Submitted by Ester…
When approaching this year’s 30 Hour Famine, I have to honestly say that I didn’t have any particular plan for fundraising. I had some ideas such as asking some of my friends and family, but I could hardly imagine talking to complete strangers and asking them for donations. I started to change my approach after a brainstorming session, realizing that there were a lot of opportunities and that time was limited. One particular idea I thought would be effective would be to go onto Sproul Plaza on our campus and raise awareness and funds.
After getting permission to fundraise on campus, I still had worries about whether we would be able to pull it off. The night before the day we would start tabling, I remember feeling scared and nervous about how it would go. I feared looking like fools and being put in a position where we could easily be attacked or judged by people. These fears were all amplified because I had never lead up anything and I was anxious about making mistakes or having something go wrong. But these fears were all lessened after praying for people we would encounter and that they would have open hearts; also that we would not simply view the success of our endeavors through how much money we raised, but that we would really be able to connect with this issue.
As the first day of tabling and fundraising on campus began, my fears returned as I felt vulnerable and insecure with each passing person. As the day continued on, however, I was truly humbled as I could feel our prayers being answered as we were steadily getting out of ourselves. Whether we became less focused on ourselves or people became more open to hearing us, God was answering our prayers in front of our very eyes. For the most part, the people we were talking to ended up being supportive and actually appreciated what we were doing for world hunger. They asked questions, bought our baked goods, and some would just donate money without wanting anything in return. It still saddened me, however, how people avoided seeing the truth of world hunger and its toll on countless lives while believing that turning a deaf ear towards those trying to help would make it disappear. My heart went out to all the children dying all over the world as I could sense how invisible this issue was to a lot of people; if they could not see us, they could not see those truly suffering.
It was only when I zoomed out of myself that I was able to see the bigger picture of our community and how thankful I was to be a part of it. It was truly a blessing to see our community come together. This was something that I could not do on my own, and I was amazed at how many people were willing to help! There were people who made 30 Hour Famine posters and bought the supplies needed for baking, and those who stayed up late to prepare the baked goods the night before only to wake up at 6
AM to bake it in the morning. Later on, some of the brothers who had never baked before even took it on themselves to help make cookies. They were a little burnt, but the fact was they willingly shared the burden as some of the sisters were getting drained towards the end. There were people who set up the table and posters on Sproul while others lent their car so that bringing the goods to campus would be easier. There were also people who were willing to spend their extra hours on Sproul to help table and sell the homemade goods. Those taking classes would show up to help before their class and come back right after. I was able to concretely see our genuine relationships as other students within our church would come to our table to support and encourage us. Some would even end up holding up a poster or shouting our motto, “a dollar can feed a child for a day!” As a result of working together towards a goal, we were able to raise $1500 over the course of three days!
After experiencing such a true picture of our church, I realized how foolish my fears were and how applicable these lessons were to how I lived my life. I should never fear taking initiative to further God’s kingdom simply because I’ve never done something before or because I fear making mistakes or being rejected. Being subjected to people’s various opinions builds character and really makes us think and act outside of ourselves. It’s so easy to be passive because being passionate about something requires that we take our side and stick out. We’re so concerned about how we may appear to others or what others will think of us that we want to remain in the sanctuary of our own comfort and self-image. This society has taught us to fear being judged by others and as a result we have reached a point of a visionless and passionless generation. I am thankful that as a child of God, I don’t need to be anxious about judgment from this world since that would be a rather small world to live in – one where I am constantly worrying about myself and how others view me. It’s liberating how much of the focus is taken off of myself when being put in a situation that requires me to zoom out of my small life and see God’s grander vision for me.
