Today, October 16 is day 16 of October Justice Awareness Month and also World Food Day. Approximately 842 million people in our world go hungry every day, that is almost 1 in 8 people suffering from chronic hunger.
- Every day, almost 16,000 children die from hunger-related causes, that’s one child every five seconds
- In the United States, 14.5 percent of households struggle to put food on the table.
- The World Bank estimates that the spike in global food prices in 2008, followed by the global economic recession in 2009 and 2010 has pushed between 100-150 million people into poverty.. 1
This, as you can see is a problem, it is a problem that can and should be avoided. There is enough wealth and food in the world to solve this injustice, and it is our responsibility to distribute it. God is the giver of all the good gifts that we have, but the problem with all good gifts is that we eventually take them for granted. The food on our plates, the kitchens that we cook in, the feeling of satisfaction that we get when we eat a good meal are all gifts from a good God.
The thing is, those gifts are not just meant for us, they are meant for us to share, especially out of our abundance. Most of us are not able to get on a plane and head over to Cambodia and feed the hungry, but we can all do our part where we are at. Their are people in your town or city going to bed hungry tonight on the street. Their are most likely people in your churches who are in need of a meal as a result of a recent loss of income? There may be a neighbor in your home group, work, school or down the street who is grieving the loss of a loved one and isn’t thinking about cooking, much less eating a meal and in need of you to help.
We can be involved in doing justice right here. I remember as a kid watching on TV little kids in Ethiopia with flies all over their faces and dying of hunger. I didn’t know what to do with the images I saw, so I changed the channel and numbed it out. If it wasn’t in front of me then it wasn’t happening. But then I realized that when God said “when I was hungry you gave Me something to eat…Whatever you did for the least of these, you did it for me” from Matthew 25, He wasn’t talking about people on the other side of the world, he was talking about people right under our noses.
So, today we are going to “do unto others” by skipping a meal. The action today is to pick a meal (breakfast, lunch or supper) make it and instead of eating that meal make it and give it away to someone in need. We want you to prepare the meal like you would for yourself, then put it together and give it away. Don’t just give it away and leave though, take some time and sit with the person. Hear their story, share your story and enjoy the time. This is not just about giving someone a meal, it is about getting to know them and sharing the love of Jesus.
We would love to hear stories of how your day went. Also, if it seems appropriate you could take pictures and upload them onto Instagram under the hash tag #stepsofjustice Ask if it is ok if you take a picture and tell their story. And have fun serving.
Check out Skip 1. Also, for a great book resource read Ron Siders Rich Christians in a World of Hunger.
The picture on Instagram with the hash tag #stepsofjustice and the most likes wins 5 copies of the Prayer and Action Guide and a whack of stickers.
Feature image by Lindsey Brunsman
