Giving Back - Part 1: Gifts

"Look not only after your own interest, but also the interest of others" (Philippians 2:4). Whether you believe in God or not, life makes it clear that we should help others. We are not meant to sit around and look to improve only our own lives. There are so many different problems in the world that can be prevented, helped, or stopped. All too often people don't help though. For years I pondered as to why that is. Do people not care? Are they too focused and caught up in their own lives to see the lives of others? Would they help if they knew what was happening around them? I am a believer that if presented with a way to help, that most people will unless it has a potential negative effect on themselves. They don't have enough time or money to make a difference. This completely changed the way I looked at raising support for causes.

Though people will sometimes help even if they don't receive any personal gain from it, they are still much more likely to help if it is also helping them. Of course that is often considered against the nature of giving, which is that the "personal gain" should be the joy that you did something for someone else. While this is true, I can't deny how it would increase the amount of help people give if it helps them too. My goal has become to show people how easy it is to help, and provide ways that they can do this that maximizes support.

While I believe things such as AIDS research and support for a cure are very important, my main focus has always been things that are more more easily cured and preventable, especially in kids. Let's look at malaria as an example. Malaria was the 4th leading killer of children under the age of 5 in the world between 2000 and 2003 (http://www.cdc.gov/malaria/impact/index.htm). It was estimated to have killed 853,000 kids under the age of 5. With the typical total of malaria deaths being about one million, 85% of the deaths are kids under the age of 5. At that age, it killed over 530,000 more than AIDS. The craziest thing about these statistics is that malaria is curable and preventable.

It is transmitted by mosquitoes. Most people get bit while they sleep. One of the most popular preventions are insecticide treated bed nets. They cost between $5 and $10 US dollars (http://www.nothingbutnets.net/). And then there is also medication that can be taken to prevent and/or cure malaria. So why is something that is so preventable such a huge problem?

MONEY

Money is the solution to many problems in this world. While it may not be possible to completely eradicate things such as malaria, with enough money, the number of cases and deaths can be greatly diminished. Though the estimates of how much it can be stopped vary, the W.H.O. Malaria Chief said we could decrease it by 90% (http://www.nytimes.com/2008/03/04/health/04mala.html).

So why does malaria still kill approximately one million people a year? Possibly because people don't realize how easy it is to help. Possibly because people don't realize how easy it is to make a positive difference in someone's life. I'm not the type that wants to rag on celebrities saying they are not donating enough of their salaries to things like this. It is the regular, everyday people that have and will change the direction of the world. Yes, some Hollywood star could give a million dollars and that would be wonderful. But how about one million people giving $2, or $5, or $10. Considering there are over 300 million people in the U.S. I'm sure you can see where I'm going.

I realize that we are in hard economic times, and that there are other things in our lives that we need to spend money on. However, don't let that blind you to the fact that you can still do something. Just telling someone else about world problems, raising awareness, is doing something. Taking a minute to go out of your way to genuinely ask how someone is feeling is doing something. There are ways to help all around us, but they are not always clear and evident.

I am a firm believer that God gave each and every person gifts. Some dance, some act, some sing, some write. Others may be gifted with being a good mother, being a great friend, a teacher. Some people can make you smile when all you want to do is cry. Some may be skilled at cooking, problem solving, running, playing video games, playing an instrument. There are so many different types of gifts people have. While some are more openly praised and often considered "better", every gift is important. I don't believe that there is a single gift God has given us that can't be used to give back to others, and ultimately God Himself. Some gifts are more obvious and can clearly be used, but I do believe all gifts can serve a purpose.

What are your gifts? How can you use them to serve others?

My next post will get into some plans on what I hope to do over the next few months to help you help others.

If you would like help figuring out what your gifts are, or how you can use your gifts, please let me know. I would love to help!