Anyone watching the stock market in the past few days knows what a volatile place the financial world is these days. The same is true in politics and world events. In less than a year, a crisis in Turkey has sent shock waves through the entire European Union, and analysts expect a bigger “storm” to come.
Last year, the United Nations projected a rise in world hunger to 1.02 billion people – more than one-seventh of the global population! Statistics on hunger are always rough estimates, and the results can vary greatly from one study to another. But one thing seems clear: the U.N. number is no exaggeration. In fact, it may be too conservative!
When Mother Joan Clare first held little Prince and Princess, 17-month-old Filipino twins, they were only 6 ½ pounds. She tried to give them food, but they didn’t know what food was. She tried to give them milk, but they vomited what little they consumed. She says, “They were both suffering from severe malnutrition…they could not speak, walk, or even sit up. They were yellow from lack of blood, and too listless for comfort.”
Did you know that an estimated 1.1 billion people around the world rely on unsanitary water sources for drinking? Clean water is a basic necessity that no one should have to do without. That number got a lot of attention this week as the U.N. and other international groups observed World Water Day, a time for raising awareness about the plight of those who lack access to clean water.
For many people, St. Patrick’s Day is a time to wear green, eat corned beef and cabbage, and have a night out with friends. But behind all the merrymaking is a story of a 4th century missionary whose life exemplified the kind of self-sacrificial love we strive to emulate here at Cross.
It is sometimes difficult to hear the heartbreaking stories of the people we help, especially when they involve children. What keeps us encouraged are the stories we receive from our partners detailing how dire situations have been turned around and lives are renewed.