Isaiah 6:8 "Then I heard the voice of the Lord saying, "Whom shall I send and who will go for us?" And I said "Here I am, send me!"
The question of calling is often discussed in Christian circles. As human beings, we constantly wonder what we're "going to do when we grow up." I have even heard my own father say that he wonders what he'll do when he grows up at times. Plus, we live in such an occupation-driven society that we tend to think of our job as our only calling in life. Should I be a pastor, doctor, fireman, social worker, banker? This is how we tend to think of our calling, but I think our callings in life work in a slightly different way.
Isaiah, for instance, stepped in to answer a calling. He was asked in a vision "whom shall I send and who will go for us?" Isaiah was appointed to prophesy to the nations, and he didn't even have to search for his calling at all. It simply came to him because he had his eyes on God. Therefore, I'd like to propose the idea that your calling and my calling will come to us if we simply will keep our eyes on God and wait for him to tell us where he needs us.
It is this need that I have seen and have recognized as a calling for my life. I have heard it said that the intersection of that which makes you feel most strongly and that which the world needs most is right where God needs you to be(it was probably worded in a more eloquent way, but you get the general idea). My heart lies with the needy. We recognize serious spiritual need in America, but we often forget that many people are in physical need, especially in the third world.
As many of you probably know, Bolivia is a third world nation. There are many consistent conditions in third world nations. For instance, third world nations consistenly have a very high infant mortality rate and low life expectancy. Therefore, people have many children in the third world with hopes that some will survive into adulthood, because if they don't have enough children they fear that none of them will survive into adulthood. Furthermore, third world nations often have more agriculturally driven economies. Thus, having many children to help work and run the farm is beneficial in third world nations.
We can see all of these conditions in Bolivia, and see how the U.S is in contrast to the third world conditions. According to the CIA world factbook, The U.S has a life epectancy of 78.24 years and an infant mortality rate of 6.14 deaths for every 1000 infants born. Bolivia, however, has a life expectancy of 67.23 years and an infant mortality rate of 43.41 deaths for every 1000 infants born. You read that right, Bolivia's people are expected to live 10 years less than people from the U.S on average, and Bolivia's children die 7 times more often in child birth than the U.S's children!
The high infant mortality rate and low life expectancy in Bolivia is caused by a severe lack of healthcare. Bolivia is known far and wide as the poorest country in South America. Having lost two wars(one to Peru and one to Chile) the country's people are still suffering from the effects of those wars(people are primarily suffering from the loss of Bolivia's coastline, which has severely limited Bolivia's trade with other nations and has limited its natural resources).
You may not realize it, but we live in the richest nation on planet earth. We live in a nation where we don't worry about going hungry, we don't have several children to ensure that some survive into adulthood, and we don't worry about medical clinics and hospitals being readily available to us. The poor people of the third world must be empowered and encouraged by we who are living in abundance to stand up and continue to live in hope. You also may not realize this, but the rest of the world thinks you're rich. In fact, in comparison to most of the rest of the world, you are rich. I'm sorry if that comes as a surprise to you, and I'm not trying to call anyone out, but even the poorest of America are often richer than most in the folks in the third world.
Income aside, I want you to think about a few things.
1. How many times do you eat a day?
2. How many cars do you own?
3. Do you own a home?
4. Do you have access to clean water?
5. Do you have access to health care and education?
These are just a few things that we take for granted. I will answer the five questions for my family. I eat at least 3 meals a day. My family owns 4 cars(I had to actually think about that number before I typed it down). My family does, indeed, own a home. We can get clean water from our fridge or any faucet in the house. We have always had access to health care, and I and my sister are currently in college.
The people in Bolivia are in grave need. They are in need of food, of water, of medicine, and the gospel message of Jesus Christ. It is my hope to do everything I can to meet these needs for the people of Cochabamba, Bolivia.
So, where does this leave us? If you stop and think about the issues of the world, you can be slightly overwhelmed, especially because most of the poverty of the third world is due to unfair government systems. Can we change government systems? Not really. So what can we do? Well, we can answer God's call and do what God has equipped us to do; whatever that may be. We speak so often about what is wrong in the church and wrong in the world today. Instead of just talking about it, let's stand up and do something about it.
1 John 3:18 "Dear children, let us not love with words or tongue but with actions and in truth."
This, friends and family, is all why I am going to Bolivia. I feel strongly that God has called all of us to action, and I feel most strongly and passionately about going and helping the poor of Bolivia.
Matthew 9:12 "On hearing this Jesus said, "It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick."
Yes, I will go. I will accept God's calling to go and serve and love others, especially those in need. I hope that you will join me.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6B1Lv8k5pEc
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qsl75Sno9MA
Kevin Quinby
