Complete | October – SEED & Micro-Industry

Owning Our Labor

by David Brewer, SEED Co-Director

Statistics tell us that more than half the world lives on less than $2 a day. Sometimes we get the sense the situation is hopeless, that we can never impact the world of poverty.

Eight families in the Amparo (Philippines) Free Methodist Church want you to know that an investment of $3,641 has enabled them to build a sustainable livelihood for themselves and implement a plan with ripple effects that will transform an entire community.

From the creation, God’s design was that humans should work: Adam and Eve were given the task of tending the garden. One of the great tragedies in today’s world is that many people feel they have no ability to work, to provide for themselves and their families.

It takes the vision of people like Pastora Paula (Pol) Guazon to reinvigorate people’s hope. Pastora Pol first worked with one woman, purchasing a pig and learning together how to care for it. When the pig had grown enough, it was sold in the local marketplace. Pastora Pol and the woman split the proceeds, sufficient for the family’s sustenance.

The program is now expanding. Led by Pastora Pol, a group of women crafted an excellent proposal including financial projections and a market assessment. The plan calls for participants to tithe to the local church, in addition to giving back five percent of the proceeds of each pig sold to purchase pigs for other families. Supporters have been donating $47 to “buy” pigs for the livelihood group, and the project was funded earlier this year.

These families now have not only financial sustenance, but also a restored dignity that comes from tending God’s creation – pigs, in this case – and coming a little closer to being complete, in His image.

Downloads

Video – Download

Bulletin Insert - Download

Window to the World – includes text from above Download