After years of seeing televised footage of overcrowded refugee camps, it’s challenging not to become overwhelmed … or worse yet, apathetic.
Across the world, there are an estimated 65 million displaced people — in Uganda, Syria, Jordan, South Sudan, Iraq, and beyond. And the majority of them are children.
How can you grapple with these harsh circumstances and not feel helpless?
Refugees are burning their few belongings to keep themselves warm. Mothers haven’t eaten in days, choosing instead to give their rations to their starving children. Boys and girls are on their deathbeds because there aren’t enough medical supplies in the refugee camps to treat their simple illnesses.
With a problem this overwhelming that won’t seem to end, it’s easy to ask yourself, “Why should I still care about the refugees? After all, the problem is too big to solve.”
But we can’t let the magnitude of this crisis overwhelm us. We can’t let our fear prevent us from what our faith requires us to do.
As Christians, it is our calling to help the helpless — to clothe the naked, feed the hungry, and give comfort to the downtrodden. And that includes refugees.
Even if there were only one refugee in the world, that would be one too many. It’s our duty as believers to help those in need. We need to be a community of rescuers.
David Milliband is president of the International Rescue Committee and the son of two refugees. His parents fled to Great Britain during World War II, and they are well-acquainted with the fatigue and fear of being a refugee.
But even more important than his identity as the child of refugees is his identity as a Christ-follower. As a believer, Milliband is convinced that how we react to the global refugee crisis will be the greatest test for our generation.
“Refugees and displaced people have lost everything,” Milliband said. “But the refugee crisis is not just about them; it’s also about us — what we, living in far greater comfort, stand for and how we see our place in the world. It is a test of our character. Pass the test and we rescue ourselves and our values as well as refugees and their lives.”
There is this tremendous need in the world today. You see it constantly on your phones, your TV, and your laptop. What are you going to do about it?
The greatest need for refugees right now is everyday, lifesaving supplies — essentials such as food, clean water, blankets, and medicine — things we so often take for granted.
Today, you can give a refugee exactly what he needs to survive. And your donation multiplies!
For every $35 you give, you will provide $189 worth of lifesaving aid such as food, clean water, and medicine to a refugee in need.
Refugees need these vital supplies so they can survive today and begin to rebuild their futures tomorrow. You can meet that need for a refugee. You can remind him he is not forgotten. You can save his life.
When you look back on the greatest refugee crisis of our generation, will you have passed the test?