solidarity challenge

wow! i can't believe i did it! it was definitely an eye opener. thank God for coming alongside me.

i took up a 5 day challenge from church as an act of solidarity with our brother's & sister's around the world who lives on $2 or less a day.

the idea was to eat just portion sizes of a typical american meal for 5days. pretty much a cup of oatmeal or rice is already generous and since meat is a luxury, with the average african consuming about ¾ ounce per day (that's actually about a size of a small chicken nugget). and for them fresh fruit is rare, available only if locally grown and in season.

so, for the past 5 days i've been eating a cup of oatmeal in the morning, some days were less; i couldn't eat snacks at work (which i was so used to doing... so for me that was really hard esp. when my co-workers would pull out their snacks and lunches - ugh!) so right when i get home (3p) from pickin' up my son from school... i couldn't wait to eat a cup of rice w/ 2 bits of meat, then of course strictly just water. so when i would hear the growling & cramping of my stomach i would drink water right away. there were a couple of times i slept really hungry, but since it was part of the challenge i just slept it off.

of course i was tempted in many ways, like when my boss invited to treat us at a mexican buffet (one of my faves), oh gosh! i was so tempted to go and when my sis would cook her infamous dishes... oh my! but i held myself and prayed for strength. they were all very surprised when i refused the offer. of course i didn't want to brag about my fasting coz i wanted it strictly between me and the Lord... to find out what He really wants me to learn from this. i'm grateful to say that i finished that challenge yesterday and i so appreciate the Lord for the lessons i learned through this challenge.

i learned how hard it is to feel real hunger. i lost 5lbs doing this in 5 days, so i learned too that this is the reason why all of them suffer from malnourishment - due to hunger & due to their lack of resources. i mean just think about it, i did this only for 5days while they experience this everyday and at times they don't even have food to eat at all. this experience helped me see the other side of my world. how much important not to waste food when others are dying to be able to survive by eating spoiled food. although i was feeling the hunger and drink water instead, they on the other hand drink unsanitized water. they beg for what we throw out.


so you guessed it, today i get to eat what i want now, but this experience will remain with me in my heart. expect that i will not just sit here and let this experience and what i know about them just fade. with God's providence and guidance, i will do what He wants me to do to help those in desperate need. this has brought me new perspective to think big for Project HOPE.

imagine how blessed you are right now, look at your kids, look at how much food you have, look around the place you live in... i praise God for you, for you have been blessed abundantly. but the question is, how much of that will you be willing to give? will you just stand there and still do nothing? friends, someone out there needs you... there's a massive cry for help and i encourage you to step up and make a difference.

i say, enough is enough!
love