The spirit of Advent is one of expectation, anticipation, and longing for Christ to rescue us from the shackles of sin and evil in this world. Our yearning for deliverance from the evil and injustice of this world was first expressed by Israelite slaves in Egypt as they cried out from their bitter oppression. This cry for hope and deliverance continues today. God hears the cry of the poor and the oppressed and has a plan to bring rescue and relief.
There are approximately 27 million slaves in the world today and 53% of the world population struggles to live on less than $2.00 per day.
Those are some sobering statistics. But they should also inspire us to respond. It takes very little on our part to make a significant impact. We are part of the six percent of the population that owns 53% of the world’s wealth.
Rich Stearns, the President of World Vision wrote in a recent article that it would take between 40 and 70 billion dollars a year to end extreme poverty by the year 2025.
That seems like a huge number until you realize that Americans spend $450 billion dollars on Christmas. The average family spends between $300 and $1100 per year. Marta and I were challenged by a group of churches in Portland who have a vision to change the way they spend this money. They are challenging their congregations to give gifts this season in a way that will change lives.
They have identified some local and global initiatives they would like to support, like linking with a local public school to support the poorest families in Portland with housing, food, and clothing. Globally, they will be partnering with other organization to provide clean water to communities through digging wells, and provide micro loans to support entrepreneurs in the developing world. (Listen to the sermon at Imago Dei about this challenge)
If two-thirds of the people in these five churches participate minimally, then they believe they would generate close to a million dollars to support these initiatives.
In our Church body if every family were to make that same kind of commitment we could generate $130,000.
As I reflect on Christmases of the past I don’t remember many life changing gifts that I received or gave. The most meaningful gifts have been personal and relational, and normally did not cost much money, but were given from the heart.
I can’t think of a more powerful image of the message of Christmas than to mirror the redemptive gift that has been given to us. God the father rescued us with the gift of His Son Christ Jesus. And through our gift giving we could be used by God to rescue others this Christmas.
Injustice, violence and poverty are a reality for the majority of people in this world, but our God is the Prince of Peace. Our God is the light, the hope, and the solution, and He is inviting us to join Him in bringing peace and justice to the world he so deeply loves.
Andy, thank you (publicly) for your words, your vision, and for leading us as a congregation to think well about Christmas. I appreciate you and the journey we are all on together to live as Christ followers in a broken world.
Hi Andy. I ran across your blog through a mutual kiva microloan–and noticed you were from Oregon too. I’ve enjoyed browsing your blog, it makes me excited to see a vibrant Christianity that cares about the injustice of extreme poverty. I’m guessing based on your location that you’re a student or former student or professor or something at George Fox? I have a friend who I met doing a masters in public administration at PSU, Matt Gerber, who graduated a few years ago from GFU and has been working to build a small international NGO called TeamWorks over the last few years. It speaks well of GFU, and the Friends community generally, to see such commitment to the ‘least of these’ in the world.
–Dave
Portland, OR