Compassion

My husband and I are huge fans of Compassion International.  When I met my husband I was broke.  I was working a full-time job and a part time job.   I didn't have a spare penny so I couldn't afford to sponsor my own child, though I'd long wanted to. 

At the time I met my husband he was sponsoring two kids through Compassion.   One was in her teens and one was about 7.  The teenager graduated after we got married and when she did we decided to sponsor another child in her same country and were assigned a young girl.  10 years later we still sponsor the same boy who was once 7 and who is now getting ready to graduate from the program himself!  The young girl we sponsored after my husband's first Compassion child graduated has since left the program.  Last weekend we got a letter from Compassion asking if we'd consider another girl from that country and we immediately said, "Yes!"  Our newest Compassion child is only about 2.5mo younger than our firstborn (son).

We have friends who have 5 children living in their home and have a Compassion child the same age as each of their kids.  Their kids are pen pals with the Compassion child their same age and all the kids get to "grow up" together.  My husband and I have always loved that idea so we were thrilled at God's handiwork in giving us a new child who is roughly the same age as our son.

The same night we received the information packet in the mail I started thinking, "Well . . . now we have a 6 year old like our son.  I wonder if there's anybody who needs a sponsor with the same birth date as our youngest (our daughter is 4)."  Sure enough, there was a little boy in Peru whose mom gave birth the same day I gave birth to my daughter.  My husband and I had a very brief conversation that night and decided it was worth it to us to add another family member :)

Every time I go on Compassion.com my heart breaks for the kids who still need sponsors.  Tonight I looked up the birth date of our oldest and "met" a little boy born the same day as him.  Oh, how I wish we could add him to our circle, too.  I also "met" Vishnu who is physically disabled and who, according to Compassion's website is in an area with a higher risk of exploitation or abuse.  Oh, how my heart breaks as I want to help Vishnu.   I want Vishnu, the boy who was born the same date as my son, and countless others to know Jesus.  I want them to grow up being well fed and knowing how much they are loved.  I want their physical and spiritual needs taken care of.  I want them to grow up and be healthy and be able to rise up and be who God created them to be.  I pray our Compassion kids will be God's messengers in their own countries and around the world.

Our Compassion kids are on our "sticks" we pray for each night and their pictures are on our "global wall" so that we see their faces, and remember to pray for them several times a day.