Maybe he dreams of one day being a doctor. Maybe he dreams of just being able to attend school one day, or of not having to worry about where his next meal will come from. Maybe he does not even have time to dream or maybe he has already completely given up on dreams because he thinks they can never come true.
He probably gets up at dawn every morning and helps his parents with the chores at home. Maybe he helps take care of his baby sister. Maybe he has to work selling items to people on the streets or begging to help his family. His family probably does not have enough money to send him to school, or buy him new clothes or even buy him the food he needs each day.
He's not so different from your child, your little brother or sister, or yourself when you were a kid. He probably likes to get together and play with his friends if he ever has the opportunity to. He probably likes playing soccer and climbing trees. He probably likes swimming in the creeks and playing games.
What if he was your child? What if the roles were reversed and it was you who was born into poverty like him? What if there were many Believers living in a blessed country who had the means to help you and who had been commanded to do so by God? Wouldn't you want them to help you in whatever way they could so you could go to school, so you could learn about God, so you could enjoy being a kid and not have to bear the burdens of poverty?
But the roles are not reversed. It's you who has been born into a blessed country, it's you who has a nice home, a nice bed to sleep in every night, a refrigerator full of food. It's you who has nice clothes, and is able to buy nice things for yourself and your family. It's you who is able to attend church and learn about God. And it's him who probably wakes up every morning hoping that his situation will change, that God will notice him and his family and send somebody to help them. It's you, as a believer in God and His Son, who has been commanded to care for the poor, it's you who God wants to help precious children like the one in this photo.
We are God's hands and feet. Will you obey God's command, are you willing to help a child in need like the one in the photo?
The truth is that I don't know this child's story, and I don't if any of the hypotheticals that I have written about him are true, but the truth is that the child in the photo is a real child in a poverty stricken country, the truth is that there are many children who are born into poverty and whose lives are similar to the hypothetical one I have written. The truth is that God has noticed children in need like this one and has called us to help them. The truth is you have the opportunity to help them. Are you willing?
"The truth is there are children all over the world, sick, starving, dying, unloved and uncared for. The truth is that the 143 million orphaned children and the 11 million who starve to death or die from preventable disease and the 8.5 million who work as child slaves, prostitutes or under horrific conditions, and the 2.3 million who live the HIV add up to 164.8 million children. And though at first glance that looks like a big number, 2.1 billion people on this earth claim to be [Believers]. The truth is that if only 8% of the [Believers in the world] would care for just one more child there would not be any more statistics left... The truth is God loves these children, just as much as He loves you and me and now that we know, we are responsible" (quote from the book "Kisses from Katie").
I once read about a woman who questioned why she was so blessed while others were born into poverty, then God showed her that He had blessed her so she would use those blessings to bless others. Has God blessed you? Are you using those blessings to bless others? Or are you hording them for yourself?
A great way to bless others is to sponsor a child through Compassion International. When you sponsor a child through Compassion all the money you give goes directly to help your sponsored child and his or her family. I have heard the testimonies of children who grew up in Compassion's sponsorship program who learned about God and now have a personal relationship with Him because of Compassion, who were able to go to school and college because of Compassion. When you sponsor a child through Compassion you are able to write letters to and receive letters from your child, and there are also opportunities to take a trip to visit and meet your Compassion child in person. Will you start obeying God's command to care for the needy by sponsoring a Compassion child today?
Great song by Matthew West about "Doing Something" to help those in need.
Great song by Audio Adrenaline about children in third world countries
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