A Third-World Wallet

Recently I posted on freedom and our American mind-set that being free in life means being financially stable enough to purchase whatever stuff, experience, etc that we want. Today I read a great post from a missionary in Peru about spending money. Her third-world wallet has allowed her to see the flaws in our American mindset, and I thought what she said was much more eloquent than my posting. So, here are some excerpts, but click here to read the whole thing. 

"One last thing that becomes glaringly obvious when living in a developing country is how insulated from poverty we have built the US to be. Except for a few rare places, we have created a country where the haves and the have nots do not interact. We live in different communities, go to different schools, hang out at different places, and most disheartening to me, go to different churches. We, as the haves, have made sure that we do not cross paths with the have nots and have to face what living in poverty is like. And here's what I know to be truth because I have seen it happen again and again: when you enter the lives of people living in poverty, you are changed and therefore, how you spend your money is changed. 

Watch this video about the famine in East Africa. If you are purposely avoiding news of the famine, I dare you to enter this world for just a few minutes and watch this video. Will it make you think twice about how much you need to spend on your own food tonight? I believe it will and I believe that is why we avoid the poor. It is easier to be ignorant, but if you were that parent walking miles and miles just for clean water and food for your child, would you hope for more from your fellow human beings? Can we keep turning our backs on those in desperate need because we feel entitled to certain things and it just feels too hard to give them up? When it is someone you care about starving, you will move heaven and earth to help them. So, we have made sure that we don't know those who are starving. We don't want it to be our problem and we don't want to be inconvenienced. I know that sounds harsh, but it is true."

I hope you'll watch the video. If you're looking for somewhere trustworthy to donate money to alleviate the Horn of Africa's famine, check out World Vision.  Through government grants and their reputation for bringing highly organized, efficient help, World Vision is able to take our donations and multiply them greatly. In fact, World Vision is the largest US-based international humanitarian organization, according to a recent New York Times article.  


Moral of the story? Don't feel guilty for being blessed. Take advantage of it to help others.