USA (MNN) ― One in two children lives in poverty around the world. According to UNICEF, of those children in this group, 25,000 die each day due to poverty. Many of them die invisibly because the living are struggling to stay alive.
The statistics read grimly--640 million live without adequate shelter, 400 million have no access to safe water, and 270 million have no access to health services. 10.6 million died in 2003 before they reached the age of 5 (or roughly 29,000 children per day).
121 million children around the world cannot go to school. The lack of education ensures they stay in poverty, repeating a vicious cycle. The problem looms large, and it seems as if there is no escape. Hundreds of millions of dollars go to programs to help meet the needs, but is it even a drop in the bucket?
Judy Davis, an advocate for Food For the Hungry, says talking about the problems in big numbers overwhelms people into apathy. "When people start to think about one child, one heart, making a difference to that one person, then it becomes manageable."
Bringing the solution to one face and one name not only changes the child from a number, it gives the child a chance.
It is her job, as an advocate, to tame the global size of the problem and present it as a problem with a solution. The equation is Food For The Hungry's programs, and the solution is you.
Davis encourages people like you to get involved not only on a financial level, but also a personal one and a spiritual one, as well. "When you have the chance to live and walk the walk that Jesus has laid out there for us, many times--without ever speaking a word of the Gospel--we can share and show the love of Christ."
Food for the Hungry's Community to Community (C2C) partnership is a relationship between a community in the developing world and an American church. By getting personally involved with the poor, churches are able to work toward lasting change within the context of a strong relationship. FH strives to facilitate true transformation for both the American church and the international partner community.
Davis says it started out as "speaking for those who cannot speak for themselves" (Prov 31:8). By making a child sponsorship presentation at your small group, Sunday School class or church, you can both raise awareness and encourage action.
Davis also encourages churches to respond to God's call to "do justice, love mercy and walk humbly" (Micah 6:8) by hosting a 6:8 Sunday. By helping get kids sponsored, you can make a lasting difference in the lives of children and communities all over the world
More than advocacy, Food For the Hungry needs your help. You can check out details here. One final thought from Davis: "What I would like to do is just challenge the people to walk, to listen and to learn about people living in poverty and cruel, harsh circumstances; to see their beauty and accept the challenge to make a difference in the life of a child and be changed in the process."
