Abolishing Poverty - yes we can!

A few days ago I read on my friend's, Andrew Marin, Facebook the following quote:

"You cannot abolish poverty unless you also abolish affluence."

Ouch. I hated that quote as soon as a finished reading it, yet something inside me resonated with a deeper "yes". I hate that quote - truth? - because I am a person of affluence. I can often fool myself into thinking I am not because I'm a pastor living in Orange County, CA, but the truth is I am very affluent compared to the world's standards. If you're reading this blog, you are affluent too. Don't believe me? Check out: http://www.globalrichlist.com/ for the proof.

I know I'm affluent because I'm typing this on a laptop, watching TV, have a few dollars in a savings account, own 2 cars, have a mortgage, am not worrying what's for dinner, and will sleep tonight in a king-size bed. And the honest truth is: I like my life. Thinking about abolishing my poverty is beyond challenging because it means that a lot of how I live would have to change! Of course, we 2 kids in Africa with World Vision. We live on less than we earn. We tithe more than 10%. For the love, we're adopting a baby. But that doesn't make me superior...it's only the beginning of loosening the hold on affluence in order to bring more equality to this world.

We can't abolish poverty and maintain our own standards of living.
It just won't work like this, but I wish it did.

I was talking to my 18 year old brother today, and he was sharing about his recent mission's trip to Mexico. His greatest take-away and frustration is how complacent we are. The truth is that abundance breeds complacency. It just does. I wish that abundance produced a passionate movement toward giving more away, helping the poor, saying "no" to the things we really do not need, but it doesn't. It lulls us into believing we need more, risk less, and maybe care a little bit about the need around.

Agh...I'm not calling you out. I'm calling me out. And I'm praying that this Baby Ethiopia journey propels us into less and less complacency. Any thoughts on what you've learned about this? How are you combatting complacency and abolishing poverty?

Sometimes the Best Things are Unseen

I was having lunch at The Cheesecake Factory with my best friend, Melissa, on Friday [BTW: never look at their nutritional information...it's enough to send you into an eating disorder], and she said something so profound: Sometimes the best work that God is doing isn't something you can see at first.

Think about pregnancy. Some of my best girls are preggers right now: Melissa, Cassidy, Sarah Beth, Betsy. You can't totally see what's changing inside of them, but you know something is being birthed in them that's life-changing. Life is being created within them.

Think about your greatest seasons of growth. Could you see the transformation at first? Could you articulate what was happening inside of you? Did your life at first fully reflect the change occurring beyond the naked eye? I doubt it.

Such has been my journey. The best things that have happened to my soul's growth and my character's formation have been unseen at first. It's part of the mystery of God that I so adore now. It's part of the cocooning of a caterpillar into a butterfly [see one of my first posts]. It's part of that connection to the Creator of the Universe that shapes me more into his likeness. It's part of the healing and humbling process that allows me to be more of me and less of an imposter.

I have to agree with Mel - sometimes the best things are unseen.

Bono's Holy Discontent

Who doesn't love Bono the rock star and the social activist? If you don't love him, please don't tell me. I might cry.

Bono actually got his start in his life-quest of ending extreme poverty 20 years ago after performing at a day-long "Live Aid" concert. It was a celebrity studded event that was put on to raise money for Ethiopian famine victims. After that event, his heart was captured. Privately, Bono and his wife, Ali, hopped on a plane to Ethiopia to see first hand what was happening there. Holy discontent was birthed. That trip...

"forced him to stare into the eyes of starving children in Addis Ababa,
Ethiopia, who didn't even have the energy to stand up to greet him. Bono's
simple response to that experience rekindled the firestorm that was deep in his
soul: 'I will not be in a world where [this reality] continues to be true.'" [Holy Discontent, Hybels]

I think Jesus talked about this when he talked about his followers bringing heaven to earth. I think it's called the Lord's Prayer. :)

There's a lot in this world that should move us to that kind of passionate, desperate, all-consuming action. I'll never be Bono. But I know I can be the best April Diaz at changing this world, bringing a little more heaven to earth, and changing the plight for some. Another reason "why" we are adopting.