International Widows' Day

CORE-RELATE! Did you know that... June 23 is - was - actually "International Widows' Day"?

“International Widows Day is a United Nations ratified day of action to address the “poverty and injustice faced by millions of widows and their dependents in many countries”. - Cute Calendar

International Widows Day (IWD) is the initiative of the Loomba Foundation and the date June 23rd was to commemorate the date when the mother of Lord Raj Loomba was widowed. The United Nations has recognized and ratified IWD in 2010, five years after it was launched in London. Click here to read more about the Loomba Foundation. 

Widows are special in God's eyes

"Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world." - James 1:17

My mom is a widow and I consider it as my loving duty to look after her. God's Word is so alive that these days I am also reminded by this commandment: "Honor your father and your mother, as the LORD your God has commanded you, so that you may live long and that it may go well with you in the land the LORD your God is giving you." (Deutronomy 5:16).

My mom is quite strong (and young-looking!) for her age. She still works as a freelance health counselor and manages her time amongst taking care of my 7 year-old nephew and her business. She is turning 60 next year and if things were up to me, I don't want her to work anymore. This is why it is painful for me, in all honesty, that I am not able to support her as much as I should.

Still, it is reassuring to know that widows and orphans have a special place in God's heart. Consider this:

"Do not take advantage of a widow or an orphan. If you do and they cry out to me, I will certainly hear their cry. My anger will be aroused, and I will kill you with the sword; your wives will become widows and your children fatherless." (Exodus 22:22-24)

Netramani - A Widow's Story, an excerpt from Veil of Tears

It is God's command to take care of widows. If you cannot physically take care of them, at the very least, you must take every opportunity to help them in their plight whenever you can. Through this blog - and your support - you can do something to reach out to widows and alleviate their pain. There is, in fact, a tremendous call to help 40 million widows in South Asia alone today!

Widows in India are ostracized and treated as a curse. They are often discriminated, abandoned, neglected and left to fend for themselves and their children. Most of them are forced to flee to a place called "Island of Widows" in West Bengal for refuge. Sadly, quite a number commit suicide due to hopelessness.

In Nepal, the subsequent earthquakes last April 25 and May 12 has left many women without a husband or without a family altogether. Three of these widows are Bhukima, Drashtaa and Tarana.

Bhukima's husband was a miner. He went as usual to the forest to mine gemstones. The earthquake happened. He never returned.

Tarana and her husband were together when the quake came. Unaware that all his children were already safe outside, he went back inside the house to rescue them. The house collapsed. He died.

The earthquake made both Bhukima and Tarana widows and each of them has five children to feed and take care of.

Before the earthquake, widow Drashtaa lived with her only family - her teenage granddaughter who's 16. The teenager went to the forest to get some firewood. After the earthquake, Drashtaa never saw her granddaughter again.

How can you help?

Take care of the widows within your reach -
Start with the widows in your own family or community. One of the best ways to let a woman feel loved and appreciated is to listen to her. It won't take much to know what makes her happy. Compliment her for how she looks, what she does, what she gives or simply for her presence. Spend time with her. Cook for her. Treat her to a trip to the spa. Ask her nicely if she needs a hand in whatever she's doing. Whatever you do, as long as you do it with a heart that freely gives and genuinely cares, you can never go wrong.

Give financially to causes which support widows -

• The Loomba Foundation
• Sponsor A Widow
• Educate a Widow's Child
• Gospel for Asia's Veil of Tears Advocacy
• Gifts of Empowerment
• Sponsor Women Missionaries

PRAY
...for widows everywhere to experience God's love in a personal way.
...that we will do whatever we can to express genuine love and support to the widows among us

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Meanwhile, to support Nepal pray for:

• Comfort and hope for those grieving
• Protection from disease and danger
• God’s provision and sustenance for relief teams
• Many to understand Jesus’ love

To give financially for relief efforts in Nepal and for updates, visit: http://www.gfa.org/earthquake/nepal/.

The Well that Never Runs Dry

CORE-RELATE!

YouTube video courtesy of 60minutes2relax

"Water covers 71% of the Earth's surface. It is vital for all known forms of life...Only 2.5% of the Earth's water is freshwater, and 98.8% of that water is in ice (excepting ice in clouds) and groundwater. Less than 0.3% of all freshwater is in rivers, lakes, and the atmosphere, and an even smaller amount of the Earth's freshwater (0.003%) is contained within biological bodies and manufactured products." - Wikipedia

The importance of water is as real as the air we breathe. I do not have to look very far to attest to this.

The apartment I grew up in had its own electric water pump but with limited operating hours. There were many times when it got broken and no water would come out of the pump. When water was scarce in the village, I had to (as a young girl) walk with either my aunt or my mom to the nearest water source about 500 meters from our house. We would go back and forth with buckets in our hands until the container in our house was filled with enough water for the following day. To have drinking water, we boiled some of the water we collected and let it cool. Whenever I took a bath, I would stand inside a "catch basin" so that the soapy water can be used to flush the toilet and clean the bathroom.

Through the years as our village's water supply improved, I've never really given much thought about water supply. Wherever I go, be it in a neighbor's house or in the mall, all I need to do is to turn a faucet and water would come out. These days, there are even instances when I do not have to turn a faucet - I simply put my hands under the faucet and water comes out. After I use the toilet, the flush would automatically turn on or I'll just press a tiny button.

Drinking water isn't a problem these days either. Even when many of the natural bodies of water (rivers, lakes and beaches) in my country have fallen prey to the effects of modernization and overpopulation, a good number of our entrepreneurial 'kababayans' (fellow citizens) are making a living with their neighborhood bottled water business.

What about the rest of the world - or Asia? Being a voice for the voiceless, I am prompted to look beyond the coastlines of my own country and take a look at the bigger picture.

The United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs (UNESDA)'s global project "International Decade for Action - 'Water for Life' 2005-2015' - officially drew to a close last March 22nd. With the goal of stopping the abuse of water resources so that access to safe drinking water and sanitation can be improved all over the world, the UNESDA reported a notable increase in the improvement of water sources since 1990. Still, UNESDA's 2014 report indicated that "28% of the global population that remains unserved," are from the countries of China and India alone.

You'll find it refreshing to know that there are mission-oriented groups who remain passionate in not only providing clean and potable water to communities but also in helping improve the quality of life in the areas they serve. One such group is Gospel for Asia whose initiative, "Jesus Wells" is making a lasting impact in the lives of the families in Asia who have access to, well, a Jesus Well. Consider this infograph:

The UNESDA's decade-long  #WorldWaterDay project may have already been concluded but the mission is far from over. The good news is you and I CAN do something to help the 748 million people gain access to safe and clean water sources. Not only that. Beyond physical wells, Jesus Wells are providing water for the soul from the Well that never runs dry. A proof to this is the story of Karishma and Nirdhar, whose lives were dramatically changed by a Jesus Well.

Imagine how difficult it must be to live a life without access to clean water - without clean water to drink nor bathe with.

Imagine how awful it must be to live in an area without a toilet or not even a latrine.

Imagine the life of a little child who's dying at this very minute because of poor sanitation.

Imagine doing something to help. Well? You CAN do something; you can help save lives with a Jesus Well.