If you are like me, your basic needs are met. Your kids are fed. There may be tough times, but you have never had to experience a child going to bed hungry. Many people see me, a doctor's wife, as being a woman of privilege. I would say that that is true now.
However, I did not grow up as a doctor's wife. I grew up in a lower midle class family. So did my husband. But even though there were not a lot of extras in our family growing up, I never went hungry. We skipped Christmas a few times. We couldn't do things our friends did sometimes. It was hard for my parents to tell us "no" to things they wanted to let us do. But we never didn't eat. I can't imagine going hungry.
But believe it or not, as we prepare to celebrate the birth of America with our loved ones and debate "hot dog or hamburger" at picnics, there are children in our own country that are wondering when they will have another meal at all.
I remember during our mission trip to Nigeria, I mentioned to one of the Nigerian men we were working with that there are a lot of homeless people in America. He was shocked. "In America? Why would you have homeless people there!?"
It's hard to believe that even before the recession, America had one of the highest poverty rates in the industrialized world. And today there are a staggering 15 million children living in poverty in the United States.
My husband and I have supported World Vision for many years. They came to a church event early in our marriage, and we decided to sponsor a child.
World Vision has a Gift Catalog. This allows you to help a child and/or family in the U.S. or somewhere else in the world by making a gift in someone's name. One year for Christmas, we were preparing to move, and I couldn't imagine getting any gifts while packing. So I asked family members to consider making a donation in my name to World Vision. A few family members chose to do this, and they told me that it ministered to them as much as it did to me.
You can watch a video to see how the Gift Catalog works by clicking here.
I am not sharing these details to pat my own back. I am sharing it to make you aware as holiday seasons begin to start falling, the possibility of giving someone a gift for their birthday or Christmas. Or making a gift to celebrate the freedom we experience as Americans.
Would you consider making a donation in someone's name? Would you consider making a donation in someone's name to our organization Because of Isaac? When you donate to the organization, simply let us know you are making this donation in "honor of" someone. If you provide their name and address, we will send them a special card telling that someone made a donation in their name. A donation to Because of Isaac will allow us to help a couple adopt a child and give that child a family forever.
Also, I'm quick to tell you that our organization is not the only organization you could donate to. There are tons of organizations that are trying to help children and families. World Vision is one of my favorites. You can help feed a family in the USA for three days for $48, or provide a week's worth of food for $112.
Let's try to think of other people this 4th of July. We live in the greatest country in the world.. Okay, I don't actually live there right now, but the USA is my country. As we celebrate our country this next week, let's consider helping
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