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Wednesday is Global Food Crisis Day

About a year ago, a group of bloggers went on a trip to Uganda with Compassion Ministries and blogged about their experiences meeting Compassion workers and many of the children that Compassion serves.  Along with many of you, I followed their posts avidly and before they returned home I was sponsoring a child from Uganda.  We all know there are starving children all over the world, but it is so easy to turn a blind eye.

Every day I wake up in my cozy house and turn on the faucet from which clean water flows freely.  I put slippers on my feet and open my refrigerator to a plethora of foods.  I put my kids on the school bus in their brand name clothes and sit in front of my 24-inch computer monitor and write about my ordinary, comfortable life.  Days go by that I do not consider that more than half the world will never know such luxury.

What Compassion has done partnering with bloggers is nothing short of brilliant.  Watching that Uganda trip unfold before my very eyes brought to life an existence that I’ve only heard about.  Sending people so many of us know and trust to see the mission work being done by Compassion and hearing first-hand accounts of their experiences gave credibility to the work being done, and putting names and faces with those hurting children motivated many of us to become Compassion sponsors.  I don’t know about you, but I’m naturally skeptical of organizations promising to care for these children.  I always wonder how much of my money is actually getting to the child in need.  But from all reports I have heard, Compassion is a ministry you can trust.

Sponsoring a child has been a beneficial experience for our family, and I can only hope a blessing to a little boy in Ugunda named Samaul who gets the benefit of our monthly checks and reads our letters.  I allowed my son to choose the child we would sponsor, and he chose a little boy his age.  They write back and forth, and my son gets a small glimpse into a world very unlike his own.  Not only does Samaul get food and clothes and an education through my $32 a month, he hears the Gospel.  He knows there is hope beyond this life.  Jesus tended to the material and spiritual needs of those around him, and Compassion follows this model of ministry.

When a second group of bloggers went to the Dominican Republic last fall, I followed their trip as avidly as I had the first.  Big Mama’s story of the little girl who wanted to come back with her still haunts me.  I don’t know if I could make a trip like that, but I do know that God has blessed me with the resources to help from afar and that is how I have chosen to serve for now.  If you have been blessed with the resources to help those in need, please consider Compassion.  If you can’t commit to a monthly sponsorship, perhaps you can consider a one-time gift.  There is more information below about how you can do exactly that.

When Compassion asked for bloggers to step forward and accept occasional assignments to blog about the work they are doing, I didn’t hesitate to throw my name in the hat.  I am happy to use my blog as a platform to elicit exposure for this extraordinary organization.  From anything I have seen, they are doing a marvelous work to care for the material and spiritual needs to children all over the globe.

Our most recent assignment is to spread the word about the Global Food Crisis and raise funds that will make a real difference to those impacted by it.  Rather than reinvent the wheel, I will copy and paste the information I was given about the global food crisis.

WHAT IS GLOBAL FOOD CRISIS DAY?
Compassion International is partnering with radio stations, media, churches and bloggers to spread the word about the Global Food Crisis and raise funds that will make a real difference to those impacted by it.

WHY IS THE CRISIS?
Overshadowed by recent political and financial economic news, the UN World Food Programme calls the current global food crisis “a phenomenon, a silent tsunami,” that is affecting millions of families in every nation on every continent. This global food crisis is more rapid, urgent and devastating than any other in the history of our planet.

WHY IS THE CRISIS HAPPENING?
The cost of food staples have roughly doubled in many countries where Compassion serves. Some of the original factors that turned this trend into a world calamity recently include unstable oil prices, increased meat consumption in countries like India and China, droughts in major crop-producing countries, and increased production of biofuels.

WHAT DOES THE GLOBAL FOOD CRISIS FUND DO?
– Provides food vouchers to children and families needing immediate relief.
– Provides seeds and agricultural tools so that families can grow their own food as well as earn extra income.
– Provides supplemental nutrition services at Compassion-assisted centers around the world.

If you want to know what you can do to help, visit https://www.compassion.com/please to learn more about the Global Food Crisis and donate to Compassion’s Global Food Crisis Fund.  To make things as simple as possible, I have placed a widget on my sidebar similar to the one at the top of this post.  If at any time you feel moved to donate to this cause, you can click on the Donate Now button and know that you are helping people in need.

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4 Responses

  1. Thanks for highlighting this special day. Our family has been incredibly blessed by sponsoring our Compassion child and I can’t speak highly enough of the teachable moments it’s provided us with for our daughters. We are so blessed and it’s the least we can do to give up one dinner at a restaurant a month.

  2. Good for you for using your blog to promote a worthy cause! I do love the regular musings, but this is so important for people to be aware of. It is ridiculous that people are starving to death on a planet that has so many resources!!

  3. Thanks for highlighting this special day. Our family has been incredibly blessed by sponsoring our Compassion child and I can’t speak highly enough of the teachable moments it’s provided us with for our daughters. We are so blessed and it’s the least we can do to give up one dinner at a restaurant a month.
    OH! You’re my new favorite blogger fyi

  4. Jo-Lynne…FANTASTIC post :). You know how I feel about Compassion and its work…it’s near and dear to my heart. They’re a credible organization, not just espousing rhetoric. This post speaks to the things they do well and how they’re making a VERY REAL difference in the lives of children.

    I’m sure they’re grateful for your contribution to shedding light on The Global Food Crisis.

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