Jason Miles's Page

Yo! Welcome to my page. Allow me to spend a moment telling you why I created this site and my hopes for all of us...

Currently there are 40 million people living with HIV/AIDS globally. By 2010 there will be 53 million orphans in Africa from various causes including AIDS, (source UNICEF 2006). *This statistic categorizes an orphan as a child who has lost one or both parents.

Why should we be passionate about caring for the sick, for Orphans, and for Widows?

In Matthew 25 it says Jesus will judge us all based on whether we cared for the sick or not. Not only does their life hang in the balance, but so does ours - if you believe this passage (which I do).

James 1:27 says, "Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world." It seems like this verse was written specifically for American Christians - and I'm not sure we're living up to it.

But I live in a little town in California. How can I apply these scriptures to the global AIDS Crisis? Am I supposed to sit on the sidelines during the greatest humanitarian crisis in history? Am I confined to just 'advocating' or 'praying' or 'going to conferences'?? Yikes, that would stink. I've got to do something,

For me, Caregiver Kit building is part of the answer. Currently there are over 59,000 Caregivers , (FY07 Year-End CHARMS Data) . They are all volunteers - ministering to orphans and chronically ill adults through World Vision's HOPE Initiative. I've met some of them from Ethiopia, Zambia, Romania, and Lesotho. They are the real heroes in our story. They are saints. But they need our help! They need to be equipped, trained, and encouraged. We can make that happen through this program. We can participate in their ministry directly as significant partners.

And not surprisingly, we are deeply touched as we strive to build these kits. Our children, and family, and friends are all impacted when we build kits together. A wise man once said, (for us in America), "we need the poor more than they need us". We need to understand what scarcity is, because we live in such a pampered society. Our kids need to understand what desperation looks like. What the developing world looks like. And how God is there, not just here. How His word applies there, not just here. This program helps them start to understand global needs in manageable pieces.

Together we are making a difference. In less than 2 years we have seen hundreds of Churches, companies, and schools equip Caregivers with thousands of kits. I made this site so we can all share those pictures, videos, and stories with each other. We've seen TV stars and Political leaders pick up an orange case and put together a kit. We've seen it on Good Morning America, and in the Venitian Hotel in Las Vegas. We've seen grown men cry, and teenagers alter their life plan. We've seen the elderly acting youthful, and kids acting mature. We've seen thousands of Americans participate.

I'm sure one day Jesus will look down and say, "During the Global AIDS Pandemic I was a caregiver and you equiped me".

See you at a kit build,

Jason