The founding of "EcoMercy International" was part of my own effort to discover the hidden power of Christianity, if you will, the most basic, fundamental actions which Christians need to undertake. It was perhaps just one part of a larger effort to work toward a charity concept that is universal, meaning that it's needed anywhere, whether in rich or poor countries, regardless of the social services provided or not by the government. Why is that helpful?
Well, as someone who has been volunteering in the charity sphere off and on since 2001 and leading my own charity organization since 2015, I can tell you that there are many charity options based on different "concepts" and this has made charity complex. For example, there are orphan-centered ministries, then there is "child sponsorship," which is somewhat different. There are organizations that focus on providing surgeries; others that provide only water. There are religious organizations and those which are secular. Some provide animals for people to raise. Some are specifically focused on teaching agricultural skills or business skills. And some make micro-loans. Or they do a combination of some of these things. It can become overwhelming!
Thus, there are generous people who might begin giving or give more if they devoted time to critically evaluating different options and developing their own principles for giving. But that can be a difficult process.
All of these options arose because charity directors are trying to answer the question, "What do people need most?" or perhaps, "What will people give to the most," which is not in my opinion the best way to design a charity. But let's take a step back and ask the question, what do people need, period?
This is my answer to that question:
In a previous version of this graphic, which I posted on Facebook, I had a Russian-Orthodox cross next to the words, "One Church." For sake of encouraging discussion I've removed that cross, not because I'm not whole-heartedly Eastern Orthodox, but because I realize there are other professions of faith which nonetheless believe in "One Church," they just differ on what exactly that is. I hope that while we may differ on this we can still encourage each other to pursue charity and discuss publicly what our communities are needing. And I hope that people who are currently not practicing any religion will be drawn to support what we are doing, simply because they see that we are helping people and making a difference for people practically.
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