By Casey Milleson
I’ve touched the faces of AIDS victims, held the hands of orphans, and danced with widows. Sometimes I am amazed by the choices I make. I have been around the world twice to Africa and seen the heartache but because I am here and not there I am apathetic toward the suffering of many.
Then, Im reminded of the sights Ive seen, the suffering Ive witnessed, the privilege we have compared to the destitute lives of so many in the world. I dont understand why God chose me to live in America. Why wasnt I born to parents with AIDS? Why am I able to eat three meals each day? Why did he choose me to be the “rich” that Jesus talks of in the Bible?
The only answer I can come up with is that I dont know. Maybe its for me to do something with the thousands of resources that are at my fingertips.
Maybe its for me to sacrifice buying that really cute dress in order to feed a child in Africa. But I dont think it stops there.
You see, I sponsor a child from Kenya. His name is Lemayian, but his American name is James. My roommate and I split the cost of sponsoring him, so we each pay $20 per month. Honestly, that is not much of a sacrifice considering American teens spend on average $101 per week.
I constantly see images of suffering children, of starving eyes, of the least of these, yet Ive become immune to them like most everyone else in America. I hate that about myself.
I hate that Ive touched the faces of AIDS victims, held the hands of orphans, danced with widows and I still am able to turn a blind eye. I think that shows that none of us are immune to apathy unless we are intentional about our actions, intentional about being like Jesus-no matter where we end up.
Its easy for me to throw out $20 here or there to sponsor a child. Sponsoring a child is a wonderful thing, but I can do more. I can sponsor two or three children and actually sacrifice a few Starbucks lattes or a new pair of shoes. I could buy a few crucial supplies for Real Hope for Haiti.
I could sponsor a vulnerable child s school fees. I could sponsor a missionary in Asia. There are thousands of opportunities for me and for you to help out the suffering world around us, yet we think one person cant make a difference.
Instead of thinking of the ways we cannot change the world, we can change one childs life at a time. We have one life. One life to do something.
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Casey is a sophomore at Belmont University in Nashville, Tennessee. She has a passion for the outcasts of the world and hopes to visit every country of Africa as well as every continent in the world. This past summer she traveled to Kenya with a group of college students through BigStuf’s Journey Internship. There she visited markets, the Pan-African Girls School, played with street kids and worked with students at the University of Nairobi.