Joplin Relief

My heart goes out to all who have been affected in our country this year by tornadoes and flooding. Looking at the photos of the complete devastation is overwhelming to my senses. I can’t even imagine what it is like to be one of those impacted by the destruction.

In times like this, I often feel like I’m at a loss to know how to help. I’d love to just go there and offer my physical assistance. But that’s not always appropriate or safe to do with my children. In the case of the Joplin relief efforts, they have actually been turning away volunteers because they have more than they can coordinate with.

For most of us, financial assistance is the best tangible help we can give. Yet there again I feel like I’m at a loss. There are many organizations and groups who are soliciting for financial donations to help the victims. But how can one KNOW that they can trust what is being done with their money? It is not unusual for a charity organization to use up to 40% of donations for administrative costs and fund-raising campaigns. When a disaster like this strikes, most people want ALL of the money they give to help those in need.

There is a church in Joplin, Missouri, that is a hub for helping those devastated in their community. The youth were gathered for Bible study when the tornado warning came. They prayed that their lives and their building would be spared. Although they were in the path of the tornado, it literally jumped over their building and touched back down on the other side of the highway. Joplin Family Worship Center has become a hub of outreach to their shell-shocked community. They’ve been busy distributing food, water, shelter, clothing, infant formula and hygiene items. They’re also providing lunch and dinner for community and emergency workers, as well as grief and trauma counseling.

If you visit the Joplin Family Worship Center website, you can see a list of items that are needed for distribution or things you can do if you are physically there to help. There is also a link on their website where you can donate to their relief efforts.  Check this site frequently, as they are always updating the list of items needed for donation.

While there are many legitimate organizations and agencies working in these devastated parts of our country, I appreciate an opportunity to give to people who live right there and are helping their own neighbors. These are the people that I feel will have a lasting impact in their communities because they will still be their after the dust settles.

May We Never Forget

Religion that God our Father accepts

as pure and faultless is this:

to look after

orphans and widows in their distress

and to keep oneself from

being polluted by the world.

James 1:27

May we never forget the importance of these words.  May we never become so caught up in improving our own lives that we neglect those who are hurting and in great need.  May we always aim to please our Father rather than trying to make a good name for ourselves with men.

There Is More to Life Than...

I'm something of a learning junkie.  I love to learn something new and figure out how to incorporate that into my life.  For example, I started researching the ingredients that were listed on the labels of the toiletries I use daily and became quite dissatisfied with what I was putting on/in my body.  The search began for products that were more pure.  After much experimentation, I had switched nearly all of my body care and cosmetic items.  When I realized that these new products were costing me a large amount of money, I began to search out ways to reduce the amount of products I HAD to have, and seek ways to make my own stuff (I'm still on that journey as I write this post).

I find that while I'm in the height of my focused pursuit in learning something new, something in my heart begins to stir within me.  It's as if God is nudging me, reminding me that there is more to this life than the pursuit of bettering my own life.  While I pursue the knowledge of better nutrition, and have the means well within my grasp to employ that knowledge into my lifestyle, there are millions around the world, and even in my own city, who go hungry on a regular basis.  While I pursue knowledge on how to make my own body care products, millions suffer in filthy environments.  While I plan my next home improvement project, millions live without shelter.  While I research the best water filtration system for my home, others have no access to safe, clean drinking water.

God does not remind me of these desperate needs to make me feel guilty for my own blessed life.  He reminds me so that I do not get carried away with improving my own life while ignoring or neglecting the tremendous needs of real people all over the world.

For me, I find that I can easily become overwhelmed by the intensity of the needs of others.  Not only are there persistent issues that plague these people day after day, there are also disasters that strike suddenly, throwing people into desperate need who were previously happy in living a good life.  I've been feeling quite overwhelmed lately in figuring out how I can help in a tangible way.  I'm sure I'm not the only person to look at so much need and figure that what I'm able to do is not even enough to make a tiny scratch.  But I also realize that it would be a shame to let that thought discourage me.  If I can REGULARLY do SOMETHING to help SOMEWHERE, it adds up to more than I might imagine.

I recently browsed through an interesting website that had put together a list of what they considered to be the top 20 problems in the world.  And although they were able to identify 20 distinct things, they also acknowledged that these are often interrelated to each other.  Often when you begin to tackle one, it brings up one of the other issues.

Allow God to begin speaking to your heart as you read about these 20 needs.  Surely there is SOMETHING each of us can do.  We all have certain resources, connections, abilities, passions.  Submit those things to God and let Him show you how you can make a difference in someone else's life who is living in desperate need.  This was their list... Access to: EDUCATION, FOOD, HEALTH CARE, WATER; child soldiers, drug dependancy, environmental sanitation, gangs, HIV/AIDS, homelessness, human trafficking, loneliness, poverty, racial inequality, refugees and the displaced, security, slavery, and suicide.

Along with these twenty things is the fact that most of those who are lost and don't know Yahshua (Jesus) as their savior is a victim of one or more of these desperate needs.  They need to know Him.  What good does it do for us to give a thirsty person a drink, or a naked person clothing, or rescue someone who is held captive if we never tell them of the One who can set them free from eternal death and bondage?  It's pointless!  Why save them from the living hell they endure on earth, only to never reach out in an attempt to rescue them from an eternal hell that is far more gruesome than what they could ever endure on earth?

From the Home Base is a fun site to learn about how to live a more natural life, but it's also about encouraging and prodding us to do something to reach out the "the least of these" on a regular basis.  What if every time we went grocery shopping we set some money aside to help feed someone who is hungry?  What if every time we replaced our water filter we gave money to help provide clean drinking water for a village on the other half of the world?  And let us never take the easy way out of always giving our money and never GOING to those places ourselves!

Let's not get so focused on our own lives that we forget that there is more to this life than being happy and caring for ourselves!

You can click on the link titled "The Least of These" on this blog in the side bar and find out about some tremendous opportunities to make a difference in the lives of real people.  These are not huge organizations that pocket a large percentage of your contribution for "administrative costs".  You can count on your contributions being used for exactly what you are giving it for!

Start somewhere.  Today.

School in a Briefcase

Uganda, Africa, has the youngest population in the world, with an average age of 15.3 years.  Uganda is also the poorest country in the world with an annual per capita income of only $300 a year.

From Litnet! website

As a result, education is severely lacking, especially in the rural areas.  The teacher turnover rate is high, and there is a severe lack of books.

My friends, David and Sharyn Curtis, have been working in Uganda for over twenty years with Litnet!, developing an educational tool called School in a Briefcase.  This curriculum has been developed for use in the rural Christian schools to promote literacy.  In addition, David and Sharyn provide training for teachers.

From Litnet! website

School in a Briefcase contains songs, stories, games, student reading books, an alphabet chart, alphabet books, writing activities, and complete lesson plans based upon Biblical character traits, Bible stories, and memory verses.

This is a simple yet important way to reach out to "the least of these".  For $30, another School in a Briefcase can be produced and distributed.  And it can be used numerous times to teach groups of children and adults to read.

Find out more about Litnet! by browsing their website.  I have known David and Sharyn for over twenty years, and I know them to have a passion for education, both here in America and in Uganda.  They are people of integrity and generosity.  If you are looking for a way to make an impact in the most needy areas of the world, this is a great way to do just that.

I-HEART Revolution

Some of my favorite worship music has come from Hillsong United.  I have been stirred by their efforts to do something tangible to reach out to the destitute, to the captive, to the lost through their I-Heart Revolution.  They have a huge voice and influence around the world, and it is encouraging to see them do something important with that voice and influence.

Please take a few minutes and view this clip by Hillsong United.  I urge you to really listen to what is being said, because this is a reality check for us.  We live in a world of abundance and freedom and rarely get a glimpse of those who live the extreme opposite.  Let Yahweh stir your heart to action as you watch.

Less

Stop buying the unnecessary.

         "Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal." (Matthew 6:19)

Donate or sell half your stuff.

          "Do not worry about your life, what you will eat; or about your body, what you will wear.  Life is more than food and the body more than clothes." (Luke 12:22-23)

Learn contentedness.

          "But godliness with contentment is great gain.  For we brought nothing into the world, and we can take nothing out of it.  But if we have food and clothing, we will be content with that."  (1 Timothy 6:6-8)

Reduce half again.

          "A man's life does not consist in the abundance of his possessions."  (Luke 12:15)

List 4 essentials in your life, do these first.

          "Love Yahweh your Elohim (God) with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength" and "love your neighbor as yourself.  There is no commandment greater than these."  (Mark 12:30-31)

Stop doing the non-essential, clear distractions.

          "But Martha was distracted by all the preparations that had to be made.  'Martha, Martha,' Yahshua (Jesus) answered, 'you are worried and upset about many things, but only one thing is needed.'"  (Luke 10:40-41)

Learn to love having less in order to give more.

          "He who is kind to the poor lends to Yahweh, and He will reward him for what he has done."  (Proverbs 19:17)

Adapted from the article "less" at mnmlst.com.

Clean Birth Kits for the Destitute

Home childbirth is a topic that is near to my heart.  It's difficult for me to grasp the fact that in many poverty-stricken countries, women usually give birth to their babies alone, on a dirt floor.  Medical care is not within their reach, let alone a meal every day.  Global Health Training is a Christian, non-profit organization that provides clean birth kits to prevent the infections that kill up to 400,000 infants and 90,000 women each year.  In addition, they provide childbirth and childcare education.

 Uganda, from Global Health Training website

Global Health Training (formerly known as Helping Mothers and Babies, Inc.) is currently doing mission projects in India, Honduras, and Uganda (where childbirth is the #1 cause of death in women).  Their website allows you to make a financial donation, but also includes lists of supplies that anyone can donate.  There is even a list of the items necessary to create a clean birth kit, so you could build a kit yourself to donate. 

 Honduras, from Global Health Training website

I trust this organization because I know its founder.  Carol Denny was my midwife and delivered both of my babies in my home.  She is a strong and compassionate person, and she was such a blessing to my family, assisting us in bringing our babies into the world.  I’m thrilled to see what she is doing to reach out to those who are destitute around the world.

Take a few moments to "go" to Uganda with GHT in this brief video to see the real people that are being helped by this organization:

Recommended: "Radical"

When I read “Radical: Taking Back Your Faith from the American Dream” by David Platt, I felt as though I had been pierced to the heart.  Having grown up in the “American church culture”, I struggled with many of the things Yahshua (Jesus) had said about material possessions.  To me, material possessions were an outward indicator of Yahweh’s blessing in a person’s life. 

A month before I picked up this book, I had a compelling inner drive to dramatically reduce the possessions in my home.  I took two weeks off from homeschool during the holidays and spent ten days attacking my home, one room at a time.  It was mentally and physically exhausting, but there was a strange sense of freedom that was stirred up in me as I got rid of stuff.  Even my children were assigned the task of “purging” their own rooms.

Many lessons were learned from this experience.  But I knew that Yahweh still wanted to communicate something to me.  A friend urged me to read this book, so after my house-purge, I opened the book and began reading. 

 For the first time, I began to look honestly at the things Yahshua said to those who wanted to follow Him:

… Sell all you have, give it to the poor, and THEN come and follow Me.

… Deny yourself, take up your cross and follow Me.

… What you did for the least of these my brothers, you did unto Me.

… A man’s life does not consist in the abundance of his possessions.

As I read this book, my view of stuff began to change.  I realized that I had been blessed SO THAT I could be a blessing.  SO THAT I could feed the hungry, give water to the thirsty, clothe the naked, pray for the sick, cast out demons, and preach the gospel. 

I will let David Platt talk to you about this book:

One Child Campaign

I clearly remember the day I learned that there are over 143 million orphans in the world.  With my happy family life, I couldn't quite wrap my mind around it.  It's a staggering number.  I looked at my own children and tried to imagine what it would be like if THEY were destitute and without a family.  The thought was heart-breaking.

I must admit that I have spent an overwhelming majority of my life ignoring the orphans.  I visited orphanages while participating in short-term mission trips in foreign countries, but I never did anything that changed their life or helped meet their physical needs.  Even though I live in a nation of extreme excess, I mostly kept my excess to myself.

Once I got a glimpse of the extraordinary need of orphans around the world, I felt overwhelmed.  Where do I start?  What can I do?  It was brought to my attention that a friend of mine had started an organization with a unique approach to helping the plight of orphaned children in Ethiopia, a country with over 5 million orphans.

One Child Campaign focuses on bringing awareness to this enormous need by organizing Orphan Awareness Trips, volunteer trips, and providing resources for adoptive families.  My friends Caleb and Becca David are people of integrity and compassion.  They have adopted one child from Ethiopia and are in the process of adopting two more.  If you are looking for a way to address this enormous need, visit the One Child Campaign website to see if there is something you can do to help orphans, beginning with just one child.

The Local Food Bank

Many people have a desire to do something that impacts their community, or to do something to help the needy, but they don’t know where to start.  This was certainly the case for my family.  We live in a small suburb that is referred to as a "bedroom community" (where most residents commute to the metro area to work).  We were unsure of where to begin doing something meaningful within our own community to help those who are in need.  With a little investigation, we discovered that we had a local food bank.

I encourage you to check out your local food bank.  There may be more opportunities to make a difference there than you might think.  I discovered that there were several ways my family could get involved at our food bank.  What does your food bank offer?

FOOD DONATIONS.  Find out what kind of donations they can receive.  Some are actually equipped with refrigerators and freezers, allowing them to receive more than just non-perishable foods.  Ask them if they receive donations of toiletries, too.  When shopping, think of foods that will be healthy and nourishing, rather than just filling. 

FINANCIAL DONATIONS.  Most food banks benefit from financial donations.  My local food bank works in tandem with a Samaritan’s Fund that will help families who are about to have their utilities shut off or who are about to lose their only vehicle.  The food bank writes a check directly to the utility company so that the money is not misused.  Financial donations also enable a food bank to purchase items that they are low on as well as supplies needed to run their operation.

VOLUNTEER.  Most food banks can use volunteer help.  Volunteers may help box up meal packs for families, sort donations that are received, or clean the premises.  Ask your local food bank what their volunteer needs are.

CLOTHING AND HOUSEHOLD GOODS DONATIONS.  I recently discovered that my local food bank receives the same donations that are received by places like the Goodwill.  These items are used to help those who are particularly needy, and once a month they have a sale in order to raise more funds for the food bank.

With such a variety of ways to get involved, anyone can help.  It’s a great place for your family to serve together, or for the groups you are part of (church, scouts, moms, homeschool, etc.).

“For I was hungry and you gave Me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave Me something to drink… Whatever you did for the least of these brothers of Mine, you did for Me.” (Matthew 25:35, 40)