Today I wanted to share one of the ways Brenda and I give outside our local community. I felt prompted to do so when I was standing at the refrigerator the other morning, looking at the many faces children gazing back at me. When you look at our refrigerator you will see faces of cousins, nieces, nephews, friends (mostly young and some older). There is no real order to the pictures – they are a wild, fun, hodge-podge – some hanging straight by magnets, some crooked, and some barely hanging on at all!
There is one picture of a young girl who bears no resemblance to anyone in our family. She is six years old and her name is Cheyla Andrea. We have never formerly met Cheyla, although we have written back and forth. We know her favorite food is French fries (they are up there on my list of favs too!); her favorite color is purple and pink; and she loves to play with her dolls. She lives in the coastal region of Columbia in a small town of 6,000 called Nueva Colonia (New Colony).
We know her through Compassion International. Compassion International is a Christian organization that exists as an advocacy ministry for spiritually and physically poverty stricken children. CI was founded by Rev. Everett Swanson in 1952. It began by providing Korean War orphans with food, shelter, education and health care as well as Christian training. Today, Compassion helps more than 1 million children in 25 countries.
One of the things that drew us to Compassion International was their Christian foundation. Compassion’s mission statement reads:
In response to the Great Commission, Compassion International exists as an advocate for children, to release them from their spiritual, economic, social and physical poverty and enable them to become responsible and fulfilled Christian adults.
The people of Nueva Colonia experience tremendous hardships and poverty. Most adults work on plantations and earn an average of $125 per month. And the community as a whole is in need of more schools, teachers, doctors, employment opportunities…
Our support for Cheyla costs us $38.00 per month. This monthly amount is part of our tithe and is one small way we can make an impact on child outside our community. Our meager amount provides Cheyla with medical checkups, health education, Bible teachings, vocational programs and tutoring. It is amazing to think how much good a few of our dollars do in another country. Brenda and I have gone out to a dinner and a movie for more than $38.00 numerous times. Yet, this small amount will provide Cheyla with much of the support she needs to live and grow healthy.
One of the other reasons I like Compassion International is their focus on developing and transforming the lives of children through collaborative effort with the local church. The children are helped to discover their own worth to God and they are disciple in the Word through the local church. This is not an advertisement for Compassion (although it may sound like it ) It is however, a recognition of the work they are doing in Christ’s name.
In addition to the dollars and letters, we support Cheyla through our prayers. Each night Gracie and I say our bed time prayers and we include Cheyla. Prayer is one of the most powerful ways we can support her. And by praying over her with Gracie, Gracie learns the value of keeping others in her prayer life.
Perhaps you are already supporting someone through a foundation similar to this. Perhaps you have someone else in your life that you support in some way. If you do not, I would ask you to give prayerful consideration to checking out Compassion International. Your decision to do so, and your few dollars every month, may very well change the life of some young child half way around the world! Wouldn’t that be a wonderful way to live out the Great Commission?
Blessings to you,
Patrick
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So many times I have heard someone say, "Why do we as a nation help others outside of our own country, when there are so many with so little right here in the United States?" Does God draw boundary lines with His love based on geographical lines? Should we, as loving followers of God, place "boundaries" in our compassion to other human needs? Are one child's needs more important than another, based upon where they live. All children regardless of where they live, at the very least deserve the right to have food and shelter. A child should not have to want for food, or warmth. Be it love or financial help, each child deserves the right to be a child. If every person could find just one way in which they could help a child, our world would become a better place to live and grow.
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