The Number One
Lately, I have felt like numbers have consumed my life. Between fundraising, planning, paying bills, and working nonstop, my life has been dictated and directed by numbers. Please bear with me as I illustrate the importance of a number, and why my focus has been completely misdirected as of late.
- 400 The amount it will cost to fly to Georgia for training camp
- 3800 The amount I have fundraised thus far
- 6000 The amount I have spent on medical bills this summer
- 8500 The amount I need to pay back my work for not fulfilling my contract
- 17,900 The amount I need to fundraise for the world race
I hate fundraising. I hate asking for money. I hate being dependent on others. This may explain why fundraising has been so unsuccessful for me. It’s incredibly uncomfortable to ask for money. It’s hard to explain why I desperately need fundraising support. It’s hard to explain that by donating we are doing something together, as a partnership. The task is daunting. The numbers previously listed make me incredibly anxious. But these numbers seem small and insignificant compared to the real numbers that keep me up at night.
- 1,000,000 The number of people that die of malaria a year
- 1,100,000 The number of deaths a year due to HIV/AIDS (99.98% not in US)
- 2,000,000 The number of children in commercial sex slavery
- 10,500,000 The number of adults sold as sex slaves
- 21,000,000 The number of people in forced labor
- 40,000,000 The number of people living with HIV/AIDS
- 72,000,000 The number of children that are not in school.
- 270,000,000 The number of children without medical services (1 in 7)
- 400,000,000 The number of children without access to safe water (1 in 5)
- 640,000,000 The number of children without proper shelter (1 in 3)
- 1,000,000,000 The number of people unable to read or sign their name
- 1,100,000,000 The number of people that don’t have access to clean water
- 2,600,000,000 The number of people that lack basic sanitation
These numbers have put such a weight on me that I have recently shut down. I was completely overwhelmed and burdened by the sheer size of these numbers. It took me a while to fully grasp that each of those numbers has a name. Each of those numbers has a face, and a smile, and tears. But while sitting at church, I realized that those numbers aren’t the ones I should be focusing on.
I should be focusing on the number one.
There is one God that corrects the atrocities that plague this earth. There is one God that sacrificed his one son in one act of unfathomable kindness. There is one God that rose from the dead, conquered sin, and is still alive today.
It is not asked of me to erase the numbers, which I previously listed off. I am only called to do one thing. That is to love each person I contact on this mission trip, one person at a time. It is not my burden, to bare the sin of man. That was done on the cross. “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.
For the next year of my life, I get to do what I am called to do. I am blessed enough to change a person’s quality of life, and envelope them in a loving relationship with Christ, one person at a time.
The world race is going to cost me $17,900 for a year of overseas travel and living. While this number has made me incredibly anxious, I know that one life changed, is worth far more than that number. What is the life of an 11 year old girl in sex trafficking worth? Is she worth more than the $200 her parents sold her for, to keep their other three kids fed? Is she worth more than the $3 a man pays to sleep with her?
I have been asked so many times, why I am going on the World Race. I have been asked why I can’t just postpone it, or wait another year. I simply can’t keep putting off what I have been called to do. Simply put, the number “One” won’t let me.
If you feel called to donate, or learn more about my 11-month mission trip to 11 different countries, please go to kevincrow.theworldrace.org
You can also follow my youtube channel at https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCpiD5RHA9jfyEXjf25d339Q
God Bless!
-Kevin Crow
