$2/Day Challenge - What People Are Learning

I’m not the only one who is taking the $2/Day Challenge.  There are lots and lots of COMMUNITY peeps who have decided to identify with the 20% of the world that lives in poverty by eating on only $2/day this week.  I am so proud of our church and the people who have entered into this discipline so that God could increase their level of compassion for others.  If you participated I would love for you to leave a comment and let us know how it is going and what you are learning.  Here are some of the reactions and insights I have heard from others:

• “As much as I want my comfort foods RIGHT NOW, I am grateful that I have a stocked refrigerator and pantry at the end of my week challenge.  I know those in poverty do not.  It puts a new perspective, and even enjoyment in eating the rice and almonds for lunch.  It’s only day 2 and I am tired of my food choices. I notice this $2/challenge has me thinking a lot about myself first, before I am remembering those in poverty whom I am doing this for.  I wonder, if by week end, will I be thinking of them first?  Definitely, I will be praying for them more often and thinking of ways I can make a difference.”
• “My first reaction to the $2/Day Challenge was, NO WAY! I am already sacrificing a lot; I can't do this to Family; we deserve to eat what we want. I now know that we can do this; I know I can do this, but only with the help of Jesus and the Holy Spirit!”
• “The other day I opened my refrigerator and I started to (believe it or not) CRY!  I said to myself LOOK AT ALL THIS FOOD!  If I removed half of the food from this frig it would feed several families in poverty-stricken countries.”
• “…I also realized how uncomfortable I became when my stomach rumbled throughout the day. This is a natural thing for lots of people who don't have the luxury to grab something whenever they want. I also found out how much I missed the taste of meat. This challenge has been a real eye opener, and very difficult to stick to. I can't even imagine how people have to live like this every day. I am soooooo thankful for what I have.”
• “I’ve learned several things so far:  1. I can live on a lot less food than I thought.  2. People who live like this all the time don’t have the benefit of knowing it is only lasting one week and how dismal that must be. 3. Tempers flare on less food.  4. Bananas are way cheaper than apples!”
• “I'm doing the $2.00 a day challenge and "challenge" is a good word for it!   I'm doing it as a single person so I only had $14.00 to spend for the week.  My first observation was how long it took me to pick out my $14.00 worth of food…  One challenge I've run into in trying to stay true to the spirit of this challenge is the amount of "free food" we come into contact with here.  Wednesday night at the Lemont launch meeting I had to stay clear from the food table; my women's group that meets tonight always has snacks that I'll need to pretend are not there and of course at the Sunday service, the free food and coffee will need to be avoided.   Again, we take for granted the abundance of what we have offered to us everyday.  On a positive note...my jeans are fitting a little looser!”
• “I don't believe we had to go out and buy anything in particular to take this challenge. We had eggs, milk, canned corned beef, peanut butter, etc. My challenge has been that I have the onset of type II diabetes. This limits me to a very minimal carb intake per day.  I mention this as I can imagine how difficult it must be for diabetics in these poor countries. They have to eat what they can get their hands on and can afford, so if you have something like diabetes it cannot be brought under control. Diabetics in these countries just have to have a disease like this slowly disable and finally kill them. Without medication and a proper diet, this type of diabetes will cause things like kidney failure, blindness and the like. Left unchecked and untreated these people would be sentenced to a short life span.”
• “I'm a fitness tech and I suggest green tea to many ladies because it helps boost metabolism and curb appetite. Ironic. However I couldn't get past how much a tea bag was and how much less beans & rice I would be allowed for dinner if I had tea. <shakes head>   Only a few more days. So many others don't have that finish line. God bless.”

Comments

[Sara]

After living something similar to the $2 challenge for a year or two (having $300 a month for groceries for a family of 4) out of necessity and not desire I couldn't bring myself to go there so soon after being away from it for these past months. From that experience I learned how to strategically use coupons, how to swallow my pride and say thank you to others for their generosity, how to pray for God to provide my daily bread and thank Him for the meat and veggies that He sometimes provided to go along with it. I learned that nutritionally dense foods aren't always as expensive as I thought they were and I can provide healthy food on a tight budget... it just takes a whole lot more work and time and it doesn't happen by accident.

It's so much more comfortable for me to think that the only people who have $2 a day or less to spend on food are in a 3rd world country or are homeless in the US. But our experience made it painfully clear to me that it can be a single income family that has fallen on difficult times that can be in that place too. In America it's hard to get and accept help when you've been trained to be the giver. It's hard to admit that you're struggling to pay your bills when you have a job. It's hard to scale back your spending when you are surrounded by so many messages telling you that you must have/do/spend in order to have any value and here is more credit to make it happen.

Although our family didn't follow exactly the $2 a day eating part of the challenge we were keenly aware of being available and willing to meet the needs of other this week. When an opportunity presented itself for us to provide a need for the daughter of a single mom that is going through some rough stuff and the whole family is struggling I was more than happy to use my weeks worth of grocery money to meet that need for her and have our family eat the odds and ends in the freezer/pantry this week. In fact I was thrilled to have not spent the grocery money yet and could do it.

I am also being convicted to find ways to meet nutritional needs while connecting with those in need in a way that respects the dignity of all. Now to research locations for a community garden in the middle of a community that needs the nutrition from the garden... I'm thinking East Aurora... or maybe even my own neighborhood.

[Curtis]

I'd like to bring a slightly different voice to the $2/day challenge. Let me first of all say I really appreciate those who are bringing this into the light through this challenge.

As a missionary living and working in a country where the average person lives on less then $2/day total, not just for food, I know very well the struggles that the poor face. However, food, at least in the country I am living in, is not a huge struggle. I just came from the local equivalent of a farmer's market and the difference in prices make it easy to live on $2/day for food.

As an example, at today's rates for the $6 my family of 3 would have for food under your challenge, we could have bought 162 pounds of potatoes. That's a lot of spuds!

I appreciate how this challenge is bringing people closer to the poor of the world, like those I work with everyday, but the real challenges go much much deeper then food. Most people have no means to keep themselves warm in winter or cool in summer. They have no means to send their children to schools. People don't have the money to buy transportation and those who do find that gasoline is either too expensive or unavailable. Housing is incredibly expensive, with most paying 50-80% of their salaries on rent and another 25% on electricity that is off 12 hours a day.

So, from someone living among a group of people who are among the poorest in the world, I'd like to offer this piece of wisdom. Thank you for thinking about the needy of the planet, but as you challenge yourself in the arena of food, remember for most of the world, the challenge just begins with food.

[Dave Ferguson]

Sara & Curtis, thanks for these comments - both are very insightful and a great contribution to this conversation.

[Lon]

thanks for sharing the feedback on this experiment - it's amazing how a simple challenge like this can shape and call into question our very lifestyles..