The Price of One Latte!

By Gypsy Meadows

You don't have to give up a lot!

How much time do you have to change the world? How much time do you spend fighting against inequality, injustice, discrimination or poverty? Is it even possible to make a difference in these important issues?

I want to encourage you. As a North American, you have so many demands on your time and attention, and yet as a human being, I know you also care about those who don’t enjoy the same liberties you do. I know the millions of children orphaned by AIDS in Africa pull on your heart, but what can you do? I am certain the women and girls of the Middle East who are denied access to education and social services make you want to act, but where do you start?

It takes courage to see the world for what it really is, because as soon as we see, we feel a sense of responsibility. Many people with less courage just shut out the real world and live in a cocooned environment where the needy world is out there but one’s own needs and wants take first priority.

Because we live in North America, we know that certain values are the goal of our society even though we don’t live in a perfect world yet. But so many people throughout the world don’t have that hope. There are no social services to run to in crisis, no justice system founded on certain inalienable rights, no freedom to become who you are outside of strict societal definition. These are the people who need our help. With the freedom and security we enjoy, we can change the world for those who have no one to go to for help.

One tool that has been found effective in accomplishing this is Christian education. By teaching biblical values such as equality, fair treatment, equal opportunity and freedom of religion and expression to children in the darkest places of the world, not only is hope born at an immediate level, but a new way of looking at life is introduced to children who may have only been taught one way.

For example, our Christian mission schools throughout Bangladesh are not only providing the only source of education to thousands of village children, they are also challenging the boys to consider that women and girls have equal value in God’s eyes. This is contrary to what most of these boys learn in their society, and it offers an opportunity to change an entire nation within the next generation.

The projects presented in this publication give you an opportunity to change the world even as you go about building your own. Consider this: How much could you change the world for the price of a latte a day? Many of us spend three or four dollars every day on specialty coffee drinks. What could four dollars a day do to change the world?