Lent: What are you willing to sacrifice?

Today is Ash Wednesday, marking the beginning of Lent. I’ve heard of Lent before, though I’ve never really observed it in a sacrificial way, never having done anything special to celebrate it. If you’re like me, you’ve never fully understood what Lent is all about. If so, I’d like to refer you to two sources. One is a blog entry from a very wise man, Bill Dogterom. Click here to read more about how he explains how we can prepare ourselves for this season. Another source is a 2 minute video I found that puts it very clearly, marking out what Lent is all about. You can watch it below:

Extreme poverty is when someone lives on less than $1.25 a day and lacks the means to meet minimum standards of food, clothing, health care, and shelter. Today, one in every five people lives on less than $1.25 a day. Around the world, 14,000 children younger than 5 die every day from hunger and related causes.

I try to see the faces behind the statistics, and families that starve to death, while I live a comfortable life despite living below the national average income in America. This Lent season, I've decided to do something about it, and play my part. The picture at the top is a picture of some of the food I am going to live on for the next 40 days, costing me just about $1.25 per day. My goal is to at least sacrifice what I spend on food and how much I eat, and give the remaining money to the poor. During these next 40 days, I will sacrifice my daily bread, while spending time in prayer with Jesus, who is our spiritual bread - the bread of life. I’ll be praying for those in extreme poverty as I eat what most in the world typically live off of: rice, beans, lentils, and other basic necessities. 

I know what a lot of you are thinking..."But didn't you just do this same thing for 21 days with the Daniel Fast?" My answer is NO! Yes, I spent 21 days fasting and in prayer. A lot of this time was a sacrifice for myself. This is a sacrifice for others. 

But the sacrifice of food is not enough to make a real difference. Therefore, I will take the money that I would normally spend on food, and donate it to those in extreme poverty. I am going to donate through World Vision to certain areas of need. For instance, $75 will buy a goat for a family or village, $25 will buy two chickens, and just $35 can purchase up to $385 worth of medical supplies to sick children. 

Some of this money will also be saved for the upcoming summer projects my friends in Cru will be participating in this summer, where they we be able to share Jesus, the bread of life, with those who have never tasted it before. 

Just imagine if we all made small sacrifices for the world’s poor, both physically and spiritually. We can make a difference together. Will you join me?