Comparison of nations

Ok so this blog entry will be a little more deep, but hang with me!

There is an index that shows all the nations of the world and where they rank as far as being countries with stability. It is affected by things like average income, GNP, expected life expectancy, % of unemployed people,those who have access to schools and number of orphans in their countries.

Why is it important to understand this index?  It helps us to understand how we need to approach the orphan crisis. Some things that stand out are that of the 187 nations listed only 43 are considered to be highly developed. Canada is #6 and Norway is #1. On the other end of the spectrum are 45 nations that are considered to be low on the HDI.

Flag of Zimbabwe

The countries scoring the lowest are almost all from Africa, with the Democratic Republic of Congo scoring the lowest. Other nations scoring really low include Haiti and Zimbabwe, two nations God is speaking to me about.

http://hdr.undp.org/en/media/HDR_2011_EN_Table1.pdf

I am learning constantly and am being challenged regularly. The last thing these nations need is for us as North Americans is to waltz in and tell them what to do in their nations and orphanages to be effective. We need to understand their pain and hopelessness but we also need to understand things that are really working or dreams they have for their people.

As I travel this year I want to bring the message of Jesus Christ to people in ways that they are able to grasp within their culture. I also want to be very teachable and learn how we might alleviate the crisis within their nations by coming alongside the nationals on the ground.

The people we serve may be poor and disadvantaged but they are not stupid. They are people that have the same concerns as we do and that is to be able to provide safety for children and food and clean water so they can have much better health.

Lord make me teachable for your Kingdom!