How many of you remember the first book you’ve read and loved? Was it a mystery that kept you on your toes cover to cover, an epic adventure through a jungle, or a princess finding her Prince Charming?

As a lifetime lover of books, I can’t be more grateful that my parents fostered my love for reading by reading me stories, patiently teaching me the alphabet, and letting me visit the library every day. Literature has had an enormous impact on my understanding of mankind’s unending search for the eternal and our great need for God – I don’t know where or who I’d be without the tales I’ve read.

Of course, not everyone views books in the same way, but being literate early on granted me access to one of the most powerful resources: education. Without being able to read, I could not have possibly passed elementary school, or high school, or university. Without university, I couldn’t have a bachelor’s degree, which is the minimum prerequisite for many careers today. And it’s no question we need jobs to make a living and provide for our own families.

But the education process isn’t as familiar to everyone as it is to us; some adults right now don’t know how to read. Begin to Read writes that one in four children grows up not knowing how to read. That’s a staggering number, and it really does happen in the economically disadvantaged neighborhoods all around you. What’s more, this means that 25% have a much higher chance of living in poverty. Florida Literacy Coalition reported: “The National Institute for Literacy estimates that 43% of adult with very low literacy skills live in poverty.  About 70% of adult welfare recipients have lower level literacy skill on the National Assessment of the Adult Literacy (NAAL).”

Has God blessed you, like He has me, with a family that cherished reading and learning? If He has, please take some time to pray about what you can do to help.

If you are inspired to take action, there are definitely options out there. One organization that is trying to combat these statistics is Reading To Kids. The organization is located in Los Angeles and focuses on gathering volunteers to devote a Saturday to read to a group of underserved children. If you can dedicate a Saturday to instilling the love of reading in children, do sign up on their website. They also offer other opportunities to make a difference through internships and events throughout the year, so you can keep checking back or sign up to their newsletter for updates.

If you’re not from the Los Angeles area, you can do some web surfing to learn about your local organizations! Room To Read is another great organization that is trying to increase literacy among underserved children, so the options are endless!

Happy reading!

Click on the photo for the Flickr gallery (Photo ID 480269. 16/07/2011. Mogadishu, Somalia. UN Photo/Stuart Price.)

As you probably know, Ethiopa, Kenya, Somalia and the newly-formed Republic of South Sudan are currently facing one of the worst droughts in 60 years. Over 13 million people are left without food, water and basic emergency health care. According to World Vision, Kenya has declared the drought a national disaster, with more than 1,400 people fleeing every day to the to the Dadaab refugee camp (near the eastern Kenya border with Somalia). Over the course of the past few months, the UN has declared famine in several regions of Somalia.

The UN hasn’t declared a famine in nearly thirty years.

Organizations everywhere have been teaming up to send shipments and aid to the region, but it is not enough. Brendan Gormley, chief executive of the Disasters Emergency Committee (DEC) told Reuters that international aid was too slow.

“Aid agencies are now running to catch up with the needs, international funding is still inadequate and the current break in the food pipeline is irreversible,” Gormley said.

British Red Cross reported on Sept. 28^th: “many thousands of women and children are severely malnourished and in need of urgent help.”

As a Christian who has never had to face starvation, it breaks my heart to read about the overwhelming number of people who do not have even the very basics of survival. I doubt I’m alone in wishing that I could do more than just sit here and watch the crisis worsen.

But there are ways to help!

Get informed and spread the word:

• For more information, a quick Google search will yield a wealth of information. There is much more going on than what is mentioned here.
• For quick bits of information according to region, see the interactive map provided by Disaster Emergency Committee.
• For regular updates, check Oxfam and DEC pages.
• For a gallery of pictures you can go to the U.S. Yahoo! Editorial Flickr gallery or to Yahoo! page.
• For videos, search “East Africa Crisis Appeal” on YouTube.

Pray:

• For all the direct victims in East Africa who face starvation and are in need of food and health care.
• For the governments and organizations that are dealing directly with the crisis. May they know how to allocate aid wisely and effectively.
• For more international aid to come to help current victims and prevent future similar disasters.

Donate:

• Oxfam
• World Vision
• Save the Children
• UNICEF

These are just among the few organizations that can use more donations to increase aid in East Africa.

You can also peruse different pages of organizations, such as Oxfam’s other ways to help to learn about other things you can be doing to serve God’s people.

Sources:
Disasters Emergency Committee
Wikipedia
The Telegraph
Reuters
World Vision
Oxfam
iVolunteer

http://www.dontwalkby.org/main/how-to-help/

Don’t walk by.

I know; easier said than done. How many times have I shuffled by on the street – avoiding eye contact in hopes that he won’t extend a plea, that I won’t have to murmur a response along the lines (and meanings) of “sorry,” “not today,” “I don’t have anything to give you,” “I won’t help, ” “I question your motives”?

How many times have I cursed having to brave the cold, the wind, and the elements without any further thought to the family who isn’t fortunate enough to simply scurry between ‘warm place A’ and ‘warm place B’?

How many times have I automatically attributed the issue of homelessness to laziness and immoral excesses, not realizing that 19% of the population is employed, 39% is made up of children [http://www.nationalhomeless.org/factsheets/How_Many.html], and 100% are beloved in His sight? The Scriptures say in Proverbs 22:2:

²Rich and poor have this in common: The Lord is the Maker of them all. (NIV)

Let’s not walk by.

Editor’s Note: This blog was written before Crossing Divides officially launched, just a day after the earthquake in Haiti.

Whatever information about upcoming community service opportunities we promised is coming—just not now.

Not now, while Port-au-prince, Haiti lies in ruins, its buildings toppled by a 7.0 magnitude earthquake, leaving its people homeless and scrambling in search of their loved ones among the rubble. Newspapers and television reports fear that the death toll is in the thousands, and aid might be difficult to provide due to airport damage. You can read more here.

The pictures and status updates flooding the headlines show an abject situation that breaks my heart. Why Haiti, an already impoverished country? Why its capitol? Why even an earthquake in the first place?

I cry tears of frustration and confusion during times like these, unable to provide an explanation for such suffering whilst claiming to believe in a God who saves. I can’t even halt everything to rush off and join relief teams — and I profess some Christ-like desire to serve the needy. In times like these, much I stand for seems to unravel rapidly at the seams.

But … BUT. If I learned anything from the Bible, it’s that when we run into a dead end or an impossible situation, we pray. 1 John 5:14-15 says:

¹⁴This is the confidence we have in approaching God: that if we ask anything according to his will, he hears us. ¹⁵And if we know that he hears us — whatever we ask — we know that we have what we asked of him.

God hears our prayers.

So I will pray, and I invite you to join forces with me. Take some time aside today and the next few days to beseech God to intervene in the midst of this devastation. Right now, we pray for those missing and on the brink of survival, that they can be found living and rejoin their families and friends. Pray for the aid being sent to the country, that whatever the obstacles, it can get there and be swift and effective. We then must consider the recovery of the city. May God restore hope and restoration to Haiti.

The end of James chapter one reads:

²⁷Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world. (NIV)

I don’t know about you, but that has always struck me as an odd way of ending a chapter on trials and temptations, taming the tongue, etc.

But did you know that, according to Compassion.com, there are over 2,000 references in the Bible concerning the poor, widows and children? I didn’t; I had to Google that statistic, and I find it astounding.

Absorb your surroundings — really absorb it. Look up at the roof over your head, relax in the bed or chair on which you’re reclining, feel the clothes on your skin, maybe even taste the fresh water that is just steps away in the kitchen or fountain. Pay particular attention to the piece of equipment in front of you that most of us believe we the right to own.

Need I say the obvious? Probably not, but many of us have more than we need — PLENTY more. Some say “be grateful” or “appreciate what you have.” Honestly, though, what good does that do other than to bring peace to your own mind?

The hungry are still starving, the sick still dying, the clock still ticking. Your gratitude alone cannot change those facts.

That’s why this blog is here — to wake you up.

WAKE UP.

Wake up and smell the world’s roses, not the soft fragrant ones in your ideal imagination.

James calls for faith and deeds. I struggled with this for a long time, and it was only when I realized that I had done nothing to be born into my blessed situation in life that I felt convicted to surrender my life to doing God’s work. This body and its possessions are not mine; they are God’s to execute His plans in redeeming and saving humanity.

Going back to the statistic from Compassion.com, 2,000 references in one (large) book is … a lot. We believe that the Bible reveals God’s character, and 2,000 references probably means that serving the poor, widowed and orphaned is a heavy burden on God’s heart.

But I know it’s hard, in the midst of school or work or distractions, to seek out opportunities to help. Even if we do find something, it’s discouraging to keep believing that we are making even a smudge of difference in the enormity of the world’s suffering.

That’s why this blog is here, too. We’ll take the time to sift through a myriad of events and organizations throughout the country that need your help. Sometimes it’s a one-time commitment; sometimes it’s monthly. What we hope to do is spark your passion to care for the world God created, and to do your best to use your time and resources to serve God’s people.