Facing Cultural Blindspots

All is not well here, but even poor people here live better one thousand times than people in Liberia
The preceding comment was copied from a "chat" I had with a dear friend visiting our country for the first time. He's been here over a month now, long enough to GET HOMESICK for his wife and daughter.
It's hard for us Americans to visualize homesickness for a world reported to have so many needs. And having lived there for two months, I attest to the fact that the perception of NEED is very accurate.
My friend visited a dentist today for the FIRST TIME IN HIS LIFE. Now, there's a real example of need, isn't it?
He told me about all the PLENTY he's seen, every kind of food one could want and yet people aren't thankful I asked him if "those people" were Christians or just "people in general". Thankfully, he told me it was "people in general."
And YET, I wonder if we Christians are blinded too having had SOOOO much our entire lives that we just take it all for granted.
I know I DID before my two months in Liberia and I have lived in another country in Africa and have made many, many trips to the continent. Before Liberia, however, I'd never faced inability to get basic vegetables that were a part of my staple diet.
Will my gratitude continue? I HOPE SO! I want to be profoundly changed by interaction with my friends who share their hearts with me.
It is SO important that we value one another, realizing that we really do have cultural blindspots that God wants to uncover.