When did we see you hungry and not give you food?

Then the righteous will say to him, “Lord, when was it that we saw you hungry and gave you food?” -- Matthew 25:37

The headline read, “World hunger reaches 1 billion mark” - and I never got any further in praying for the news this week.

Lord, when did we see you hungry, and not give you food?

The global financial meltdown has pushed the ranks of the world’s hungry to a record 1 billion, an increase of 100 million over last year. One billion. That’s one out of six people in the world.

Lord, when did we see you hungry, and not give you food?

Pray the rest of this prayer (you will need a Yahoo Id

Growing Food Crisis - Prayers for those who suffer, Prayers for Guidance

I received the following message from Andrew Kang Bartlett of the Presbyterian Hunger Program. Please pray for those who suffer and for guidance on what we can do to respond. For starters on a response, I highly recommend the Bread for the World meetings we are holding on April 30.

"I'm sure you've been hearing about the growing food crisis (as if 25,000 people dying daily from hunger and hunger-related disease was not already a crisis of epic proportions!) due to increases in food prices. The short piece from the Globe and Mail gives a stark glimpse of this.

"I believe that we need to think, pray and work together to come up with the best strategies (that we can connect to and/or devise ourselves) for dealing with this. As the article mentions, higher prices could be with us for a long time - and it is estimated that for every 1% rise in food prices, worldwide 16 million more people become hungry.

"Please pray for those who are suffering. And let us pray for guidance about what our responses should be. Please share your thoughts and ideas!"

Three Cents-Ability Grants Announced

The Cents-Ability Grants Committee approved grants of $750 each to three hunger projects chosen from the Break Free From Hunger catalog of the Presbyterian Hunger Program. (In accordance with the Cents-Ability Program guidelines, 60% of the funds collected is used for grants outside the bounds of the Presbytery.) One of the projects is located in nearby Trenton, NJ; the others are in Gambia and Ethiopia.

The ISLES Community Gardens Program is a community development and environmental organization that fosters a permanent and community-based solution to the problems of hunger and urban blight. ISLES maintains 43 gardens that provide fresh produce to low-income families in Trenton. The benefits include fresh garden produce that provides nutrition and promotes healthy lifestyles; a place for after-school activities in which students learn about sustainable living concepts; and an opportunity for senior citizens to become intergenerational links with the community.

The Development Program for the Meshangir Community Near Dembi Dollo, Ethiopia was developed in response to a request of the Meshangir people of Ethiopia. For countless generations, the Meshangir lived as nomad hunters, but their lifestyle changed dramatically when the Ethiopian government disarmed the people, making it necessary to transition from living as nomad hunters to living in a settled community. The program introduces sustainable food production techniques and develops income-generating products based on the traditional skills of the people.

In Senegal, the Moringa tree has been called the “miracle tree” because it is easy to grow and provides significant nutritional benefitis. Church World Service worked with local partners in Senegal for several years on a Moringa pilot project. Our gift to the Gambia Nutrition Program is an expansion of the pilot project into the West African country of Gambia. This expansion will extend the benefits of the Moringa to many more mothers and children while offering an opportunity for scientific research to validate the Moringa’s nutritional and socio-economic benefits.