God's Hands

If you've ever read any of my blogging in the past, you know that I can be pretty passionate about certain issues. Being a surfer and outdoors buff, protecting our environment and caring for the other creatures who share this planet with us has always been a priority for me. A lot of my friends joke that I should apply to be the helicopter pilot on the Sea Shepherd Conservation Society's ship 'Steve Irwin' - you know, the one that harasses the Japanese whaling fleet in the Southern Ocean and is the star of the hit show 'Whale Wars'. Truth be told, I'd actually love to spend a few months with them throwing stink bombs at those illegal, murderous whalers! I'm definitely not a tree-hugger or anything, I just happen to feel that most Christians don't take the Bible's directives to care for our planet and its inhabitants even close to seriously enough.

That being said, I will always agree that there is one thing that trumps the environment - people. Sadly, for every whale that is being hunted, seal that is being clubbed, rain forest that is being logged or exotic animal sitting in a cage in some third-world market, there is probably more than one human being - made in the image of our Creator - being enslaved, abused, neglected, taken advantage-of, trafficked and generally living a life that is unimaginably crappy. The great majority of the human race ekes out an existence that the rest of us would consider a horror story. Some days the sheer weight of humanity's misery almost makes me not want to even get out of bed. I often ask God how He manages to keep His broken heart beating. He actually answered that question in an amazing way one day - but I'll save that for another blog.

Today, I thought I'd give a shout-out to a couple of other people who are actually doing what they can to care for the downtrodden and brokenhearted. This is important stuff, and I want to be sure that if you are reading my blog, you are also reading theirs. The first is Love146. Love146 is an organization devoted to combating the human trafficking and slavery industry - currently the second largest illegal syndicate in the world, close behind the illegal drug trade. An estimated two children are sold every minute. I won't even do them justice if I try to explain the awesomeness that is Love146 in my own words. I've added another video gadget on my blog page devoted to them - do yourself a favor and watch the 'Love146 - The History' video. Make sure you have a box of tissues. Then subscribe to their blog and learn every week how you can get involved in helping to end human trafficking and slavery.

Which brings me to the picture that is at the top of this post. Last week on Love146's blog, they talked about this great book called 'The Better World Shopping Guide'. Basically, the good folks at 'Better World' have compiled over twenty years-worth of data on just about every company you can think of that makes anything you can buy in any store, as well as the actual stores themselves! They give each product, brand name, store, etc. a 'grade' based on five categories: human rights, the environment, animal protection, community involvement and social justice. Then they publish everything in a pocket-sized booklet that you can take with you when you shop. Even better - for those of you who use iPhones, there is an iPhone app that you can download from iTunes for $1.99 that will truly put social justice in the palm of your hand! Let me tell you, in the short time that I have been using this guide, my shopping habits have changed - big time! It's a great way to voice your support of fair trade practices with your money. I encourage you to check it out.

The other shout-out I have is for someone very close to me. My brother, in fact. Again, I won't get too detailed because you should read his story in his blog, but I'll give you the quick facts. Chad owns a home-building company named Pillar Development. As is the case with most developers right now, Pillar has been having a tough go of things due to the downturn in the housing market. A while back, Chad and I were discussing another company called Tom's Shoes (you may have seen them featured in a Visa commercial recently), a shoe company that gives one pair of shoes to a needy child for every pair that they sell. On a whim, we half-joked about how cool it would be to follow that same one-for-one model on a bigger scale. What if Chad could build a home for a needy family for every home that he sold here?

Well, it turns out that Chad wasn't joking. That is exactly what he is doing. And it is turning his business around! Again, you can read the details on his blog: Home for Home - the link is on the side of this page. Pillar Development is building one home for a needy family in Mexico for every home that they sell here. You know what? In less than a month, with no advertising of the 'Home for Home' deal whatsoever, Chad went from no house sales to four houses and counting! That's four needy families who will soon have a roof over their heads. God's math...it defies the laws of physics. If you wanna get really stoked, read Chad's blog. And while you're at it, read his other blog too: Love - the link for that one is also on the side of this page.

There's a reason that people all over the world, whether they believe he is God or not, revere Jesus Christ for being the greatest humanitarian in history. He...Loved...People...Period. The Bible tells us that, in his own words, He 'came to seek and to save that which was lost' (Luke 19:10). WE are what was lost. He cares about every injustice, every hurt, every wrong...every child sold into sex slavery, every mother who can't afford to feed her baby, every family with no roof to keep out the rain. He came to make all of it good and right and whole again. Friends, WE are His hands and His feet. He uses US to put all of these wrongs to right. We live in a day and age where information is instant and the world is connected. It is easier now more than ever before to get involved and to become His hands and feet. I encourage you...no, I implore you to take a few minutes of the time that you would normally be browsing Perez Hilton's web site to find out what Jessica Simpson wore to the 'I'm famous' awards show and bookmark a couple of these blog sites and websites that can actually change the world.

Being informed is the first step in changing people's lives for the better. The next step can be as simple as refusing to buy that bag of chips from the company who is involved in child slavery lawsuits. But you never would have known how to vote with your dollar unless you were informed. One thing is for certain - when you start to act, it feels good. Selective shopping can lead to feeding the poor at the local shelter which may lead to flying to Mexico and helping build a house for someone. I'm not saying that that is how it has to work, but the feeling you get from making a positive difference in someones life is a high that not even the best wave on the planet can provide. Take it from a die-hard surf addict - that's a GOOD feeling!