HAVING gratitude for even the smallest things in life was the message Reverend Tim Costello brought to students at Creek Street Christian College on Friday.
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The World Vision CEO visited the school to present a plaque honouring its decades of commitment to the 40-Hour Famine.
Rev Costello told the senior students while people in Australia often fixated about not having enough, it was important to remember just how fortunate they are.
"People often think about the lottery and how that will change their life. 'Life begins from now', they'll think," he said.
"But by being born in a country like Australia, you've all already won first place in the lottery."
Rev Costello became the CEO of World Vision in 2004 and became one of Australia's most prominent workers with impoverished peoples of Africa.
The students had the opportunity to ask the baptist minister a number of questions, including how he has managed to maintain faith while confronting extreme poverty, what role they as Australians could play and how to become involved.
Rev Costello said the purpose of World Vision was to work itself out of business.
"We aim to set up programs to help lift people out of homelessness and poverty," he said.
"We don't want to create dependency, we want to lift communities to sustainability where people can experience adequate health and education."
Creek Street Christian College raised $1500 this year from the 40-Hour Famine, a program that has run for more than 10 years at the school.
School chaplain David Hickman said it was an honour to have Rev Costello speak to the students.
"When I got the phone call saying he was interested in visiting the school, I just thought this is unreal," he said.
Tim Costello will also speak at a luncheon in Bendigo before a public event at Bendigo Baptist Church tonight.
