what are we going to do about AIDS and Africa?

atlanta, originally uploaded by scotterickson.

atlanta youth specialties conference

do you know what's going on around the world but especially in africa with the AIDS virus? it's killing thousands of people a day. 8000 people die everyday from AIDS in africa, which creates 6000 new orphans everyday. shocking. disgusting actually.

it's hard to really digest these numbers, at least for me anyway. i don't think i actually can conceive such massive destruction. i would need tp be there to really take it all in, but i would probably keel over in shock and helplessness by the site of it all. i think that's probably what a lot of us feel - helpless and purposefully removed from the reality of it all. how can i, one person, possibly affect this huge emergency? this is a question that has been weighing on my heart for some time... months if not years it seems. what can i do as a 27 year old in seattle way across the world?

my prayers have been heard. it's amazing to me how God is so belittled by his creation sometime. if i am one finite, small, fragile, human being, and yet i can feel such pain for the injustice i see, it's amazing to me that i ever ask, "do YOU care about this?" the God who knows every emotion by every human... who sees every tear, every cry, every death, every laugh... who knows all the the hearts of all men... who sees every rape, every murder, every beheading, every trick of a prostitute, every slap of an abusive parent... He knows all. He experiences all. this leads me to believe that He is the most sensitive and caring being... He is the most emotionally in tune.

so then we ask, "why doesn't He do anything?" i can see two possibilites. one - he takes away or freedom and punishes everyone for their wrong doing, which ends up being everyone in all creation and existence as we know it ends in a ball of flaming justice... or He allows us to keep our freedom, provides us a way for forgiveness and restoration, and then involves us in changing the wrong into right...

sorry... this entry could easily change into a philosophical paper... i wanted to share that God has heard my prayers and is showing me how i, an artist, can assist in helping fight the AIDS epidemic.

i got to go with world vision last week to a youth specialties convention in atlanta to help them promote their One Life Revolution campaign. this campaign allows people to help AIDS orphans in Zambia by giving them a structure to raise money and have it go directly to the kids and their livlihood. so i went along to help with the promotion of this program by doing live paintings to gain peoples attention.

it was awesome. i did five paintings in two days and we had such an overwhelming response from people wondering if they could buy them, that we had a silent auction and raised $1360 total for the five paintings. all the proceeds went to the orphans.

i see great potential in this experience. i want to continue to work with non-profits to help them promote their cause and to help them raise money for it.

i think the way we help is use what gifts we have been given and just walk in them.