Live Below the Line

Next week (23-27 September) offers an opportunity to both help eliminate extreme poverty as well as experiencing something that will shape you as a disciple of Jesus.  It is called Live Below the Line.

The idea is that we spend 5 days feeding ourselves with $2.25 a day – the New Zealand equivalent of the extreme poverty line. The reason? To give a glimpse into the lives of 1.4 billion people who have no choice but to live below the line every day – and who have to make $2.25 cover a lot more than food Live Below the Line is a campaign that's changing the way people think about poverty - and making a huge difference - by challenging everyday people to live on the equivalent of the extreme poverty line for 5 days.  Click on the link below to find out more!https://www.livebelowtheline.com/nz-tearfund

You can sign up on the Live Below the Line website and choose which charity you will support.  TEAR fund is one example.

Like the 40 hour famine, this kind of experience has the potential to shape our lives because it addresses both our thinking and our behaviour.  For 5 days we behave differently, and while doing so we will be thinking about the realities of poverty and how we can make a difference.

I believe that developing a simple lifestyle is one of the biggest challenges facing people today.  I know I am wealthy by world standards, so I am not writing this blog as a claim that I have arrived.  But I want to be on the journey.  If we are to end extreme poverty, we need to simplify our own lives.  If we are to be good stewards of the earth's resources, we need to reduce our consumption.  If we are to worship God not mammon, then we need to curb our desire for more.  If we are to have time to reach out to people who do not yet know Jesus, we need to reduce the frantic busyness of our lives.  The practice of simplicity is key.

Let me know what you discover.

Martin.