Blog Action Day 2008 - Poverty

Again this year, I’m proud to participate in Blog Action Day. Last year’s topic was the environment, and tons of high-profile blogs participated to raise awareness. This year, Blog Action Day is focused on a very important issue that is close to my heart, Poverty.

Now, I myself have never been poor or experienced anything close to poverty. However, anyone who lives in this world and has their eyes open notices poverty, how it affects people, and how difficult it can be for people to pull themselves out of it.

The problem is that most people don’t have their eyes open.

Even living in a major American city like Baltimore, which has pockets of severe poverty, it is so easy to ignore the problem. That’s because poverty doesn’t always infiltrate our neighborhoods and daily lives. But this doesn’t mean that we don’t have a responsibility to confront the issue of poverty and do something about it.

Now, I’m not calling for some massive socialist-style redistribution of wealth. Many Americans have worked extremely hard to build wealth and deserve everything that they have. What I’m suggesting is much simpler, and I would argue more effective than simply handing money to those in need.

What I believe would actually change this country, is if each of us pledged to become involved with an organization for 1 year that benefited those living in poverty.

Over the past year, I’ve received so much joy and had amazing learning and growing experiences by being involved with both Sandtown Habitat for Humanity and Big Brothers Big Sisters. Not only do these organizations address some of the causes of cyclical poverty - employment/home ownership and fatherless homes, respectively - they also give people who aren’t poor a face and a name to attach to this issue. Knowing and working alongside our neighbors who are working to get out of poverty gives us a real sense of urgency to combat this issue.

I am also very excited and proud to be part of a church that is absolutely committed to addressing the issues relating to poverty in Baltimore. I have long believed that it is our duty as followers of Christ to treat people exactly how He did, especially those who are less-fortunate and marginalized. It’s invigorating to spend time with people who not only think the same way, but are actively involved in working to address poverty. If you are interested in this at all, please feel free to ask any questions about Grace City or come check out a service.

What will make Blog Action Day or any similar effort successful is if we each make a commitment to step outside of ourselves and do something to help those around us. It really doesn’t take a lot, just a caring for others and a little time goes a long way to combating poverty. As a first step, don’t donate money. Donate something that is more valuable and will change you forever. Donate your time and you will actually be able to see the difference that you’re making.