Welcome
As some of you may know, I’ve decided to go on an 11 month
journey with Adventure’s in Mission, traveling to India, Nepal, Romania, Moldova, South Africa, Swaziland,
Mozambique, Thailand, Cambodia, Australia, and Malaysia. The purpose of this
trip would be to raise awareness about many issues affecting these nations and
more importantly to be a part of the solution. We will be working with local
partners to address issues concerning hunger, modern day slavery, to work with
orphanages, and much more. But the main question is why would anyone or why
would I do such a thing?
Even though I felt called, I struggled; but then a friend sent me a link that
helped to put things back into perspective.
http://imgur.com/7d4t6
(pardon the language on this site)
I’ve always had
a heart for those in need. But it really has been the last 3 years that I have
felt that God has been calling me to serve “the least of these”. Why? I think
the link says is all. In this nation we all
live a rich life (no matter what economic status!) when compared to the rest of
the world. No, I’m not one of those who believes that God wants all of us to
live in poverty. On the contrary I believe that he wants to bless each of us. I
have been guilty of taking my blessed life for granted, guilty of complaining
about things that I should be thankful for. I don’t want to get caught up in
“not doing”, faith is about doing! In my yearning to build a better relation
with God, he’s simply responded with ‘just do it’ like the Nike slogan.
1 John 3:16-23 says it best:
16 This is how we know what love is: Jesus Christ laid down
his life for us. And we ought to lay down our lives for our brothers and
sisters. 17 If anyone has material possessions and sees a brother or sister in
need but has no pity on them, how can the love of God be that person? 18 Dear
children, let us not love with words or speech but with actions and in
truth. 19 This is how we know that
we belong to the truth and how we set our hearts at rest in his presence: 20 If
our hearts condemn us, we know that God is greater than our hearts, and he
knows everything. 21 Dear friends, if our hearts do not condemn us, we have
confidence before God 22 and receive from him anything we ask, because we keep
his commands and do what pleases him. 23 And this is his command: to believe in
the name of his Son, Jesus Christ, and to love one another as he commanded us.
(NIV)
And Matthew 7:26-27:
“But if you just use my words in Bible studies and
don’t work them into your life, you are like a stupid carpenter who built his
house on the sandy beach. When a storm rolled in and the waves came up, it
collapsed like a house of cards.” (The Message)
I’ve lived a life full of love. I’ve been given much by God,
loving parents, and more second chances than I deserve. A life with out need
and I’ve heard time and time again the call to feed the hungry, clothe the
naked, take care of widows and orphans. I believe this 11 month journey is Gods
way of letting me put “my money where my mouth is” so to say, to give as I have
been given to. We live in a world in which the extreme poor don’t feel loved,
are treated cruelly and/or have been ignored by practically everyone else, and
pushed to side so that they might be out of sight, out of mind. Constantly
cynics tell us it’s hopeless to solve world hunger, cure the AIDS crisis in
Africa; free those trapped in slavery and give every orphan a home. As this
proverb and the butterfly effect theory implies even if I can love one person,
give one-person hope it will be enough.
“Whoever destroys a soul, it is considered as if he
destroyed an entire world. And whoever saves a life, it is considered as if he
saved an entire world.”
– Babylonian
Talmud, Sanhedrin 4:8 (37a)
For this journey I
have to raise a total of $14,300 if you wish to support me please give
here.
https://www.adventures.org/give/donate.asp?giveto=worldrace&desc=For%20Roberto%20Calderon
robertocalderon.theworldrace.org
