Fire of Poverty

Getting used to horrible norms is like letting the fire spread.
Currently, my cousin Frida is traveling all over the world learning about different economies and poverty.  Currently, she is visiting Uganda and her heart just broke when she saw beautiful children living in the streets because there is more safety on the streets than at home.

For someone that comes from a 1st world country, we don't see poverty too often.  But when we do, we debate whether it's worth giving them money because we're afraid they'll waste the money on booze or drugs.  Or we look down on them and refuse to help or find understanding of their situation.  But when we go to a different country, specifically a 3rd world country, our hearts literally break and we try to figure out a way to help them.

Traveling is important because it opens our eyes to the realities that we don't realize exist in our own hometowns.
Poverty is everywhere! Brokenness exists everywhere! And if we take a blind eye to it, we're spreading the fire of poverty even more.
In Ecuador, I see poverty every single day. When I walk to the grocery store, there's a group of guys washing windows or doing some kind of circus act during a stoplight.  Across the street from where I live, there is a family that goes through the trash and collects recyclables because that's their job or only source of income. When I'm at KFC, a little kid will come up to me to ask for money.
It's uncomfortable sometimes because I know it's possible their parents are sending them on the streets to beg for money and that they would have to give what they make to them.  Parents will force their child to quit school so that they can beg on the streets for money. A lot of kids here leave their home because of the conditions they face in their own home.  So their home becomes the street; they learn a lifestyle of how to beg, steal and sleep. But sometimes that lifestyle exists within their families too.

But change can happen and it does when we stop letting the fire spread and start spreading more of Jesus. 
Casa Gabriel is a ministry that I have the amazing opportunity to work with. It is a discipleship ministry and home for boys that grew up in the streets of Ecuador.  They have found Jesus Christ and believe and that they have a God who is King of this city! Though there are horrible realities, they know that God still reigns.  I have seen these boys grow over the last couple of years. They come with different pasts and baggage but Casa Gabriel is a place that they can feel safe to unpack it.  They are instilled with new and holistic values instead of the threatening values of their past. They are more than just their past, they are my friends and my teammates.

Spreading Jesus isn't about giving money or "converting" them, it's just about loving your neighbor. 
These boys are living examples of what happens when Jesus is spread instead of fire.