JourneyOnline
If you've grown up around churches or with some kind of spiritual heritage, you're probably uncomfortable with the idea of wanting more.
It sounds greedy—and who wants that when you're trying to walk in the footsteps of the one who recommended giving away even the shirt from your own back?
Is it ever okay to want more?
Yes, it is.
As the agency of the Uniting Church with a mandate to work with overseas partners, here at UnitingWorld we constantly find ourselves in situations where we want more.
It's a life-giving more. We want more opportunities for children to attend school in India.
We want more loans to provide incomes for families in West Timor, where creative entrepreneurs are already transforming their communities.
We want more midwives in South Sudan, where 10 000 mothers die in childbirth every year.
Our vision is to work alongside those both here in Australia and oversees so that those who are without can take their place in a world where there's more than enough to go around.
We believe this is God's heart for all people.
Every year the Australian government, through AusAID, provides us with a real opportunity to Do More Together.
The AusAID-NGO Co-operation Program (ANCP) is a Matching Grant Scheme that helps individual gifts to NGOs go further.
But it requires us to raise some money first.
For every $5 AusAID provides UnitingWorld, we must raise at least $1 to reap the full benefit.
"Access to ANCP funding each year makes a huge difference to how much we can do alongside our partners around the world," says Livelihood Manager, Africa, Peter Keegan.
"Donating to the Matching Gift Fund is one of the most effective ways to make sure your individual gift goes further toward providing all the things that not only allow people to survive, but to thrive: clean water, good healthcare and hope for the future."
When Peter visited South Sudan recently he met newly-trained midwives eager to serve their communities, protecting the lives of mothers and babies.
Teresa, a midwife who has been through a training program funded by UnitingWorld and our partner in South Sudan, the Presbyterian Relief and Development Agency told him, "When you get an education that can change a life, you share it with everybody. I will take this knowledge and be there for the women in my community."
Teresa's determination certainly keeps us inspired and motivated here at UnitingWorld, but Teresa is one of less than 200 midwives in a nation that needs thousands.
Here, surely, is a situation where it's more than just okay to want more. It's essential.
We've just launched our "Do More Together" appeal at http://www.unitingworld.org.au/domoretogether/. With the support of AusAID, it's one of the most effective ways to make a lasting difference and connect communities for life. Call 1800 998 122 to donate.
Photo : Midwives in training at the Leer Midwifery School in South Sudan, supported by UnitingWorld through the Uniting Church in Australia. Photo: UnitingWorld
