After being in both Thailand and India last month, I was reminded, once again, how much of the world lives in extreme poverty. Not only are there people who lack the basic necessities of life (food, water, medicine, clothing), but they live in environments clouded by spiritual darkness. In Bangkok, I saw (again) countless individuals, many of whom have been trafficked, selling themselves for a meager fee.
Next, I am in an Indian village dominated by Hinduism, with a 40-foot Hindu idol standing at the entrance to the village. It is here our team ministers to people who have had little to no exposure to the Gospel. We pray for a young widow whose husband died eighteen days earlier — her ribs are still broken because of his drunken assaults on her, and she is emotionally torn between being free from abuse, yet feeling destitute because she is left without a partner to provide for the home and help raise the children. By contrast, I return to the USA to watch a large percentage of our country stop to give thanks for all they have (many even thank God), eat enormous amounts of food, and then whip into a frenzy during days that have names such as “Black Friday,” and “Cyber Monday.”
As time goes on, I feel I am understanding Ecclesiastes 1:1-4 better: “‘Meaningless! Meaningless!’ says the Teacher. ‘Utterly meaningless! Everything is meaningless.’ What does man gain from all his labor at which he toils under the sun? Generations come and generations go, but the earth remains forever.” We take nothing in this life with us into the life to come. Very little of what we sacrifice to buy here even lasts in this lifetime.
Flash back in time with me to first-century Israel. Jesus was essentially born into poverty. Much of His ministry was devoted to reaching the lost, and helping the poor and the sick. In the movie, “It’s a Wonderful Life,” there is a scene where Jimmy Stewart’s guardian angel (Clarence) says to him: “Strange, isn't it? Each man's life touches so many other lives. When he isn't around he leaves an awful hole, doesn't he?” Jesus touched so many lives, even during His three short years of ministry while on the earth. When He left the earth, I’m sure the Disciples felt a void. But that void was soon filled with the Holy Spirit. For those of us who have found Christ, we truly have a wonderful life. But it should never stop there. We should do everything we can to live a meaningful life. There are too many people in our generation right now who need our Savior.
In 2009, Global Infusion sent out mission teams all over the world, reaching literally thousands of people with the Gospel message. Not only have we seen lives turn to Christ, but our teams have been able to meet hundreds of physical needs through food and clothing distribution, medical outreaches, construction projects, and much more.
