Crisis or a chrysalis...?

I am only one, but still I am one. I cannot do everything, but still I can do something. -Helen Keller

It amazes me that in light of the realities of the world and the immense privilege we have as Americans, that people can still spin themselves into a sense of purposelessness or fear. If you are daring enough to read through the stats below, spend a moment and think about how you could move towards acting in such a way that these sins are cleansed. Working for justice could alleviate ones sense of personal ambivalence. Extend a plan and act on that plan in your world for the sake of their world. Maybe losing it all will open the door to gaining something worth having. Maybe our crisis is more of a chrysalis that will make us more human, and more reflective of the community of Heaven, here on Earth. Our challenges are so far removed from the normal lives of most people on this planet. The incessant bemoaning of our economic woes must sound ridiculous to the ears of those who are reflected below. The sad thing is that the charity towards these major issues will dry up as we move towards saving ourselves. That means even more death to the marginalized and poor of the world.

1 Billion people in the world do not have access to clean water, while the average American uses 4 Hundred to 6 hundred liters of water a day.

Eveery 7 seconds, somewhere in the world a child under the age of five dies hunger, while Americans throw away 14 percent of the food we purchase.

Nearly 1 billion people in the world live on less than 1 American dollar a day.

Another 2.5 billion people in the world (More than half the world) live on less than 2 American dollars a day.

40% of the people in the world lack basic sanitation...while 49 million diapers are used and thrown away in AMerica every day.

1.6 billion people in the world have no elcectricity.

Nearly 1 billion people in the world cannot read or sign their name.

Nearly 1 hundered million children are denied basic education.

By far most people in the world do not own a car...1/3 of Americans families own 3 cars.

1 in 7 children worldwide (158 million) has to go to work every day just to survive.

4 out of 5 American adults are high school graduates.

Americans spend more annually on trash bags than nearly half the world does on all goods.

1 million people commit suicide every year.

Today nearly 4,500 people in Africa will die of AIDS

More than 17 million children will starve to death this year.

Every 14 seconds, a child loses her parents to AIDS.

The HIV/AIDS pandemic is producing orphans on a scale unrivaled in world history. AIDS orphans are expected to number 44 million by 2010.

150 million children live on the streets because of poverty neglect and abuse.

10 million children are being sexually exploited.

In 2008 the US spent more on defense than the next 45 countries combined.

The superfluities of the rich are the necessities of the poor.
Superfluities: an unnecessary thing.

Read about Babylon: Rev 17:1-6 &18:1-24