This is the Brand Loyal edition of Works for Me Wednesday. So here’s my run-down of brands I have to have.
Salad dressing: Old Cape Cod brand, Toasted Sesame Soy & Ginger. It’s all natural, kosher, fat free, and cholesterol free. And full of flavor.
Brownie Mix: No Pudge. Any. All. All the time. Gotta have it. Did you know you can make single servings? Now those are some smart brownies.
Salt: Salt Sense. Yes, I’m picky about salt. It’s lower in sodium than regular table salts, and I’ve found that when I run out and use regular salt I don’t like the flavor anymore. It seems that Salt Sense has turned my tastes.
Pasta Sauce: Ragu Chunky. Mushroom and Green pepper, but only for lasagna. For everything else I use Classico or Barilla - whichever flavor strikes my fancy. (did I really just say strikes my fancy?) And no, I don’t make spaghetti sauce from scratch. Not since I moved back to the US of A where there are a multitude of companies that do such a wonderful job already.
Jewelry: I try to purchase all my jewelry from NightLight. They have a truly amazing ministry that rescues women from slavery and trains them to do something that is worthy of respect, therapeutic, and creative. It’s high quality and I feel good knowing that my purchase brought light to someone living in darkness. The more they sell the more women they can rescue. Truly amazing.
That’s about it for me. I’m not picky about clothing brands, shoes, or anything like that. Just food. I’m a girl who knows what’s important in life (like brownies and salad dressing). For more tips on great brands to try, head over to Shannon’s place at Rocks in My Dryer.
There have been some thought provoking posts of late about Christian consumerism at Inspired by a True Story, and I highly recommend reading that. The YouTube video below points out what happens on the other side of the world, where the problem is quite the opposite. The video is about a minute and half. It’ll get you thinking.
Trade as One Story (short version)
After you’ve seen it, head over to Trade as One to see what it’s all about. (Yes, this is a shameless plug for a friend’s business. But it’s also something I firmly believe in. Check out the awesome stuff they have there.)
Did you know that Bangkok is the prostitution capital of the world? Or that human trafficking is the 3rd largest money-making venture in the world (drugs and arms trade rank higher)? And women from poverty-stricken countries around the world end up sold into prostitution in places like Bangkok? And the worst part, it isn’t just women. Children are traded into this too. I hope you’re feeling a sense of indignation at that.
NightLight is a ministry that goes out into the bars of Bangkok and treats these women as humans - giving the gift of conversation, acceptance, hugs, and grace. And they do so much more. They come alongside these women (and children) in their times of need - when they’re sick, or beaten up or in some other sort of danger. They also give women an alternative to the sex trade. They have a jewelry-making studio where they train these ladies and then hire them as employees. They have a dormitory and feed them hot meals. They rescue them. And they teach them about the Love that knows no limits. They have Bible studies, they give women dignity and the pride of earning a good salary without being exploited.
Interested? Now what if I told you that the more jewelry they sell the more women and children they can rescue from exploitation? And that you can purchase it online and have it shipped anywhere in the US? Now what if I told you they use genuine pearls and Swarovski crystals? I haven’t bought jewelry in a local boutique since I found out about this. Now when I need something I go to NightLight. And I give it as gifts. It comes with a little piece of information that tells the giftee where it came from and the story behind it. What better gift is there?
You can shop around at Trade As One and see some of their other Fair Trade items. Everything they sell comes from ministries similar to NightLight - providing hope to the otherwise hopeless.
Ladies and gents, I’ve tried not to stand on my soap box too much with the blog. I don’t think it’s the right media to push an agenda. But JourneyMama’s post today inspired me to say a few words. There is so very much extreme poverty and injustice in the world. Every 3 seconds a child dies from the effects of extreme poverty - through malnutrition, starvation, unclean water supply, lack of access to medicine - that means that while you’ve read this sentence 3 children have died preventable deaths. Trafficking in human beings is now the 3rd largest money-making business in the world, behind arms and drug trafficking. That includes children being trafficked into sex slavery as well as women forced into prostitution.
One picture I’ll never get out of my head is an elderly man in Kiev bending down to lick melted ice cream of the pavement. That’s poverty. Of course, there are plenty of people in the world who would be jealous of a meal like that. If you think you’re poor or struggling for resources, think again. Whoops! 5 more children just died from poverty-related causes.
So I ask you, what are you, personally, doing to contribute to the solution? You can be a part of the solution, or your complacency can be a part of the problem. Step up, take a stand. Get involved. My personal favorites are NightLight, Trade As One, International Justice Mission, World Relief, and World Vision. If none of that appeals to you, google Servants Anonymous, CARE, Food for the Hungry, and there are plenty of other organizations out there vying for support. Choose one. Choose more if you want. But don’t just sit there sipping coffee behind your 17″ DSL empowered screen. Do something. One person can have effect transformative change on the world.
Post a comment. Tell me what cause you’ve been supporting or plan to support. Let the blogosphere know. Your silence encourages complacency.
Edited Sunday, March 18: Unfortunately when I moved this post from my former blog at Blogger I couldn’t copy the comments (all 2 of them). But Compassion International was mentioned as another great way to get involved.
