it one more time: $1,600 can provide 6,000 meals!! WOW!!! $1,600 to some may seem like a huge amount of money......but is it? What is $1,600 really to us who have so much? It is probably about what I spend each year on cable television service. It's just over $30 per week.....I'm sure I spend $30 per week on frivolous stuff. It is the cost of a week summer vacation for a small family. It is the cost of a nice new flat screen TV. Some blow that kind of money at Christmas time on gifts. $1,600 to us really isn't that much.......BUT if it can provide 6,000 meals, just imagine what kind of impact it could make on a family.
For example, if my family "adopted" a family in Haiti and sent them $100 every few months.....WOW!!! Can you imagine how that could impact their lives and health? We can't.....because $100 isn't really that serious in America. I was helping a friend with her yard sale today and a guy wanted to know if she had change for $100 if he bought something. Right there in his wallet was a $100 bill that could change a families life for months!!! But we are so accustomed to our way of life that we can't, don't, won't see that we can make a huge difference in the world out there! And God calls us to DO IT!!!
Matthew 25:34-40 says this....
""Then the King will say to those on his right, 'Come, you who are blessed by my Father; take your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world. For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me.'
Then the righteous will answer him, 'Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink? When did we see you a stranger and invite you in, or needing clothes and clothe you? When did we see you sick or in prison and go to visit you?'
The King will reply, 'I tell you the truth, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me.' ""
So we are to look after those in need, those less fortunate than us. We have the ability and capability to help.....so what is the hold back?
After this in Matthew it goes on to say: Matthew 25:41-46
'"Then he will say to those on his left, 'Depart from me, you who are cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels. For I was hungry and you gave me nothing to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me nothing to drink, I was a stranger and you did not invite me in, I needed clothes and you did not clothe me, I was sick and in prison and you did not look after me.'
They also will answer, 'Lord, when did we see you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or needing clothes or sick or in prison, and did not help you?'
He will reply, 'I tell you the truth, whatever you did not do for one of the least of these, you did not do for me.'
Then they will go away to eternal punishment, but the righteous to eternal life.""
It's there in the book of Matthew in black and white......we ARE TO DO FOR THE LEAST OF THESE. SO what are we gonna do??? What can YOU do? What can I do? What can we do together? Where can you plug in and make a difference?? And believe you me, we can ALL make a difference in some way! What are you willing to sacrifice to help?
Please email me or leave a comment if you aren't sure where to start looking to find somewhere to plug in. Pray over it, God will show you where you can begin. I have found so many that I am overwhelmed and need to thin them down to just a few so I can do them fully and give them 100%.
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