Change the World

How can you change the world? Firstly, change yourself - be kind. Some people have a strong desire to help others or it could be to get recognition. Others like to keep busy. Some help for religious reasons. A few people deliberately join to build their resume and gain status. Many join purely for fun. It's good to feel needed and make peoples lives better. And provides the volunteer a sense of purpose to their lives. Its natural to want personal satisfaction in everything you work at. Volunteering is mostly an inherent human act.

My own experience as a volunteer was at times boring, but other times I was busy listening to people's concerns. It was usually a joint effort in arriving at a solution. Those moments were extremely satisfying.

A volunteer may need to work hard and sometimes it can drain your time, energy and money. Consider new ideas to shared problems. Do you know know what's best for an individual? Treat all people with dignity and do not demean another person. Do not be proud or arrogant. Try to emphasize with the people you are working with. Finally, be mindful that you are building a healthier community.

Researchers have found that contented people give more than depressed people. And their happiness increases when spending their money on others rather than themselves. Giving provides good health, it establish meaning in a life and it leaves a powerful effect on people. The positive difference that kindness makes in the lives of recipients can be life changing. Is this burst of generosity ongoing? Or do people give only when happy?

Scientists found that long term support for others who need help decreases. Therefore, coping strategies must be implemented to help recipients manage their own lives independently.

It is only through interacting with others that you begin to understand what is going on in the world and where you can fit in and make a difference.

Jesus Christ gave his life for villains and left: physical, spiritual and emotional rewards for those who acknowledged and followed him.
Mahatma Gandhi said, “To find yourself, lose yourself in the service of others.” The most successful leaders have a servant attitude.
Civil rights activist Martin Luther King Jr. Instructed the all political demonstrations were to be non-violent activism. The nonviolence strategy proved to be extremely effective. The purpose of the movement was to change the appalling conditions of the blacks in southern USA. However great or small the efforts, a person contributes, into showing kindness or making a difference to others helps to lift the human spirit and leaves you with a powerful feeling.
Mother Teresa, a Catholic nun, stated "Spread love everywhere you go. Let no one ever come to you without leaving happier" Mother Teresa began with a mammoth task of helping millions of impoverished people who lived on the streets of India. Her faith in God gave her the much needed food, medicine and shelter that these people desperately needed. Mother Teresa was walking through the slum area in Calcutta, young children were playing by her. She found an empty hut and rented it for the first classroom in the slum.

Kindness and servitude coupled with determination can make a powerful difference in the lives of the disadvantage and lost.

Streams of people, have applied to the Volunteer Center (nz) to offer their time and service for no payment. The coordinator said that migrants, redundancies, young people, unemployed and retirees want to volunteer in the community. Mothers who want to return to the work force start volunteering to build their confidence. Volunteering can sometimes be a vehicle into paid employment. Although, February was a busy month; there are still positions to be filled.

Giving affirms the superiority of the giver. And could reduce the recipient to a lower status than he or she had before. It is crucial to maintain the dignity of all recipients. They must not be treated as objects of pity. For many, receiving help can be disempowering and in the process diminish them.

Some churches encourage their parishioners to adopt a family who cannot afford gifts for their family. The gifts are then given to the children in front of the whole church. These children are exposed to the inability of their parents to provide for them.

Non-government organisations (NGO’s) are service providers, they cover health, disabilities and a wide range of frontline community services. Although, they are well meaning they can promote dependency amongst the service users.

A Christian food bank have received no support from the local community. The food bank had 120 orders undelivered. The organizations 'charity policy' specifies that only born again Christians can deliver the packages. Church goers were unwilling to help. Non-religious people have offered to help; but were declined by the food bank. The goal of the policy was to increase church participation. Other food banks have connections to religious, but all volunteers are welcome.
Any kind of help is a ‘god attitude’.

Professional service providers have a multi-disciplinary team and draw on the expertise of team members to help service users. These services are usually accessed through referrals from doctors.

There is a fine balance in helping others, service providers must be mindful not to make the mistake of nurturing dependency or devaluing self-worth to recipients.

A community was appalled to learn that a 22 year old volunteer fireman setting ablaze a large storage shed. The man was previously convicted of setting 22 fires over five years. All of the volunteer firemen were shocked.

Volunteer positions are diverse and varied. Some policies may need to be redrafted this is a case of, paper before people, not achieving the purspose for which was meant to do - ‘helping people’. There are negative aspects that occur. But utiimately the benefits can enhance the community, create strong social bonds and instill self-esteem in everyone.

We all want to do what we can to help. Clean out our pantry, give clothes or donate money.
In conflict zones refugee camps are set up. These camps are only meant to be temporary, but stays are extended for much longer. These refugees are vulnerable and are forced to look to foreign aid workers for help. All of their control is relinquished and they become entirely dependent on foreign aid.

This is a repetitive pattern and foreign aid entities have not constructed a model to foster independence for disaster victims. Help is welcomed, but in the end dependency must not be permanent.