Category Archives: Poverty

May 25, 2013 · 1:05 pm

Buddy, Can You Spare A Dime?

One day the Lord got my attention while I was standing at a busy street corner in India waiting for the light to turn green. There were little children everywhere, a common sight at many busy corners in Bombay. Tourists are cautioned not to give them anything because once you do, the others will all mob you.

While I was at this corner, feeling a bit annoyed by little hands grabbing at me, I heard from behind me the voice of a young girl.

“Sahib, Sir, my father died. My mother is sick. She can’t beg anymore. And I have a little brother, who is very hungry. Would you please give me a few pennies so I can buy some bread and take it to him?”

The light turned green, and everybody hurried on. But I couldn’t move. What she said pierced my heart, I turned around and saw this young girl, not yet 10 years old. I will never forget her face − one of the most beautiful faces I have ever seen on a child. She had big brown eyes, thick black hair almost the length of her body, dirty fingernails, and dust mingled with sweat running down her face. She was barefoot and in rags. She just stood there with her hand extended.

I put my hands in my pocket and took all the money I could find and gave it to her. Then, I walked on.

Like the disciples on the road to Emmaus, I felt an unseen stranger joined me on this emotional walk. “So, what do you think about the little girl you just met? Is her life as valuable and precious as…” and the face of another young girl appeared in my mind’s eye. I didn’t know the name of the girl on the street, but I for certain knew the name of this new face; it was my own little daughter, Sarah.

I certainly don’t want anyone to feel guilty about lovingly caring for our own children and grandchildren. But the question remains: Is there room in our hearts for one or two of the world’s suffering children, and can we also care for them in Jesus’ name? Can we see them as Jesus does, so special to Him, their worth like jewels beyond compare?

When I read No Longer A Slumdog, I saw the face of my daughter, Susan, and became a sponsor in Gospel For Asia’s Bridge of Hope ministry. I pray this happens to thousands and thousands of Americans, maybe even you. (Larry Who)

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May 10, 2013 · 1:31 pm

A Friday Poem

I am nobody,

Worthless my life is.

To Untouchables I was born,

A Dalit child my fate sealed.

I was born in slums.

Rights? We have none.

To upper-caste our lives we owe.

Slaves to serve all their wish.

Poverty and hunger

Is all I ever knew.

If there is hope,

Tell me how?

What is my future?

Do I have any?

It all looks so dark

And I wish I were not born.

At the very bottom of the ungodly caste system in India are the 300,000,000 Untouchables or the Dalits. Their numbers are staggering and their children have lived the words in the above poem for over 3,000 years.

Yet, take a closer look at the above picture, okay?

These are Dalit children who have been brought into Gospel For Asia’s Bridge of Hope program. Their eyes radiate hope because they attend school, are fed one hot nutritious meal each day, receive clothing to wear, have regular medical checkups, and learn about Jesus.

And it only takes someone − like you or me − to sponsor a child for $35 per month.

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May 3, 2013 · 1:04 pm

No Ice Cream Cone For Jagruti

Can you imagine being six years old and never having tasted an ice cream cone? Never once having drops of chocolate dribble down your chin and splatter onto your shirt, causing your mom’s eyes to almost shout aloud. Never once taking a bite out of the bottom of the cone and making a bigger mess on your shirt, causing even more problems.

How can this be?

Jagruti is a beautiful six-year old girl who lives in rural Maharashtra, India’s wealthiest state which borders on the Arabian Sea. The financial capital of India, Mumbai, and other large cities in Maharashtra swirl with activity from IBM, Microsoft, Honeywell, Volkswagen, Audi, GM, Fiat, Mercedes, Skoda, and other large international corporations.

Yet, Jagruti has never tasted an ice cream cone.

You see, Jagruti had the misfortune of being born to parents who are Dalits. And as a Dalit child, Jagruti is considered a subhuman, impure from birth, and worthy of nothing but contempt. She is one of the 300 million “Untouchables,” which means just that – no upper-caste person can touch her and she can not touch them. She is denied access to public wells and may be fined for drinking from a water fountain.

But still, it’s only an ice cream cone, can’t she have one?

Jagruti’s papa is a hard working laborer, but being a Dalit, only certain jobs are open to him. These include harvesting crops by hand or cleaning open-air toilets, latrines, and sewers with his bare hands. This backbreaking work will earn him a few rupees per day, barely enough to support his wife, a baby daughter, two sons, and Jagruti.

So, no money left over for luxuries like ice cream cones.

Jagruti is special child, especially to my wife and me, because we help support her through Gospel For Asia’s Bridge of Hope. The picture above is one she colored and sent to us from her village, nine thousand miles away. A work by Monet or Renoir could never hold a candle to a Jagruti original.

Just so you know: my wife and I have struggled financially. Yet, we support Jagruti, three other children, and plan on supporting more. How? We’ve learned God honors His word.

He who has pity on the poor lends to the Lord, and He will pay back what he has given. (Proverbs 19:17)

And pay backs from God are always more than enough.

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April 30, 2013 · 6:50 am

SLAP! Thanks, I needed that.

An excerpt from The Road To Reality by K. P. Yohannan:

Jesus said in Mark 16:15 that we are to go to the “whole world” with the Gospel. It would appear some people think this means just to people of their race who live on the right side of town. Others with a really “big vision” seem to think it means the country they live in. But Jesus gave a clear command. We must have a world vision that reaches to our own “Jerusalem” as well as our “Judea, Samaria, and unto the uttermost parts of the earth.”

The benchmark of your love of God is your burden and committed action for the whole world—not just for your small corner of it.

What clever, spiritual-sounding excuses I’ve heard in my travels.

One of the most interesting excuses blames God for our problems. It usually begins with, “But, Brother K.P., you don’t know my . . .” and ends with a sob story about some old defeat, hurt, sin or temptation. I call this the “wounded soldier” excuse.

With love in my heart, the only thing I can say to this excuse-maker is, “I understand. But no matter how badly you’ve been hurt, you’re in a million times better shape than any lost sinner walking down the road to hell. If you think you’ve got problems, how would you like to worship a demon god that demanded you sacrifice your newborn baby by cutting her throat before their deity? How would you like to worship a god that demanded you throw yourself alive into the flames of your husband’s funeral pyre? Or how would you like to be enslaved to a religion that forced you to bow down and worship the rats that were eating your grain and causing your children to starve to death?”

All of this is happening in Asia today and around the world— wherever people are enslaved to heathen religions.

(The above excerpt is taken from The Road To Reality by K. P. Yohaannan which can be downloaded as an e-Book free here or purchased for $10 here. It’s a life-changing book…if that’s what you want.)

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April 19, 2013 · 11:23 am

I Started A Business Yesterday, But…

Any of us can start a business. To do so, all we must do is discover a customer need, fill that need at agreeable prices for both customers and us, and bada bing bada boom, we are in business.

Sounds easy enough, right? Why aren’t more people doing it?

The answer is simple: money.

It takes money to buy supplies, equipment, rent a shop, advertise, hire workers, meet state and federal laws, insurances, provide salaries, and dozens of other things.

Yet, no matter how well we plan and budget ahead of time, the amount of money needed to get the business off the ground will always be much more than we figure. Always. This seems to work according to the precepts of Murphy’s Law: “Anything that can go wrong will go wrong, and at the most inopportune time.”

Okay, now that the heavy stuff is out of the way, I started a new business yesterday, but it was not mine.

You see, my wife and I bought a sewing machine for a family in India through Gospel for Asia. This gift will empower a poor family to provide funds for their needs through their very own tailoring business. Maybe a family unit will now stay together and a child won’t have to be sold.

As soon as the family receives the sewing machine, classes are provided so people can start putting their new machines to good use. Can you imagine how hope will be sparked in this family? And maybe, each will love Jesus a little more.

Do you want to know how we could afford to help this family?

I sold an older laptop computer and the boxes from our recent move. The total came to $85, just enough to buy the sewing machine. Since the money had been spent on these items long ago, we didn’t even miss it.

If you want to know more about empowering the poor in India, check out all the gifts Gospel For Asia has here. You can also watch a 26 second video on the sewing machine and how it changed one family’s life.

Who knows? Maybe you have some stuff in your garage or attic which can be converted to cash to help the poor in India. If so, it will be an eternally wise decision on your part.

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March 22, 2013 · 10:58 am

No Longer A Slumdog

In 1995, a friend told me about K.P. Yohannan and his ministry, Gospel For Asia. She gave me a book which I quickly forgot about until New Years Day, 1996. On that particular holiday, I had nowhere to go and no TV to watch football bowl games. So, I hunkered down and read the book.

In one part, Yohannan wrote how overwhelmed he felt by the size of India and his meager resources. He cried out to the Lord and eventually the Lord spoke the following to his heart:

“I am not in any trouble that I need someone to beg for Me. I made no promises I will not keep to you. It is not the largeness of the work that matters, but only doing what I command. All I ask of you is that you be a servant. For all who join with you in the work, it will be a privilege – a light burden for them.”

Although I don’t remember the book’s name, I wrote the above response in my Bible. Then, I did nothing.

Fast forward until last year when I received a free copy of No Longer A Slumdog. The title caught my attention and I began reading it. Over the following two hours, I wept and asked forgiveness again and again as the book revealed my selfishness and hardness of heart.

There were stories about Muttu, Asha, Lata, Vichy, Tusli, and other names of poor children I can’t begin to pronounce. I read about a mother who sold her baby for ten pounds of rice. I learned about India’s caste system and how the lowest rung, the Dalits, comprise 20% of India’s population, or 250 million people, and are considered subhuman, worthy of being treated like a dog.

Every word in the book acted like a rock thrown against my plastic Western Christianity, creating cracks in it. Yet, it was this specific sentence on Page 31 which penetrated my heart:

“In India alone, there are 11 million children like Asha who have been abandoned, and 90% of them are girls.”

Afterward, all I could think about were the 9.9 million abandoned little girls. If I closed my eyes, I saw children, but their faces resembled my daughter when she was four years old.

This time, I could not ignore my heart.

My wife and I are now sponsors of children in Gospel For Asias’ Bridge of Hope program. Also, I am a volunteer advocate for Bridge of Hope and a Gospel For Asia Blogger.

In the Foreword to No Longer A Slumdog, Francis Chan wrote:

“I am very thankful for the book you are about to read. It has stirred my heart once again. Living in the West with all its affluence, it is easy to forget about others…”

I recommend this book to everyone and who knows? It may change your life, too.

No Longer A Slumdog can be reviewed and purchased on Amazon for $14.95. Or it can be purchased for a suggested $5 donation from Gospel For Asia.

166 pages. Authored by K. P. Yohannan, 2011. Published by gfa books.

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March 17, 2013 · 11:30 am

Where’s Mom and Dad?

Although only five years old, I remember that particular September day.

It was the weekend of the Ogle County Fair which meant jumping in our 1951 Ford with my family and driving to the fairgrounds. Upon arrival, my sister went with her cousin to check out the fair. I stayed with mom and dad.

My parents first treated me to a hot dog and Nehi Cream Soda. Afterward, we walked around looking at farm exhibits.

Dad was interested in a tractor at one tent and talked to a lively salesman. Mom listened to the haggling and laughed at the two men. I stood there for a few moments, but the sounds of the fair tugged on my ears.

“Step right up and win yourself a teddy bear.”

“Get your ticket now for the tilt-a-whirl.”

“Hurry, hurry! Right this way!”

Without a word, I turned and followed the sounds. The crowd swept me along in its current to the carnival games and rides. Everything seemed so alive until a revelation dawned upon me: where’s Mom and Dad?

I backtracked to the tractor exhibit, but they were gone. I searched here, there, and everywhere. No parents. Finally, I stopped by a tree and cried. The thoughts of never seeing my parents again and wondering what would happen to me bombarded my mind.

Then, I heard a voice.

“Sonny, I’m here,” said Dad, leaning over to give me a hug.

My life began again at that moment.

This experience occurred years ago and lasted twenty or so minutes, but do you know in India there are 11 million abandoned children whose experiences never end? Little ones left to fend for themselves by poor parents who can no longer afford to care for them. 90% of these abandoned children are little girls.

Three million of these children end up living on the streets. A million or so of the little girls will end up in the sex trade with a life expectancy of 15 years of age.

What can we do?

Gospel For Asia’s Bridge of Hope offers us an opportunity to sponsor children, with 100% of our financial offerings going directly to help the children.

Like my dad on that day long ago, we can be a loving voice to these children which says, “I’m here.”

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February 5, 2013 · 7:22 am

My e-Book, “What’s In It For Me,” is Free Today From Amazon. Get Your Copy Now!

If you have a Kindle, Kindle Fire, iPad, Nexus, Galaxy, a computer, or smart phone with Kindle apps on it, my e-book novel, What’s In It For Me?, is FREE February 5 – 6, through Amazon.

Amazon Book Description:

Why should we care about Asia? After all, don’t we American Christians have enough problems without adding to our loads? So, what’s in it for me?

Two thirds of the world’s population lives in Asia, with China and India accounting for approximately 60% of the total population. Less than 5% of Asians know the Lord and many have never even heard of Jesus. Thousands of Christians are imprisoned for their faith in China, North Korea, Vietnam, and Laos. Other believers are harassed and murdered. Millions now face starvation with no hope in sight and gendercide is being carried out against females in China and India.

Okay, so what?

“Truly I say to you, to the extent that you did it to one of these brothers of Mine, even the least of them, you did it to Me.” (Matthew 25:40)

“Remember the prisoners, as though in prison with them, and those who are ill-treated, since you yourselves also are in the body.” (Hebrews 13:3)

“What’s In It For Me?” reveals how helping the least, the Asians and its prisoners, may be divine insurance policies for our own futures, especially us inhabitants on the West Coast.

This book may be one of the most important books any believer will ever read.

Print Length: 56 pages File Size: 193 KB Regular Price: $ 1.99

Free February 5 and February 6, 2013. So, check it out here and while you’re there check out my five other e-books here.

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January 29, 2013 · 7:47 am

My e-Book, “Planning + Preparation = Survival,” is Free Today. Get Your Copy Now!

If you have a Kindle, Kindle Fire, iPad, Nexus, Galaxy, a computer, or smart phone with Kindle apps on it, my e-book novel, Planning + Preparation = Survival, is FREE January 29 – 30, through Amazon.

Amazon Book Description:

What is the #1 statement spoken by individuals during large catastrophes?

“I didn’t think this would ever happen to me.”

Why?

They believed catastrophes always happened to someone else, but never to them. And if it did happen, they thought the government would arrive on the scene and rescue them before their cups of coffee turned cold.

If this is your present thinking, then allow me to say one word to smash your ideas to smithereens: Katrina. Yes, Hurricane Katrina, the watershed event when all of us should have learned to never again place our faith in governments to rescue us or our families from catastrophes.

Planning + Preparation = Survival is a no-nonsense book written to show Christians how to pray, plan, and prepare ourselves, our families, and our communities for possible natural and terrorist catastrophes in the near future.

Print Length: 56 pages File Size: 196 KB Regular Price: $ .99

Free January 29 and January 30, 2013. So, check it out here and while you’re there check out my four other e-books here.

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January 22, 2013 · 7:21 am

My e-Book, “New Wind Blowing,” is FREE Today. Get Your Copy Now!

If you have a Kindle, Kindle Fire, iPad, Nexus, Galaxy, a computer, or smart phone with Kindle apps on it, my e-book novel, Jonah, is FREE January 22 – 23, through Amazon.

Amazon Book Description:

“The definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results.” (Albert Einstein)

Since the 1970’s, we Christians have attempted to overturn the Supreme Court’s Roe versus Wade decision. We have fasted. We have prayed. We have preached and prophesied. And then, when that has failed, we have done more and more of the same. Yet, we have fallen far short of the mark.

Maybe, we are doing something wrong. And maybe, it’s time to look at a book like New Wind Blowing.

Part I explains a 2008 revelation on abortion and three other major issues.

Part II relates a 2011 revelation about the 2008 presidential election.

Conclusion states what we Christians should do in light of these two revelations.

Print Length: 57 pages File Size: 210 KB Regular Price: $ .99

Free January 22 and January 23, 2013. So, check it out here and while you’re there check out my four other e-books here.