Passions of the Soul

To sponsor or not to sponsor

Whether you have ever sponsored a child, never considered doing so, have thought about it but are skeptical that your money would be used properly, or would dearly love to sponsor a child but don't know which organization you can trust (this was me, eight years ago), read this skeptic's story. It wouldn't hurt to read the comments, as well; there weren't many, when I read it a little while ago, and several were first-hand testimonials favoring (mostly) Compassion International.

When you have read all of that and checked out Compassion at Charity Navigator, and when you are ready to sponsor a child, please consider the child whose photo shows in the widget to the left (this blog), or here.

I have told many stories, on this blog, about Compassion, my sponsorship experiences, and a few about my sponsored children. Compassion also has a blog which has more stories and tons of information.

But whatever you do, don't do nothing. Find a place, find an organization you trust, and do something to help the children in poverty.

One Act = One Life

If you have not seen this video, please take 5 minutes to watch and listen to Tony, Jimmy, Michelle and Richmond.

All four of these young people are formerly-sponsored children through Compassion International. All of them did so well in the academic work, in their work at their respective Compassion-assisted student centers; all of them exhibit strong leadership abilities and a strong Christian testimony; and all of them were accepted into Compassion's Leadership Development Program (LDP). Now, all four are studying under scholarship at Moody Bible Institute.

I don't know if all four are yet sponsoring children, themselves (although I can just about guarantee that they will, eventually!), but I know Michelle is. She started with one. Then after she began studying at Moody, she figured out that if she ate just one meal a day (it might be two; I don't remember, for sure), she could afford to sponsor a second child.

I believe it is more common than I would ever have thought for former sponsored children to become sponsors, once they are out of the program (even if they do not go on to university). It is just one of so many ways that they "give back" for the opportunities they were given.

So...if they can do it, are you sure you can't sponsor a child? It's $38 per month; that comes out to $1.25 per day, and you will never miss it.

Spiritual warfare played out in the streets

This is about a young boy enrolled in a Compassion project in northern Brazil. It could be about any number of places where Compassion works...and many other places, as well. But at least the children have some place to go where they can be relatively protected and safe, and also learn to live right.

You could sponsor a child in that project, or any a project in any of 25 developing countries. Your $38 a month provides good food, every time the child attends the center, and supplemental nutrition where needed. It also provides spiritual training and Bible instruction; medical and dental care and help with emotional challenges; a safe place to play and develop good social skills; instruction in some disease-prevention measures, such as boiling water that is disease-ridden, before washing food, drinking, or other uses; instruction in good hygiene and the importance of eating the right foods; tutoring to enhance their education at the public schools; and the opportunity at appropriate ages to learn a skill that will make it possible for them to support their family and break the cycle of poverty.

That's not an exhaustive list, but it gives a little more of an idea than just saying they are aided in developing physically, spiritually, emotionally and economically. You can be sure, tho', that no area of a child's life is left unaddressed in the quest to help them grow into strong, fulfilled, contributing Christian adults.

If you would like to sponsor the child pictured in the widget at the left, just click "Sponsor Me" and you will be taken to the page where you can do that. Or you can click on the link in line 1 of the second paragraph, above, to choose a child. Or e-mail me and ask me to send you a child packet, or leave a comment and let me know what you want. The $38/month breaks down to $1.25/day; you will hardly miss it, if at all, but it will make a world of difference to a child.

Haiti Earthquake Update

Haiti Earthquake Update - Very current, updated just this morning. Actually, anytime you click on the link, you will read the then most current update available.

The thing is, Haiti's earthquake and horrific devastation are old news, in the mainstream media (MSM). If you gauge the situation in Haiti by the amount of attention given to it by the MSM, you will forget about the people who are left to deal with the rebuilding, or with the losses of parents, children, siblings, co-workers and friends. You will forget about the people who live in tent cities now made far worse, since the rains began. Can you say mud flats?

But work is still going on, groups that have been ministering in Haiti for long years are still there, still serving and still working to come up with the best ways to help those in need...which covers a lot more people, now, than it did two months ago. And two months ago, Haiti was already the poorest nation in the Western hemisphere.

If you've read this blog, before, you know that I am a volunteer advocate for children and the poor through Compassion International. You may know, already, that Compassion has been in Haiti for 40 years. What you may not know is that Compassion is partnering with other ministry groups, there, to help in the rebuilding--not only of structures, but of infrastructure and of faith.

Much has happened, in the past 6 weeks, that has not been widely told, as the MSM are not typically interested in chronic conditions and spiritual movements. In a nation whose leader three years ago led the Haitians in renewing their national commitment to voodoo, the current President has recently led the nation in committing themselves to worshipping the only true God, the Lord Most High, Jesus Christ. Reports have been confirmed of more than 100 now-former voodoo priests having accepted Jesus Christ and destroyed their voodoo implements and supplies.

Compassion and other ministry groups have earned credibility, in their years of service, and they are strategically placed to work, to serve, to encourage, to be the hands, feet, and voices of Jesus Christ. Our financial resources* and our continuing, fervent prayers on their behalf are needed, still, and will be needed for a long time. If you are in a position to give any amount on a monthly basis, that will help them tremendously.

*Other Compassion funds that feed into helping Haiti, but may also be needed elsewhere, include the Where Most Needed, Disaster Relief, and Help Highly Vulnerable Children Funds. If you are personally knowledgeable about other ministry groups serving in Haiti and know them to be good stewards of your money, they could also use your help. I highly recommend Compassion because I know this ministry and the people behind it, and because they have been awarded Charity Navigator's highest rating eight (8) years straight, for their financial integrity, consistency and transparency.

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"Spiritual earthquake" in Haiti

Or can I liken it to the book of Acts, in the New Testament, where thousands of new believers were added daily?

Stephanie, one of the leader [Compassion] advocates in our region, shared a blog post by her friend Tom who serves with Jesus in Haiti--a ministry I had not heard of. This link will take you to his blog, but I can't seem to link to a particular post. Be sure you read February 15, for sure. (Feel free to read more.)

I have read other accounts of the many Haitians who are turning to Christ, but I found the February 15 post especially exciting. Not because one person is more important or more crucial than another in God's eyes and heart, but because the President of this small island nation has given his heart to the Lord and because he bore witness to his new faith in speaking to all those who had gathered for days of mourning and praying. That takes a level of humility not often seen in national leaders.

I do believe God is doing a new thing in Haiti (see Isaiah 43:19). What that will look like, I don't know, but many knees are bowing, many tongues confessing that Jesus Christ is Lord! That's a praise!

"You don't matter; you're just not important"

This video, narrated by Wess Stafford, tells us that poverty is so much more than what we typically hear: a lack of food, a lack of education, homelessness...poverty may include all of these factors, but it is so much more. But the worst part, for poverty's children, is the message they learn, very early: "You don't matter; you're just not important." Here we see how Compassion addresses the whole of poverty and, in that process, tells children the truth: They do matter; oh, yes, they do! The video lasts a little under 10 minutes, and it's well worth the time. Please watch. 

After you've watched, consider what you might do to help fight poverty. Some suggestions:

*sponsor a child for $1.25/day ($38/month)
*sponsor a Child Survival Program Project in Haiti for $20/month
*Donate to Help Haiti

There are other possibilities, and I'll be happy to answer any questions. Just leave a comment. And if you want to sponsor whatever child's photo shows in the widget (left sidebar), just click through.

Haitian children are not currently available for sponsorship, until Compassion has identified all of the children who survived the earthquake. If you specifically want to sponsor a child there, just send me an e-mail with your name and contact information, whether you prefer a boy or a girl or a particular age range, or if you just want to help a child. I will send you either a packet or a link for you to use to choose your child.

UPDATE: I have revised the first paragraph.

I am a volunteer child advocate for Compassion International. None of the money given to Compassion comes to me for finding sponsors or donors.

This video was created by David Hames, who was killed in the earthquake in Haiti on January 12, 2010. It is only one of many videos put together by David. His family and friends waited approximately three weeks until he was recovered from the rubble, ending their hopes for a miraculous rescue. They need our prayers.

Never say "Never"

Never say, "It can't get any worse." It can.

Never say, "There's no hope." There is. Jesus is the same today as He was yesterday; He will be the same tomorrow as He is today and was yesterday. And in Him, hope always lives.

Never say, "Okay, let God do it" or "Let somebody else do it." He put each of us here for a reason. If you have shelter, clothing, shoes, and food, you are rich, by the world's standards; if you have more than enough for your needs, you are rich. We are blessed in order to bless others.

So what can you do to help Haiti? Give. But give responsibly, through an organization that you have checked out and know to be absolutely trustworthy with your contributions. Compassion International is such an organization. They have earned Charity Navigator's highest rating for 7 straight years, putting them in a very, very small group.

Watch this brief video, and then, please, go here to give something. Anything.

A greater tragedy

Please read this post, the latest update from Compassion's medical team in Haiti. It just hurts.

Imagine the college or university nearest you. Imagine that your nation is so poor that an earthquake would flatten all of the buildings, killing 90%--that's not a typo--of the students, along with many professors.

Imagine that your country is so poor that it does not have the heavy equipment needed to move the chunks of buildings that trap people in the rubble; so poor that concrete is not reinforced with steel rebar.

Imagine that going to college had been an impossible dream for you or your children, were it not for an organization like Compassion, who made it possible; were it not for people who would help with their financial support, as well as with their love and encouragement through letters. And imagine that that dream appears to have died in the recent disaster.

Now, imagine that you live in a country that is filthy rich, by world standards, and that you have the means to help, even a little. It might take a sacrifice, on your part--putting aside $1.25 a day, buying one less St*bucks a week, putting off buying those DVDs you've been wanting, or whatever small adjustment you could make in order to give something.

Giving to Compassion's Help Haiti fund (see widget, right, or go here) is one way to help. Sponsoring a child in another of the countries where Compassion serves is another way. You may want to sponsor a child in Haiti, but right now, that means letting someone like me know to put your name on a waiting list, for when Compassion knows for sure which children are available...and which ones died.

But please...don't let the fickle news media and the superficiality of our culture cause you to forget the needs of those in desperate poverty in areas where there are no food stamps, no WIC, no government-based resources of any kind for them. Forgetting and moving on, as if everything that could be done, had been done--that is the greater tragedy, and we will all be held accountable for it.

A Hefty Dose of Hope

Read the excerpts from the diary of a young mother, in Haiti. She chronicled her fears, early in her pregnancy, and her learning and joys as a result of being enrolled in a Child Survival Project. Read how she had prayed for a boy, because he would have a better chance than a girl, in her community; then, read the joy she finds in her daughter. What a difference in both their lives, as a result of the Child Survival Program!

You can help Compassion staff bring hope to mothers in poverty, many of whom have watched helplessly as their babies or young children have died, needlessly. The monthly cost of an individual sponsorship for a Child Survival project is only $20. If this is something you would like to do, send me an e-mail with your name and, if you have a preference as to country or region, let me know that. One-time donations in any amount can also be made to the Child Survival Program.

Life in Haiti After the Earthquake: Carrying On

This is the fourth report from Scott Todd, Senior Ministries Director at Compassion, who is leading a medical team of volunteers to Haiti. After you read it, scroll down to read his previous reports. It wouldn't hurt to have a tissue or two handy.

Life in Haiti After the Earthquake: Carrying On

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