Meet Noah

We have welcomed another one of God's precious children into our family through sponsorship!


Please meet Noah. He is 8.5 years old, just a month younger than our daughter. He lives in Kenya. Noah lives with his mother, and has six siblings. He loves to play soccer, and so do we! He had been waiting for a sponsor for 444 days... 444 is a long, long time to wait for sponsorship. I would love to be there when he and his family receive the news that the wait is over.

We are his, and he is ours, and God orchestrated it all. He joins Bessy (Honduras), Lizbeth (Bolivia) and Suwanna (Thailand) in our Compassion family.



This is the first boy we've sponsored, and the first sponsorship from Africa. The kids are SO excited about Noah! We haven't received his information package and photo in the mail yet, but we'll have our first letter ready to send tomorrow... we are so eager to get to know him and his family!



If you sponsor a boy of a similar age, what kind of things do you like to send with the letters?

Prayers & Support

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On June 26th, I will be joining Compassion International (www.compassion.ca) on a mission trip to San Pedro Sula, on the northwestern coast of Honduras. As a Compassion Advocate, I will be working with those most in need, the poorest of the poor, in conditions that none of us can possibly imagine without having witnessed them in person. I will be documenting my trip online through this blog, sharing photos and writing about my experience while in Honduras in order to raise awareness of the need for child sponsorship. I will be witnessing first hand the difference that Compassion International makes through the local church in the lives of these precious children, their families and their communities.

Although it will be a heartbreaking experience, I believe it will also be a great opportunity to experience the gospel, to be His hands and feet for those in need.

Having followed the Compassion trips of other bloggers to Kenya, India, El Salvador, Dominican Republic and Uganda in the past, I know that I will need the support of prayer to prepare my heart for what I will witness and experience during my time in Honduras, and for the transition as I return home after this life-changing experience and learn to live a "new normal" with a changed and broken heart for those in need.

Please join me in prayer as I work alongside Compassion not only on this trip, but in my work as a Compassion Advocate. Pray for me to have the heart of Jesus, to serve like He did, to honor Him through my words, my actions, my heart, my life, and to have the strength to continually reach outside my comfort zone to share Him with others. Pray for the children still in need of a sponsor, that we will help them connect with the sponsor God has chosen for them.

If you are able to offer financial support for the travel costs of this trip (airfare, lodging, etc), your contribution would be greatly appreciated. I have set up a Chip-In button on my blog for contributions. God will stretch even a one dollar donation into a great blessing. I know that not everyone is in a financial position to donate, know that your heartfelt prayers will be your priceless contribution.

Thank you, beyond measure, for your prayers, your love, and your support.

If you would like more information about the work that Compassion does, or if you would be interested in sponsoring a child, please don’t hesitate click on the following links:

Canada -- Click here!

U.S.A -- Click HERE!



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In His Time

Have you ever wished you didn’t have to wait for something good to happen, and perhaps given up waiting for His time and purpose? Do you find it difficult to wait for the reward at the end of a journey?




In this house, I’m known at the “splinter fixer”.


Not a glamorous title, by any means, but my skills were hard earned.


You see, when I was little, we had a hazelnut tree at our cottage by the river. I didn’t know at the time that it was a hazelnut tree. I just knew that if you could withstand the prickly husks, there was a treat to be had inside.



The outside of the husks were covered in an ultra fine fuzz that would painfully embed itself into anything that touched it… without fail.

Determined, I spent hours every summer prying open the husks, licking the tart juice from the inside, and cracking the shells so that I could get at the tender white nut inside. Although I’d try everything to avoid the splinters, it seemed inevitable.


I think I spent more time perched on the deck facing the river, tweezers in hand, pulling out infuriatingly translucent splinters than I did eating nuts.


I thought the nuts were definitely worth the trouble, though, even though I didn’t know what they were.



I didn’t know any better.



We had never spent time at the cottage in the fall as far as I can recall, otherwise I would have witnessed the husks splitting open and releasing the brown shells containing nuts fit for consumption.




I would have likely recognized at that point that they were hazelnuts. Every Christmas, my mom would fill the bottom of my stocking with nuts in their shells. Hazelnuts were my favorite.


I never made that connection. The summertime un-ripened nuts were completely different that the nuts I received at Christmastime. You can barely compare the two.


Still, even if we had spent some time at the cottage in the fall, I likely would never have experienced the reward of fresh, ripe hazelnuts. My brother and I would have grazed on them all summer long, and they would have been gone well before the first leaf turned color.

My impatience and foolishness would long ago have stolen my prize, my reward.

How much better would it have been to have the wisdom and patience to hold out for what God intended as a reward? Fresh, ripe, handpicked hazelnuts. I may never know what those might have tasted like, but I have the wisdom to know that the patience would have been well rewarded.


Summer wasn't the season for the harvest... God had intended for harvest to come in the fall.

In His time.

Not ours.


What else have I missed by not having wisdom and patience? Just as important, what lessons can I learn from the times I have not been patient, and how can I make sure that God doesn’t need to teach those lessons to me again?

It’s one thing for semi-tasty hazelnuts and splinters to be a consequence, but what if the consequences were eternal, as they often are?

Sobering thought, considering that it seems as though we’re living in the “NOW” generation. We want the rewards, but are we willing to wait for them? To wait for His time?

What harm can come from rushing through life, wanting the reward but not the lessons and the journey?




Ask that to the couple who didn’t honor a vow of purity before marriage.


Or to a believer who gave up on God when life got difficult.


Or the young girl who settled on the first guy that came along.





Not only will patience and wisdom help us avoid consequences, but they will help us receive our full rewards. All that He provides for us in His time IS worth the wait.

"Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up."
~ Galatians 6:9 ~


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Freefalling Faith

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Have you ever believed you could fly? Really fly?


Years ago, my family owned a cottage in the middle of a wooded area near a river. The cottage was a place to escape to for some family time each summer. My brother and I were fairly young, I was perhaps about 5 years old.

Young. Spunky. And spirited.

Some things don’t change much over the years… Like the young part. Don't know about the spunky part, though -- am I spunky? :o)


We had a set of stairs on the outside of the cottage that led straight up to an attic/loft that could only be reached from those stairs. It was quite a steep climb, as you can well imagine. That summer, I had seen the Mary Poppins movie. It must have made quite an impression on me. See, I had this umbrella… can you tell where this is going yet? I thought so.


I had reckless faith.

In just about anything.

I believed I could send toys to God, remember? I even gave it a try with aluminum plates, string, balloons and toy army men. I believed I had to obey my father regardless of what he was doing, that was my job no matter how much I hated it. I also believed that Mary Poppins (and therefore humans) could fly with the help of an umbrella.



Up the stairs I climbed. I don’t remember from which step I jumped, all I remember was experiencing the jump as though it happened in slow motion…


“1… 2… 3… Float!”


“Wait, I think I did it wrong........
... I'm going in the wrong ----THUD.”



Groans and moans. “Uhm, if there were banisters, perhaps I could hitch a ride back up and try that one again. Wonder why it didn’t work… Maybe I was supposed to blink first?”


It knocked the wind outta me, but it didn’t knock the wind out of my sails. I tried it a few more times, convinced that there had to be a way.


Eventually, the umbrella broke.


Pity, because it was a really cute umbrella… and I still had a ton of faith left over.




In hindsight, it’s not the lack of faith that made the attempts a failure, (or the umbrella), it was the root of the faith.


It was reckless for me to base my faith on the things of this world, movie characters or real human beings. Crashing was inevitable. (Broken umbrellas somewhat optional.) A false faith will eventually give way to failures and frustrations, and in the end, will lead to the refusal to risk any further attempts. Enthusiasm vanishes. Insecurity and doubt creep in and make themselves at home. Faith is damaged and diminishes.


If someone had faith in me, he or she would eventually be disappointed, because I’m a sinner, I’m far from perfect, I stumble, I fall, I make mistakes… I’ll let you down, it’s inevitable. I’m human.


Don’t follow me, follow Him.


The root of false faith isn’t strong enough for a freefall. God alone is strong enough for you to freefall.




My faith in God has replaced the false faith of my youth with fearless faith.


When I lock my eyes into His, I know that the focus on Him will allow me to fearlessly freefall. Mary Poppins never knew what she was missing. There is nothing quite like it, and best of all, there's nothing reckless about it. If my eyes aren't on Him, I can't jump. I can't leap. I can't make one single step forward in true faith. When my eyes are on Him, there is no hesitation.


Gone are the days of climbing before I jump…
I’ll jump from where ever I am.


Gone are the days of jumping a dozen times before giving up…
I will jump as often as it takes.


Gone are the days of getting the wind knocked out of me...
Fearless faith takes my breath away right from the start.



The landing is never a concern. I’ll land in God’s hands every single time. I have to believe it, or I wouldn't have the faith to freefall.

He is sufficient.



He is enough.



He is worth it.

No umbrellas required.



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Make It Personal

You've seen them on TV... the children with dirty faces, sad eyes, and threadbare clothes. Children living in devastating poverty, in need of proper nutrition, health care and education. Children desperate enough to pick through garbage for survival.

(Photo credits, Jennifer McKinney / "MckMama")

Perhaps you've watched the entire show, moved, but unsure that one person can really make a difference. Does your sponsorship really change a life? Are these children real, and do they really need our help?


Six Compassion Bloggers recently flew to Africa along with four trip leaders to answer those questions for us. You can't always believe what you see on TV, but Compassion International's work is real. And so is the need for sponsors.

I encourage you to read their posts, like this one, and this one... will you? Will you make it personal?

The things is, though... when we're simply on the outside, looking in... when we're witnesses called to action but not yet in action...


It's not personal.



It's not relational.



It's not enough.



It's not enough...



It's not enough to say "someone else will help them". That someone can be you.


It's not enough to say "but I can't afford $41/month". The majority of us have enough if we're honestly willing to part with it. Is a life worth a coffee a day? A meal in a restaurant? What would you be willing to give up to save a life?


It's not enough to say "I can't." God doesn't call the equipped, He equips the called.


Will you trust Him and take the step forward to release a child from poverty in His name?

Will you live simply so that they may simply live?

Will you consider releasing them from poverty, so that they can release you from wealth?

(Photo credits: Jennifer McKinney, "MckMama")

Will you..........


Consider sponsorship?






If you live in Canada, click HERE
If you are in the U.S., click HERE


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Goodbye Socks, Hello Honduras!!!

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My relationship with Compassion Canada began five years ago in May of 2005 at a Geoff Moore & Mark Schultz concert at our church. My best friend, my mother and I had come to hear Mark Schultz, but we were moved to hear Geoff Moore speak of his first trip to Haiti. Through recounting his experiences, he taught us what sponsorship could do, and reminded us of the Gospel teachings to take care of the poor... mom and I knew that we had to do what we could.

I was not working at the time, so sponsoring a child was out of reach financially. My mother offered to financially support one sponsorship if I would help her with the correspondence. I can't thank her enough for being willing to do this with me.

That's when we started sponsoring Bessy, a little girl from Honduras who stole our heart.

This May, we will celebrate five years of having sponsored Bessy.



I can't say this without completely choking up...


This June, I will celebrate those five years of sponsorship by meeting Bessy in person, in Honduras, while on a Compassion Advocate Tour of Honduras...


It took years of prayer, but less than 24 hours for God to reach deep into my heart and pull out three cherished dreams, making them a reality. Not only has He made it possible, He has made it abundantly clear that this is what He would have me do for Him.

To know that He didn't have to...

Yet to know that He wanted to.


There.
Are.
No.
Words.

Kneeling in praise tonight,
In worship,
In awe...

Head bowed in a prayer of gratitude,
Humbled...
Faithful...

And barefoot... without a hope of ever finding the socks that God blew off my feet this past week.







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Hello God, Goodbye Socks!

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It's no secret... I have a passion for Compassion.

I've been a sponsor for almost five years, and the more involved I get into sponsorship and Compassion as an organization, the more that passion grows.



My heart's desires have been as relentless as the commitment they each would require:

1. To become a Compassion Advocate.

2. To become a Compassion Blogger.

3. To travel with Compassion to witness first hand the work that Compassion is doing, to help them in their work, and to share their work with others.

God and I have had many front porch prayers about this... The more I prayed about it, the stronger those desires became. The more I prayed, the more things began to fall into place in preparation for those dreams to become a reality.

I knew that the Compassion Advocacy was simply a matter of God's timing and not mine. The same applied to traveling with Compassion, although all along, I had felt it would take place in 2010 or 2011. The Compassion Blogger prayer was a bit more complicated. They don't have "Compassion Bloggers" in Canada the same way they do in the U.S.


I received an email last week saying that my Compassion Advocacy application had been received and was currently under review. They told me that they would be in touch with me this week.


Kayla Tompkins from Compassion Canada called me today to conduct a semi-formal interview for my Compassion Advocacy application. That one phone call combined two of my favorite topics; it didn't take any effort to get me to share my heart for Jesus and Compassion.

She is waiting to hear back from Pastor Jim, since I named him as a reference, but other than that, it's official...

Dream # 1 has turned into a reality!

I am a Compassion Advocate.

That alone would have been sufficient. I have learned to be content in what He gives us... but I am also learning that we serve a God who likes to blow our socks off :o) I'm acquiring a taste to having my socks blown off, much like some people acquire a taste for mushrooms or diet Coke with lime... I'll stick to the "go barefoot boldly", thanks! God seems to get a kick out of that these days!


Compassion Canada has a different advocacy program than Compassion in the U.S. I asked Kayla about this today, and she explained that Compassion Canada doesn't have "Compassion Bloggers" in the same way they do in the U.S. Instead, there is one Compassion blog off the main Compassion website page, and the Regional Advocacy Coordinators contribute to this blog. I expressed my heart's desires to become a "Compassion Blogger" and to contribute to a Compassion blog, and she said that they would be willing to have me contribute as a guest Compassion Blogger, in fact, they'd appreciate some help with this. I'm thrilled!!!!

Dream # 2 has also turned into reality!!!

I WILL blog for Compassion, here, or THERE!

Two out of three would have been more than enough for one day one year (or eight), but God wasn't finished. You know.... the whole socks thing.


Compassion Canada generally has two trips to Compassion countries each year. I remember longing to join them on their trip to Honduras last fall, but that trip was canceled due to the political unrest in Honduras. The situation in Honduras has improved, and the trip has been scheduled for the end of June. They're also going to Peru in September, as well as the Dominican Republic and Philippines next year. No plans for Bolivia or Thailand in the horizon, but those may come in 2012 or later.

Honduras, though... boy oh boy, God sure knows how to get my attention.

We have sponsored three little girls in Honduras, including the one we've sponsored the longest, Bessy... The trip would involve getting first hand experience with Compassion centers, meeting with families and children in the Compassion program, and personally seeing what Compassion really does. And so much more! What an incredible opportunity to dive into the work Compassion does in order to come back armed with the knowledge and experience that I would have the opportunity to put to use in the advocacy work. I'd also get to meet with Bessy. As if I needed more of an incentive.



It would be a dream come true.


The question is, is it time for that dream to come true?



A few days ago, I wrote a post on my family blog about the spiritual side to finances, God's provisions, trusting Him, tithing, serving, giving it all to Him.

It's not a coincidence that within days, I was asked if I would join Compassion in their trip to Honduras.

I was told that I have until March 5th to make a decision and pay the deposit... after which, I will have until March 19th to complete the payment for the trip. Less than three weeks from now.



I have been praying for this opportunity for a few years. It's coming to reality so fast, my head is spinning!

Some of my questions...

Is this what God would have me do? That is the most important question. It doesn't matter to me how much I've dreamed of this, if God doesn't want it, I don't want it. I mean that.


My heart tells me to leap, to free fall into His arms, that He has provided the timing and the opportunity... that everything fell into place not by hazard, but by Him. I believe that He will provide, He will fill the gap, He will catch me. When I said that I'd offer everything and follow Him, I meant it. I'd call them right now and book the whole thing, no hesitation. I have the faith, I do, I just want to be sure that I make a wise decision...

For example: It would probably be wise to run this by Terry first. *ahem* I'm sure that's part of His intentions. God is pretty thorough that way, never wastes an opportunity. It'd be just like Him to give me less than two days to break this idea gently to Terry. Oh boy.


Ahhhh, I love moments like this. What a great opportunity to learn.


Will you join me in prayer? I'd love to hear your thoughts, your insight, what you would do... please take the time to share your thoughts in the comments or by email. That's the beauty of the blogging community... we're not alone.


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A Little Is Much

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I loved every season as a little girl, but especially summer. My mom was a school teacher, and every summer, I looked forward to shadowing her as she went about her daily routine.

My mom was always up at the crack of dawn. To this day, she isn't capable of sleeping in. In order to make the best of the sunshine, she would set out to hang a load of clothes up on the clothesline early in the morning. The sun rose on the front side of the house, and as the clothes were hung one by one, the backyard seemed to stay suspended in shaded slumber, waiting for the second sunrise. The laundry would be ready and waiting when the sun peeked over the roof line and warmed up the world that stood waiting behind our house.

I'd wander outside with her, usually wearing my threadbare nightgown. If she was late getting the laundry out, you'd usually find me in my beloved blue jean overalls with the Pink Panther patch, and a pale butter cream yellow zip up hoodie. Barefoot, always. Sometimes, I'd tiptoe in the grass still heavy with dew, and crouch down to closely examine the patterns of the spiderwebs and the way the dew would highlight the silk threads with tiny dots. The rest of the time, I would perch myself on the deck and hand my mom the clothespins while she hung the clothes.

I remember the smell of the clean, wet laundry as it was lifted out of the basket and onto the clothesline. Tide. She always used Tide, and still does. I preferred the way it smelled once the sun had finished drying it au naturel... I can close my eyes right now and hear the sound of the crisp sheets flapping in the breeze and the rusty squeak of the clothesline reel as it bore the weight of the clothes. In my mind, I can still feel the stiffness of the clothes and towels as they were dropped back into the waiting basket. I loved that even though I was too small to carry the basket of wet laundry out to the clothesline, I could always help carry it back into the house once it was dry.


It always seemed neat to me that the original pile was heavier and smaller, but the final outcome was lighter and seemed to take up more room.


I used to imagine that it was the volume of the sunlight and love pouring into the laundry that made it expand that way.


Kind of like when the Son pours into us, we feel lighter, and life becomes more full.


Nothing from these memories compares to snuggling up to my mom on the clothesline deck and inhaling the scent of her flannel pajamas... the smell of fabric softener on her pajamas was intoxicating. I couldn't get enough, and I couldn't resist sinking my face into her pajamas as I hugged her for as long as I could. Sometimes, I'd just hug her leg as she hung laundry. I remember hugging her leg as she tried to walk around the house and do her chores. If I could have, I would have breathed her in so that I could carry her around within me all day long.

I don't think I could have possibly loved my mom more.


Although we don't use fabric softener now because I've grown an intolerance to scented products, I can perfectly describe the scent to you. It has a Hug scent to it. I'll never grow an intolerance to that. The hug scent is permanently engraved in the memory of my heart.





It might be the little things, but in the math of life, it's the little things that aren't so little.


A little is much.






It was my love for her that modeled my love for God. It is now my love for God that models my love for my mother.







My love for her even then, pales in comparison to my love for God today. In my childhood, she was the center of my world, even though I had an awareness of God. Now, He is the center of my world even though I have an awareness of her.




Let's rewind back to my childhood, and adapt that memory to how I feel today...

I loved every season as a little girl, but especially summer. God was always there, but in the summers, He would provided me with some of my favorite ways to spend time with Him. The sun would rise early, and He'd be there, waiting for me to shadow Him as He led me through my day.

God was always there to greet me every morning. Even though sometimes I didn't want to sleep for fear that I will miss some time with Him, He would stand guard at night and there was never a lapse of time without Him present. God never slept in order to make the best of every opportunity. Our faith should also never sleep.

As I followed my mother outside as she prepared to hang the laundry, I was greeted with another glorious sunrise that warmed my face as I wondered how He felt when He painted the skies with hues of pinks and blues in various intensities... never making the same morning sky twice. Every work of His was an original.

The backyard seemed to stay suspended in shaded slumber, slowly unfolding as the earth warmed up in worship to the Creator. I would look over the backyard and imagine it breaking out into praise as the Son rose to shine upon it.

I'd wander outside with my mother, eagerly anticipating to discover the world in a whole new way. My clothing would still be plain, familiar, well worn and threadbare, but it still wouldn't matter to me. Barefoot, always. I'd walk softly through the grass still heavy with dew, and I'd lean closer to examine the way God used His imagination to create a creature so small that could weave such masterpieces so intricately... each one unique and special. I would smile as I imagined God creating dew each night as jewels to decorate the webs with... each drop perched perfectly on the thinnest of silk threads. I would struggle to keep from exploring more of His creations, eventually perching myself on the deck and marveling with my mother that the same God who invented everything around us, loves us even more than a mother loves her child, or a child loves her mother.

I'd watch her hang clothes on the clothesline, remarking the differences between the wet, limp clothes, heavy with weight, smelling strongly of something man-made... and the end process, something so light, fresh, clean, full of joyful sounds and textures, the traces of man-made cleanliness replaced with something pure and natural to the senses... In my mind, I'd compare it to our Christian walk... heavy and clumsy at first, so full of our human thoughts and human nature... but as our journey progresses, the more we soak in the Son's Light, the better the harvest He reaps. Faith in Him carries our burdens so lightly, the entire world is seen through fresh eyes, sounds of prayer and worship to Him can be heard and felt, our hearts cleansed and purified by a process no man could ever have orchestrated, and our senses are overwhelmed by it all.

What I would have tried to carry at the beginning, I now give over to God and place it in His hands. "For my yoke is easy and my burden is light", says the Lord.


He has indeed increased my faith to where it can no longer be contained... faith, once stretched, can never return to it's original size.


It is in the process of emptying ourselves that we can let God pour Himself into our empty vessels that changes the weight and fullness of our lives.



Nothing I experienced that day, or any day, compares to spending time in His presence and inhaling Him deeply. It's an intoxicating love, a real, relentless and relevant love. I can't get enough of Him, and I can't resist spending time in His presence. If I could, I'd breathe Him in so that I could carry Him with me all day long, because although He is with me with every breath I take, I still want more of Him, want to know Him more, want to crawl into His lap and hang on to His every Word.

Just when I think I couldn't possibly love Him more... I do.


Although I still love my mom very much and always will, life around me has lost the feeling it had long ago. The things of the world are passing away in my heart, I am growing an intolerance to them over time, as God becomes the center of the focus. I'll never grow an intolerance to Him. His presence is permanently etched into my heart.


It may not make sense, but it makes perfect sense just the same... such a contrast between our love in this world and our love of God, that human love can fade into an illusion of hate when compared to the ultimate Love (Luke 14:25-27)


A little is much, but God is much more.

Compassion Economics

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Last night, we received our information packages for Lizbeth and Suwanna, our two new Compassion girls. As supper was cooking, I read through the information out loud to my husband and the children. The following is the basics of our discussion.



Lizbeth will be five next month, her birthday is March 25th.



She lives in the jungles of Bolivia, in the heart of South America. She also lives in my heart...



In Bolivia, 23% of people live on less than a dollar a day. The same statistics weren't available for the United States or Canada, perhaps because there are so few of us living on less than $30/month...



Imagine one in every five of us living on less than $30/month?


In our family alone, one of us would live in severe, devastating poverty. Which one of our children would not be able to go to school? Which one of our children would not have access to health care? Which one of our children wouldn't have enough to eat today? Which one would go to bed hungry? None, because we'd give up all that for our children.

When all four family members live in severe poverty, though, they all go without.



Lizbeth's parents both work as much as they can, when work is available... We took that opportunity to explain to the children that their father and I have both been blessed with salary jobs that provide a very stable, reliable, steady income, month in, month out. We are blessed beyond comprehension.


Lizbeth's parents each make approximately $50/month under the best case scenario. That's $100/month in a good month. Not every month is a "good" month.


Could we raise two children on $100/month?



We are committing $35 a month to help deliver Lizbeth from the effects of severe poverty. It may not seem like much... what can $35 a month do for us?


To them, it's a third of their income.

A THIRD of their income.

The kids were all sitting around the table, silenced, thinking... you could see the wheels turning... "How much is a third of our income? How much does that feel like to them?"


We asked them to estimate our monthly 'take home' income... and then we helped them see a "third of our income" from that perspective.

As a basic, hypothetical example, if we were making $5000/month, to us, it would feel as though we're given $1650 to help provide for one of our children.


Imagine if someone provided $1650/month to help provide for your child?


Not only does it help the child overcome poverty, but it gives the family relief in their own meager budget, which helps them feel a bit more hope.


We explained to the children that without this, Lizbeth would not be able to attend school, may be pulled into the work force at a young age, sometimes as young as 8 or 9 years old, out of desperation. Without an education, the cycle of poverty continues.



Where else can you give $35 and feel as though you're giving $1650? If that's NOT the best investment... what is?


Our $35 isn't much... but it's enough to change the future.


And that $35 doesn't just have impact on the immediate, temporary future... but eternally as well. Lizbeth will be provided with spiritual guidance and teaching, Bible study, and a church community. Her parents will also be able to attend classes.




We don't deserve any credit for what we're doing... we're not heroes, Jesus is the true Savior. We're simply following our hearts, and the Biblical teachings of Jesus. Taking care of the widows and orphans, taking care of "the least of these", loving and helping the poor as Jesus did, tithing in a way that really speaks to us.

We're trying to teach our children that it's not about us... it never was. Being here on earth isn't a "what's in it for us" experience... it's "how can we make the world a better place for someone else?" How can we live out the Gospel? In teaching them this, their father is also being exposed to the Gospel, to the notion that this isn't about him either... we're not just changing these Compassion girls' lives, we're changing our lives.




The kids were impacted by our discussion last night... they made the decision right then and there to begin to sponsor their own child as soon as they begin working. They believe in the difference they can make. They believe in the difference we can ALL make.





And then, we introduced them to Suwanna... our sweet Compassion girl from Thailand. She'll be 7 this October, and she lives with two siblings and both her parents.






Severe poverty came to mind when we spoke of Lizbeth to the children. We were just scratching the surface.



Suwanna, that sweet faced girl I am absolutely in love with, lives in Thailand.


When I asked the children to guess how much income Suwanna's family makes, with ONE more child to feed and provide for than Lizbeth's family... even I wasn't prepared for the imminent reality...



Her parents work all month when they can... and if they can work all month, they bring home twelve dollars.



$12.


Each.



Total family income? $24, best case scenario. PER MONTH.


We are providing this family with more than their monthly income in order to support their child.

Imagine if someone gave you more than $5000/month to support your child?


This left us all speechless.





Supper was ready, the air still heavy with what we had just discussed... as we said grace, I asked them to consider the food in front of them. Just a simple meal... pork chops, baked potatoes, salad, veggies... a meal simple for 5, for roughly $8.


If this were Suwanna's family, their income would provide for 3 such meals in one month.



Our one meal, last night, was worth a third of their income.



A meal worth one third of our income.



It just became a $1650 meal.



Pork chops, baked potatoes, salad, veggies... $1650.


If you look at it again as an $8 meal... 4.5 of those meals would equal one sponsorship.



It was all I could do to choke back the tears.



What can we give up in our lives, that we honestly don't need... our small comforts, the things we're attached to, in order to sponsor another child... What is $35 worth to us, compared to what it's worth to them?


Welcome to the Economics of Compassion. Don't expect to get involved with Compassion and not be moved... not be inspired... not be changed.




Do you feel led to take action?




If you live in Canada, click HERE
If you are in the U.S., click HERE


It will be one of the BEST investments you've ever, ever made.



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Temptation

Saw one today that I couldn't help but share... I don't know who to give credit to for this quote, but it was Tweeted by Mark Batterson, the pastor of a church in DC.

"Temptation isn't a PROBLEM - temptation is an OPPORTUNITY 2 show Christ how much we love Him."

Such truth. As much as it's tempting, I won't point out the paralells that came to mind... "Suffering is not a problem, it's an opportunity..." "Hardships aren't a problem, they're an opportunity..."

For today, I'll stick to temptation. How many temptation opportunities are we given, both bold and subtle, and what is the ratio of opportunities given, and opportunities not taken?


Sobering.

What if...

What if Christ had been tempted to not die on the cross, and refused to take the opportunity to show His love for us?

He was led not into temptation, but He delivered us........

How are our responses to temptation delivering our love to Him?



How are the choices we make when tempted showing Him our appreciation for the opportunity He took...



When we're tempted in our day-to-day life... to download a music file illegally, to say words we know will not glorify Him, to eat more than we should, to tell a white lie, to give in to a habit that does not glorify Him... how does our response to those opportunities reflect our hearts for Him?




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