Advocacy

In VOCF, we desire to walk with the poor. This means to come along their side, encourage, learn, help, and also speak out on their behalf. To speak out and defend the cause of another, especially those who cannot speak for themselves,  is to be an advocate.

God’s Heart for The Poor

God commands us to be openhanded with the poor.  Deuteronomy 15:11

We must share food, clothing and shelter.  Isaiah 58:6-7

Jesus felt compassion and healed every disease and skickness. Matthew 9:35-36

God says to defend the cause of orphans, widows, and people oppressed.  Isaiah 1:17

True religion cares for orphans and widows. James 1:27 
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God’s Promises to Those who Care for The Poor

The LORD will guide you, satisfy your needs, and strengthen you.   Isaiah 58:8-11

You will recieve an eternal inheritace in God's Kingdom.  Matthew 25:34-36

You will be blessed and repaid at the resurrection of the righteous.   Luke 14:13-14

You will lack nothing.    Proverbs 28:27 

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God’s Warning to The Rich and Unconcerned

Sodom was destroyed because she was arrogant, overfed, unconcerned, and did not help the poor and needy.     Ezekiel 16:49

It is hard for a rich man to enter the kingdom of heaven.  Matthew 19:22-24

The rich have received their comfort in this liftetime.   Luke 6:24-25 

Those who do not help the hungry, thirsty, strangers, and prisoners will not be invited into God's Kingdom.     Matthew 25:41-43

Am I Financially Rich?
If you make the following annual amounts of money, you are considered to be:

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Know Your World

• The population of the world is approximately 6.8 billion people.
  Source : 2009 World Population Data Sheet. 
   
• There are 203 entities considered to be countries, which is broken down by:
  

  	192	member states of the United Nations
  	1	governed by the Holy See (Vatican city)
  	10	states lacking general international recognition

  Source: Wikipedia, Countries of the World, 2010
     
• Globally, there are more than 1 billion overweight adults, at least 300 million of them obese.
  Source: World Health Organization, Diet and Physical Activity report, 2007 
   
• Natural disasters have increased fourfold over the last 30 years.
  Source: World Bank and James Morris, World Food Programme, 2007.  

Global Hunger
Main Source: http://www.wfp.org/hunger/stats/
  

• 1.02 billion people do not have enough to eat - more than the populations of USA, Canada and the European Union;
  (Source:  FAO news release, 19 June 2009)
  
• The number of undernourished people in the world increased by 75 million in 2007 and 40 million in 2008, largely due to higher food prices;
  (Source: FAO news release, 9 Dec 2008)
  
• 907 million people in developing countries alone are hungry;
  (Source: The State of Food Insecurity in the World, FAO, 2008)
  
• Asia and the Pacific region is home to over half the world’s population and nearly two thirds of the world’s hungry people;
  (Source: The State of Food Insecurity in the World, FAO, 2008)
  
• More than 60 percent of chronically hungry people are women;
  (Source: The State of Food Insecurity in the World, FAO, 2006)
  
• 65 percent  of the world's hungry live in only seven countries: India, China, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Bangladesh, Indonesia, Pakistan and Ethiopia.
  (Source: The State of Food Insecurity in the World, FAO, 2008)
  
• The first United Nations Millennium Goal is to halve the proportion of the world's population that is hungry
  Source: http://www.un.org/millenniumgoals/
   
• The physically hungry are also the world’s most spiritually hungry. About 80 percent of the world’s poor and 90 percent of the people un-reached by the Gospel of Jesus Christ live in the same countries.
  Source: Tetsunao Yamamori, Occasional Paper #5 Furthering the Kingdom Through Relief and Development: Where and How is it Happening? 
   
• 3.3 Billion people do not have an adequate chance hear the Gospel of Jesus Christ.
  Source: IMB, http://dom.imb.org/the unfinished task.htm, 2007 
     

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Child Hunger
Main Source:  http://www.wfp.org/hunger/stats/
 

• More than 70 percent of the world's 146 million underweight children under age five years live in just 10 countries, with more than 50 per cent located in South Asia alone;
  (Source: Progress for Children: A Report Card on Nutrition, UNICEF, 2006)
  
• 10.9 million children under five die in developing countries each year. Malnutrition and hunger-related diseases cause 60 percent of the deaths;
  (Source: The State of the World's Children, UNICEF, 2007)
  
• The cost of undernutrition to national economic development is estimated at US$20-30 billion per annum;
  (Source: Progress for Children: A Report Card on Nutrition, UNICEF, 2006)
  
• One out of four children - roughly 146 million - in developing countries are underweight;
  (Source: The State of the World's Children, UNICEF, 2007)
  
• Every year WFP feeds more than 20 million children in school feeding programmes in some 70 countries. In 2008, WFP fed a record 23 million children.
  (Source: WFP School Feeding Unit)
   

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HIV/AIDS
Main Source: UNAIDS, 2009 Fact Sheet

• Since the beginning of the epidemic, almost 60 million people have been infected with HIV and 25 million people have died of HIV-related causes.

• In 2008, some 33.4 million [31.1 million-35.8 million] people living with HIV, 2.7 million[2.4 million-3.0 million] new infections and 2 million [1.7 million-2.4 million] AIDS-related deaths.

• In 2008, around 430 000 [240 000-610 000] children were born with HIV, bringing to 2.1million [1.2 million-2.9 million] the total number of children under 15 living with HIV. 

• Young people account for around 40% of all new adult (15+) HIV infections worldwide.
  
• Sub-Saharan Africa is the region most affected and is home to 67% of all people living with HIV worldwide and 91% of all new infections among children. 

•  In sub-Saharan Africa the epidemic has orphaned more than 14 million children.

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AID Spending

• Development Assistance including official and private giving for 2005.
  

  Country	Percent of GNI  (Gross National Income)	Actual Amount (USD Million)
  1. Sweden	0.94	3,361.68
  2. Norway	0.94	2,786.05
  3. Netherland	0.82	5,114.69
  4. Luxembourg	0.82	256.39
  5. Denmark	0.81	2,108.92
  6. Belgium	0.53	1963.36
  7. Austria	0.52	1573.32
  8. United Kingdom	0.47	10,767.22
  9. France	0.47	10,026.22
  10. Finland	0.46	901.94
  11. Switzerland	0.44	1,766.56
  12. Ireland	0.42	718.94
  13. Germany	0.36	10,082.16
  14. Canada	0.34	3756.34
  15. Italy	0.29	5,090.90
  16. Japan	0.28	13,146.58
  17. Spain	0.27	3,018.30
  18. New Zealand	0.27	273.52
  19. Australia	0.25	1,680.16
  20. United States	0.22	27,622.48
  21. Portugal	0.21	377.12
  22. Greece	0.17	384.22

  
  Source: OECD, http://stats.oecd.org/wbos/default.aspx?DatasetCode=TABLE1
   

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Ten Ways Anyone can be An Advocate

• Become educated about the poor and lost of this world.
• Pray.
• Seek out the poor and marginal people in your city who cannot easily speak for themselves (Prison. Orphanage, Aliens, etc.) and help link them with services.
• Speak out within your circle of influence: family, friends, church, workplace.
• Speak out on the internet.
• Speak out with the media.
• Share financially with an organization you trust.
• Write a letter to your governmental authorities (local, national).
• Mobilize others to help
• Be a model of consuming less and sharing with others.
  
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