On My Heart

Haiti has once again been on my heart a lot recently. Mainly because of the tragic story of a little 6 year old girl that died there last week that I read about on my friend Brittany's blog. You can read the story here, I'll warn you though, you will be in tears by the end of it. It will break your heart and convict you. I was especially convicted when Brittany wrote, "We failed. We who have everything we could ever need yet we call ourselves middle class. We who say we follow Jesus yet spend all our money on ourselves and our family, buying them ipods and games and movies and then maybe shedding a tear when we read a sad story of someone in Africa or Haiti."

She's right, it's not enough. We all have extra money. And we spend most of it on ourselves. I often think that Brandon and I live pretty frugally. In fact, I pride myself on it. We don't have cable or iPhones but we do have an old beater car and I use coupons religiously. We certainly don't have a ton of money right now, but we do have much, much more than we could ever need. And you all probably do too if you think about it.

If you regularly drink Starbucks, if you've bought a new outfit recently, if you're going on vacation this summer, if you've gone to see a movie lately... these are all extravagances. They may seem commonplace to us, but to many people these are luxuries reserved for only the wealthy. They struggle to survive because they can't afford food or clean water. I'm not saying that we should cut out all or any of these things. These are all fine things to spend money on occasionally, but we should remember that there are better things to spend money on. Such as giving to the poor and needy. And I'm preaching to myself here primarily. You can ask Brandon, I'm the first to complain that I "need" new clothes for the summer even though I have a closet that's full to the brim. I'm the first to think that Jack and Cullen have to be dressed cute all the time. I grumble about our car and how it's too small for our family and how we "need" a bigger car soon. But these are lies. All lies. Straight from the mouth of Satan.

God has provided for us abundantly. And with that abundance we're commanded to give to others who are in need. You might be rolling your eyes and thinking, "I can't believe Kim of all people is saying that. She's such a hypocrite." And you'd be right, I am. I struggle with materialism and selfishness very much. That's why I say I'm mainly preaching to myself here. But I thought it would still be good to share these thoughts with you all in the hope that you might consider your own giving. Don't we all have so much? Couldn't we all cut back in certain areas so we can give a little more than we are now? I know that's certainly true for Brandon and I, even at this time when he's in school and I'm not working. I will be praying that God gives me increased love for the poor, a spirit of joyful generosity, and a willingness to spend less on myself and my family and more on those who truly need it.

If you read the sad story of little Dianise and would like to donate to Danita's Children's hospital fund, you can do so here. Danita's Children is a wonderful organization doing incredible things in Haiti. They're a solid Christian organization that helps support an entire community and have received exceptional ratings for their ability to efficiently grow and manage their finances for 4 consecutive years from Charity Navigator. This means more of every dollar given goes directly to support the children and community rather than towards administrative costs. Danita's Children also posts their Statement of Faith right on their website. They have many needs right now, including a hospital, a new orphanage, child sponsorships and many more. Please prayerfully consider giving to Danita's Children- or any other charity- out of the abundance that God has blessed you with. And above all, let's not forget to pray for the people of Haiti too.