We were driving to Vileko Tarnovo for a day trip on our day off. It’s a beautiful antique city draped over a mountainside. Known as the “City of the Tsars”, it has been home to the old Bulgarian capital, generations of tsars, governments, invasions, celebrations, and advancements.
On top of looking forward to a day exploring this gorgeous city, I was excited for lunch. Yes, lunch. One of my teammates’ parents was treating us to lunch. We were eating out as a team, along with our ministry hosts, without worrying if we could afford anything on the menu or trying to figure out what we would eat for the next two days because our entire budget went to one meal or how much we would have to pay out of our personal savings to cover the splurge. It was covered. A gracious gift. We could have pop or iced tea. We could get an entrée that wasn’t the cheapest thing on the menu. It just relieved stress and complications that come with eating out on the Race. It was enjoyable. We would be able to enjoy talking and laughing as a group instead of doing math calculations. When I realized how much I was looking forward to lunch today, I was kind of shocked.
I haven’t been deprived on the Race. We have a budget of $5 per person per day that we combine to buy food for the team. It’s tight and we get creative and maybe forego what we were used to at home but we’re not starving. We might not have pop, dessert, or a U.S.-sized portion of lean protein but we have enough. We have to work a little more and put a bit more thought into stretching our budget but that’s the point. 2.4 billion people live on less than $2 a day. The poverty level in the U.S. is $10 per day.
I realized what I took for granted at home. I ate out a lot because I was too lazy to cook after work, didn’t feel like going to the grocery store, or went out with friends. Even this year, I didn’t think anything of it; it’s just 11 months. I’ve deployed and lived overseas. I give up things for a while but I know when I get home, I can do what I want and indulge pretty much however I want to. I have always lived comfortably.
Missionaries, non-profit staff, etc, choose a career they know will not be excessively profitable from a financial standpoint. Single parents, families with special needs, and adults caring for elderly parents make sacrifices to care for their families. They make it work but it can be a struggle. They sacrifice small comforts and luxuries like meals out because the budget simply does not go that far. They aren’t just waiting out a period of weeks or months in “doing without” or sacrificing. If we are fortunate to have a job that allows us to indulge occasionally, you can be a huge blessing to someone by treating them to a meal out or even just dropping off a dessert. You may not realize the large impact you can have by blessing someone in such a seemingly small way.
