F is for Fundraising, a Fourteen-year-old and Fifty-one photos

Yesterday I picked blueberries with an experienced fundraiser and philanthropist. You’d never know it, and he’d never say it — he’s a quiet, humble guy. Maybe that’s why I like him so much.

That and I used to change his diapers.

Yes, he’s  fourteen and the beloved son of my friend and discipler of many years. He piled in between my two kids’ carseats and joined us for a morning of blueberry picking in the beautiful foothills of Colton. This is the same boy who slept on my floor ten years ago (the day that Jeff broke my heart) and asked me, “Miss Kari, are you ever going to get married?”

But recently this shy guy has a bee in his bonnet about raising funds for those in need in Africa. So he and his two brothers got creative and started their own little MooGuyz ministry, working, selling stuff, and raising support to purchase a $1,000 cow for a family in Uganda.  Their older sister, Hannah, had the joy of delivering the cow to the family in Uganda just a few weeks ago (All four pictured below)

Isn’t that so cool?  It reminded me of this little 11-year-old boy in Ghana, who has made headlines by endeavoring to raise $13 MILLION dollars during his 8-week school holiday, walking office to office and approaching local businesses for donations. The skinny, soft-spoken boy says,

“There is no point for others to have so much to eat while others have nothing … There are hungry people in Ghana too but our situation is not as desperate as the people of Somalia,”

There is no point …

The part that gets me about this story? The boy’s father, a school-teacher in Ghana, gave his entire July salary: $500.

His entire month’s salary.

I look at that boy, at his father, at my little 14-year-old friend, and I say: That is beautiful.

And yesterday I clicked it again: That World Vision link that multiplies your gift times five and sends food and supplies to our Somalian brothers and sisters in desperate need. And I turn here to the 51-photos, to see for myself, and weep, again. Mother closing her lifeless child’s eyes. Four-year-old buried in a roll of carpet. 7-month-old baby weighing 7.5 pounds.  Without even thinking the words escape from my mouth, “This is hell.”

One photo is first blocked by a warning message: The following image contains graphic content that some viewers may find disturbing. A choice: Do I click?

Will I be disturbed?

To disturb is to move, to “break up the normal arrangement.” Do I want to be moved? Do I want my normal arrangement to be broken?

Aren’t I so thankful that 11-year-old Ghana boy was moved? That his dad was moved? That my 14-year-old friend was moved? That they were all disturbed?

I don’t like disturbing things, but there are beautiful stories in the midst of the hellish Horn of Africa situation.

And all of them begin with being disturbed.

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{Would you take some time today to look, and be a bit disturbed, for good? There IS hope. There IS joy. This IS the day that the Lord has made and He is GOOD. Will you continue to pray, give, spread the word, for those who desperately need hope. Happy Friday and Thank you for reading.}