How much do I give?

I am up too late once again. Helping my 14 year old son get his portfolio ready to run for SBO office at the Jr. High. As I sit here exhausted with him I am reflecting on the chance that he has to do such exciting things in his life. As I watch him work away at his project I cannot get the pictures out of my head that a friend emailed me a few weeks ago. I reflect on the picture and think why is my son able to have all of the blessing he does while so many children are living a life of absolute poverty. I will share with you the pictures she sent. They are pictures of the underground children of Ethiopia. About the same age as my son. Yet tonight as I say goodnight and turn off his lights I think of them. Sleeping in the storm drains.

They live in tunnels, sewers and drainage holes, hidden beneath Addis Ababa's teeming streets.
They move from one makeshift shelter to the next, chased away by police or the rivers of water and refuse that flow when the rains come.
Growing up amidst the traffic, they learn to hustle at a young age seeking change or selling small items to drivers at traffic lights.

Among the reasons for the high numbers of street children in Addis Ababa are extreme poverty, hunger, violent conflict and drought in rural areas. Often, the children come without families, orphaned by disease, escaping abusive and neglectful parents, captivated by tales of wealth and opportunity in the big city.
An exact number is too difficult to pin down accurately, but various estimates put the total number of street kids in Ethiopia between 60,000 and 150,000.

As I have contemplated these thoughts of wondering why me? I have turned to my father for his wisdom. He has spent numerous trips overseas and has witnessed and worked with people of all levels of poverty. I asked him. "Dad, how do you do it? How do you see what you see and not come back and be angry at the wealth and more specifically the way we as Americans tend to use the wealth." My dad has always been a pretty intelligent person and one whose wisdom has always guided me. He replied. "Jill, you are starting to see,..... where much is given, much is expected. We have been given much.... what we choose to do with these blessings God has given us is the question." My dad counseled me to not become bitter at the way people spend their money and realize that money spent brings jobs to many. I have to admit I had not thought of it that way. So this has been my challenge as of late. Be grateful for what I have. Thank the Lord for ALL of my blessings. Then take those blessings and do good with them.

So tonight as I tuck my 5'11 teenager in bed I do so with gratitude in my heart and a stronger commitment to take this gratitude and do good with it.

Good Night and sleep tight in your warm soft bed.