Two nights ago I stayed up until 1:00 a.m. reading a little book. It brought together some thoughts my husband and I had had bubbling around in our minds for quite a while. It was so startling, I wish everyone could read it. Happily, the whole thing is online. Here are some excerpts that took my breath away:
Experts estimate that for $13 billion a year we could provide basic nutrition for every starving person in the world. American Christians spend $21 billion a year on cable TV.
For $6 billion a year we could educate every child currently not in school. American Christians spend $11 billion a year on coffee.
For $9 billion a year we could provide safe drinking water for the millions who die without it. American Christians spend $21 billion a year on soft drinks.
Approximately 160 million adults in America claim to be Christian. If each one of us would increase our giving by just $15 per month to ministries who are effectively serving the poor, we could feed every starving person in the world, educate every child currently not in school, and provide safe drinking water for the millions who die from lack of it.
There are more than 25,000 Christian service organizations, and they all have one thing in common: they could reach more people if they had more resources.
If anyone has material possessions and sees his brother in need but has no pity on him, how can the love of God be in him? Dear children, let us not love with words or tongue, but with actions and in truth (1 John 3:17-18).
Let’s break it down: If anyone has material possessions (U.S. Christians spend $100 billion a year exchanging Christmas gifts) and sees his brother in need (30,000 children die every day from preventable poverty-related causes), but has no pity on him (we don’t take action to save them), how can the love of God be in him (how can the love of God be in him)?
Can a person be saved and not have the love of God in him? Feeding the hungry doesn’t save us, but if we are saved we will feed the hungry.
Trevvor and I have had this on our minds as well, especially since we’ve graduated. It’s ridiculous what people–what *we*–spend on unnecessary luxuries when there are people who could SURVIVE on half of our “blow money”!! This realization has definitely played a part in our move towards simplicity and increased giving, but we’re certainly not anywhere near where we should be as disciples of Christ! Thank you for reposting these facts.
Very thought-provoking! Nothing you do for the Lord is in vain.
Wait, isn’t paying for clergy and building maintenance the primary goal of our giving?
Wow, YES! Convicting and inspiring no matter where you are in the spectrum. We all have lots to learn here. Thanks for the great reminder!
I love this post; thank you for it. Will definitely look up/read through the book.
The same has been on our hearts of late. My latest post is about my sweet nephew, born 14 weeks early, and the incredible blessing that he lives in the US where he will probably be 100% healthy. And yet how odd it is to me that this is so, in a world where there are hundreds of thousands of full-term babie who die from lack of care/medical attention, etc.
http://heartpondering.wordpress.com/2010/07/07/the-truth-about-fragility/
My conclusions are the same as yours: we MUST ACT if we truly follow Christ. We must give sacrificially and “inconvenience ourselves” (in the world’s eye) and our lifestyles (by such things as adopting or fostering and living below our means to give more) if we would honor Christ. Francis Chan’s book Crazy Love has inflamed our hearts too in this regard…
Now here’s to the hard part: doing more than agreeing in principle and actually living it out fully and faithfully…
Wow, thank you sooo much for posting this. I am so convicted. I’ve ordered a few copies of the booklets and emailed the link to many of my Christian friends. It has made me think so much about my “luxury” money and what it could instead do to actually save lives. Thank you!!!!!!!!
Thank you, thank you, thank you! God has been building upon these ideas in my own heart and life for a number of years now and I have to say that for every dollar of comfort we have given up, we have received the blessing of peace tenfold. Not to mention the fact that many of the things we used to spend our money on were detrimental to our physical and spiritual health. We’ve cut out so much waste that, at the moment, I don’t see where we can cut anymore… but I am praying because I know that it is God who will provide for all our needs out of His riches and I TRULY LOVE what He has done in my life and heart through the pruning that He has done.
Dear Mrs P,when I read Deuteronomy 14 it looks pretty clear how we are meant to honour the Lord with our money if we follow old testament examples.A third of our tithes goes to the poor, widows etc.The other 2 thirds is for celebrating with our household, I assume that means christian family aswell, and to include the Levites (priests who own NO property and use a tent for a temple.)It seems a lot of the Christian world is being duped by greedy charlatans and as a result there is not alot of money left for christians to joyfully celebrate and also have plenty left over to give,what a tragedy. Blessing from Linda.
Linda,
The concept of tithing is completely absent from the New Testament (aside from descriptions of the Pharisees in the Gospels). And like so many things in the Old Testament, the bar is raised in the New Testament. It is not enough to simply give one third of our tithes to the poor (although many who call themselves Christians don’t even give that much). In the New Testament, we are simply called to share. There’s no magic number that once we reach, we can be satisfied and not be concerned any further about giving.
Dear Mrs P, you’re preaching to the converted on this. Unfortunately it seems to a lot of christians go by the 10% standard because it’s what they are hearing preached ,they also don’t seem to be using the tithes as the bible teaches.Apart from that the New Testament requirements were even considered hard when heard by the apostles”who then can enter the kingdom of heaven?”We go by the 10% because it seems more effective than “what God leads me to give” because in my experience people who do this tend to give very little!Maybe they’re not reading the Gospels?I wish the church ran like the New Testament times and I wish we still had some Old Testament concepts like the year of Jubilee etc.I never felt that disillusioned with church until this year when it finally dawned on me alot of church practices and teaching are actually duping us and not working effectively for christians and those needing to be saved-money organisation in the church is one of the key problems I can see plus how we train our children and how we ‘do’ church.If christians started helping each other more the world would see and think’ this is a good thing- something I want to be part of”, surely?Blessings from Linda.
Was so inspired after talking to you about this stuff…..seriously, post pictures of your friend’s house if you get the chance and approval! Am off to read the link!
Wow! What a convicting and thought provoking post. I had no idea of those statistics.