My Giving Story for 25:40
(www.2540.org)
For many years I went through life not truly seeing the world and its problems. I knew there were people living in poverty; however it was easy to put those thoughts out of my head with the distractions of my daily routine. A couple of years ago, God removed the blinders from my eyes, and allowed me to see how truly blessed my family and many other families here in America are compared to other parts of the world. In the process, I was astonished to discover that about 1.5 billion people in our world live on less than $1.25 per day. How does someone even live on $1.25 per day, when many of us here in America are willing to pay more than $1.25 for a cup of coffee?
After God began revealing this to my husband and me, we felt called to do something to help. I just could not sit back anymore and pretend I didn’t know that others were living in such dire circumstances, and I truly wanted to do something to give back. My husband and I were led to an organization called 25:40 which helps orphans and underprivileged children in South Africa. We were drawn to this organization, first and foremost because of the organization’s name 25:40, drawn from Matthew 25:40 “Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me.” After hearing stories about many of the children they serve and how they were partnering with the community to help fix the problems with sustainable solutions, I felt compelled to join efforts with them and do something to help raise money for the least of these through this wonderful organization.
Being a dancer for 18 years, I have much passion and love for dancing. God opened up a door to dance ministry a couple of years ago and through some prayer I decided to do a dance workshop over one summer to help benefit 25:40. It was such a blessing for me to be involved with dance again and at the same time such an amazing opportunity for me to use my time, talents, and passions to help these children in South Africa who so desperately needed our help.
During the workshop I was also able to talk about some of the children that 25:40 serves. How some of these children lived in small huts with no floors or had to walk every day long distances to collect water for their family. The children would ask me if I was making these stories up since it was so hard for them to even imagine life as these children in South Africa know it. It was very heartwarming to see some of the children come to the workshop, emptying their own piggy banks to give back after hearing the stories of the children 25:40 serves. In addition to the money we were able to raise for 25:40 during the workshop, I know the workshop make a great impact on those children’s hearts and also mine as well.
I feel very blessed to have had the opportunity to give back and help children in South Africa through 25:40. I learned through this giving experience that God is calling us all to do something, and in the process to be the hands and feet of Jesus. We can have such an amazing impact on this world if we are mindful of what is going on within it and make the commitment that we will do what we can to help. I believe that when we give of our time, talents, and treasures we can also be a part of something much bigger than ourselves! And as we join forces with God to do something to help others, I think we will be amazed to see that not only will other’s lives be helped and impacted because of it, but our own life will be changed as well as our hearts are transformed to be more like His. I know mine has and it is a beautiful thing!
Review from #MyGivingStory