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Growing up outside Sydney, Australia, I have vivid childhood memories of visiting the city—the harbor bridge, the funny-looking opera house, the people and the huge buildings. It was all very "Wow" to me.

But some of the experiences I remember most are walks downtown with my family, seeing people begging for money. I felt so sorry for them, especially the people who were in wheelchairs or were disabled. I remember thinking it would be so cool if someday I could buy a house in Sydney where poor people could come, have a hot meal, take a warm bath, put on clean clothes and have a place to stay.

I don't know whether God will lead me in the future to do something like that or lead me to run the orphanage I've always dreamed of—it's all in his hands. But to me, it's so important that I be faithful wherever God has put me, to show his love and compassion to everyone—young, old, rich, poor—everyone!

Most of us have so much at our fingertips, it's hard for us to imagine the kinds of needs there are in other people's lives. But check out these statistics:

• 35,000 children die every day in the world from illnesses brought on by malnutrition. Ninety percent of these deaths could have been prevented if the children just had clean water and sanitation.
  
• Every night, 1 in 5 children around to world go to bed hungry.
  

Reaching out to the poor and the lonely is something God calls all of us to do. One way we can help make a difference is by sponsoring a child. If you can't afford to do it on your own, sponsor a child with some friends or with your youth group. It costs less than a dollar a day, but it makes a big difference to the children you help.

There are so many other ways in which we can show God's love and compassion to others—like helping out in the community, mowing a neighbor's lawn for free, doing the dishes at home, or going on a missions trip during a school break. We're really called to be God with skin on.

"This is how we've come to understand and experience love: Christ sacrificed his life for us. That is why we ought to live sacrificially for our fellow believers, and not just be about ourselves. If you see some brother or sister in need and have the means to do something about it but turn a cold shoulder and do nothing, what happens to God's love? It disappears. And you made it disappear. My dear children, let's not just talk about love; let's practice real love" (1 John 3:16-18; The Message).

Rebecca St. James' most recent album, Pray, is in Christian record stores now.

1999 by the author or Christianity Today International/Campus Life magazine. For reprint information call 630-260-6200 or e-mail clmag@CampusLife.net

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