Interview with Richard Stearns, Pres. of World Vision

Guy Kawasaki posted on his blog an interview with Richard Stearns, President of World Vision. You can find it here.

Its a fascinating interview and look into the heart of World Vision. Go read the interview today, especially if you sponsor a child.

A few points that stuck out to me:

When asked about why he left his successful corporate job to be president of World Vision, here is Stearns answer...

It wasn't something I planned. At the time, I didn't even want the job. I had been a donor to World Vision for fifteen years when, through a long series of circumstances, I was approached by World Vision, interviewed and offered the position. As a committed Christian, I felt I couldn't say no. When God gives you an opportunity to serve, you obey. I had "talked the talk" of being a Christian for many years, now I needed to "walk the walk." It has turned out to be the greatest privilege of my life to serve the poorest of the poor in Christ's name.

This Q/A caught my eye, too.

Question: What's the biggest obstacle to get rich people to care about poor people?

Answer: The obstacle is that poverty is often not personal. If your next-door neighbor's child was dying and you could save her for $100, you wouldn't think twice. But a child 10,000 miles away whom you have never met, that's just different.

About 29,000 kids die every day of preventable causes--29,000! These kids have names and faces, hopes and dreams. Their parents love them as much as we love our kids. We've got to make poverty personal. Stalin once said: "A million deaths is a statistic, one death is a tragedy." We must try to see the face of the one child.

I'm going to pass this on to the students and others I know who either support a child through World Vision or are thinking about it.