Out of the mouths of babes...

I want to share with you part of my most recent letter that I received from one of my Compassion children, Estefany:

Hello, dear Anne, I write you very excited.  I received your cards and stickers.  I think and feel you are doing a good job.  My teacher in the project told me that G-d enables those He has called.  G-d has put you in this place because He believes you can do it.  I always pray for you that G-d will use you.  I dedicate this verse to you: Isaiah 1:17 [Learn to do right; seek justice. Defend the oppressed.  Take up the cause of the fatherless; plead the case of the widow.]...

The timing of her letter has been perfect.  In the face of uncertainty and a still undefined path, this is what I needed to hear.

My... how G-d speaks through children...

Sponsor a child today.

He still listens.

A long, long time ago, I asked you to pray for my Compassion kid Enock.  His sister had gone out into the fields and not come back.  When they found her, she wouldn't (or couldn't) talk. She spent a lot of time in and out of hospitals, draining the family of money, which required Enock to stop attending school from time to time in order to help his mother sell kerosine.  Everyone was pretty stressed out about it, and you came out in hoards to help me pray for him and his family.

Well, I got some news!

Our G-d still does miracles. :)

Enock's sister is out of the hospital and living at home.  She helps the family out and is well on her way to recovery.  She still acts strange and worries Enock sometimes, but, she is leaps and bounds from where she had been.

Enock's mom, Enock, his sister, and some onions they were able to buy so they could keep Enock in school full time.

Praise G-d for His mercy.  He still listens.

Sponsor a child today!

 

Today, I'm stressed.

06. I really like seeing my rabbit
be willing to drink her water.

My rabbit hasn't been eating like normal for the past couple of days.  In fact, the only thing she's choosing to eat is paper.  She'll drink water if I put it in her face, and she'll eat some hay and pellets, because she knows I'm stressed.  I've got a couple more tricks up my sleeve, but it may involve breaking the budget for this week.  I'm just trying to focus on my mother's words: "Money is a tool.  It's not worth anything if you don't use it."


Today, I ended up watching the entire Venus Transit online, because it was too cloudy to see it well in real life. I woke far earlier than I meant, resulting in me being extremely tired, and just zombie-ing all day.  The dream that woke me was rather interesting, though.  Arnold Schwarzenegger was trying to bring me in to be a a part of Jack Black's "Crincess" - Corpse Princess, made up of many different body parts of dead people. Billy Dee Williams sold me out in exchange for the two of them returning his six children to him.  I couldn't blame him, but it was rather disappointing that I was going to have to die, since you can't be part of a "corpse princess" while you're alive, of course.  The strangest part was, I haven't watched a movie with any of them in it in years.

My epic fail of an attempt of a transit picture.

Watching NASA's broadcast of the transit.
My computer screen makes an excellent mirror, apparently.
I was rather annoyed with the telescope they were using that turned the sun purple.
It made it really hard to view Venus.

My friend Curran's picture of the transit.
He did a GREAT job capturing it!

Finally, I got an email today, informing me that I had misunderstood how much tuition was at the Law School I was researching.  Instead of being $30,000/year, it's $30,000 total.  I'm now considering it much more strongly, especially since they still uphold the Socratic Method (of which I am a HUGE fan), by offering live classroom chat sessions with other students and the professor, but I don't think that program offers even any introduction to International Law nor Juvenile Law, which is a big minus, as that's what I'd be interested in doing.  So, most likely, this program is still going to be a "no," but they've perked my interest again, so I'm definitely going to be praying about it and finding what G-d's will is, and I would appreciate it if you would, too.

The email

Speaking of prayer, I'd be really grateful if you participated in the prayer vigil I'm trying to put together for my Compassion Kid, Enock and his family.  His sister is living in the hospital, and it's putting a lot of strain on his family.  Thanks!

Another Prayer Vigil

Enock

"Wherever two or more of you are gathered, so shall I be also."

Back in October, I asked us all to pray for my Enock (one of my Compassion Kids)'s sister. I just got an update on her condition, and Enock and his mother are again asking for prayer, specifically from the team that prayed last time, but will welcome more too. I told them I would ask.  I'm looking to put together another vigil on Saturday, June 9.

The girl is currently living in a hospital facility, which is putting a lot of financial strain on the family. In fact, there are now many times when Enock cannot go to school, because he needs to work to help pay the bills. This breaks my heart, and I'm going to try to supplement his income so that he can go back to school. Let me quote the letter to you:

"Enock says his sister is doing better, but she does a lot of talking abnormally. He says continuing praying for his sister with your prayer team, because she suffering and she wants to be astray... Enock says there has been some improvement but she still in the hospital to receive further treatment. 

"Enock and his mother say the sickness had cost a lot to them both financially and spiritually. Enock sometimes finds it difficult to go to school because of money been spent on his sister's sickness. The family is somehow okay, Enock says so."

There is a lot of room for interpretation, I know... but this is my latest information.  And, just as a refresher, this is what was written last time:

"She says her daughter went for a greener pasture, but when she was returning, the daughter returned with the mental problem. The child had been sent to hospitals and prayer camps, but it still doesn't go. Their mother therefore is pleading on your behalf to pray for her daughter. The situation is now: The sick child is at home safely. According to her mother, she doesn't sleep at home at night."

I myself am going to attempt to be praying on this as much as Enock's mom is asking. What I am asking of you is a prayer vigil. I would like to get 24 hours of solid prayer going for this girl. I hear from Enock 1 to 2 times a month, so this information is very recent (as of 3/17, actually).

If you are willing to pray, please respond with the time that you are taking... I'm suggesting half hour blocks, but hit me with more or less as you see able. This is a really bold healing prayer that I would recommend including in your prayer time. (Also, I realize that time zones are drastically different, but I'm going to do this vigil on G-d time, so just sign up in your own time zone.) I'd like to be able to send a copy of this list to Enock's mom, so please respond ASAP (and be sure to designate AM or PM!).

Please feel free (and encouraged) to share this with anyone and everyone.

THANK YOU.

12:00am - Anne Nicole Royster
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9:30am - Sarah Cooke
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9:00pm - Mandy Sayers
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It's Compassion Sunday.

I'm still in South Korea, so I can't be there today to share with you about Compassion, but if I could, it would go a little something like this:

Your tax-deductible contribution to Compassion International of just $38 a month connects your child with a loving, church-based Child Sponsorship Program that provides:

• Food and clean water
• Medical care
• Educational opportunities
• Important life-skills training
• Most important of all, your sponsored child will hear about Jesus Christ and be encouraged to develop a lifelong relationship with God.

When you sponsor a child, you'll receive your child's photo, personal story and a child sponsorship packet by mail in approximately 15 days.

When children find out they've been sponsored, the joy they feel is indescribable. Just knowing that someone across the globe cares means more than you can imagine. Sponsoring a child will profoundly change the future for your child, and will change your own life as well.

Got questions?  I'd be happy to answer them below.  Or you can go HERE for some more information.
Please share this post with everyone you know.

 
Sponsor a child today!

April Prayers

April 2012 Prayer Calendar
“You will be like a well-watered garden, like a spring whose waters never fail.” — Isaiah 58:11, NIV

Sunday 1

This month, please pray for God’s refreshing of the fragile imaginations of children who live in poverty. Pray that they will learn to dream — to imagine growing up to be doctors and teachers and world-changers.

Monday 2

Please pray for a healthy recovery for 6-year-old Fatao of Burkina Faso, who was flown to India by Compassion in early March for critical heart surgery.

Tuesday 3

Please pray for the thousands of Compassion sponsors and Advocates who are preparing to present child-sponsorship opportunities at churches around the world on Compassion Sunday, April 22.

Wednesday 4

Praise God for recent rains that brought a reprieve from the severe drought in Kenya!

Thursday 5

Please continue to pray for the families in the Philippines whose children passed away or are missing after Typhoon Washi devastated the region.

Friday 6

Please pray for 10-year-old Victor in Peru, who was diagnosed with leukemia when he was 3. His single mother was only recently able to get him treatment.

Saturday 7

Please pray for God’s comfort and provision for siblings Warraphon and Apiwat in Thailand, whose father recently died.

Sunday 8

Please pray for Compassion-assisted children and their families in Java, Indonesia, whose homes were recently damaged or destroyed by strong weather.

Monday 9

Some Burkina Faso caregivers who oppose the Christian principles we teach have removed children from our programs. Pray for God to work in their hearts and in the hearts of the children.

Tuesday 10

Please pray for the safety of our field staff in El Salvador —  especially those visiting dangerous and violent places. Pray also for the safety of children living in areas rife with gangs and crime.

Wednesday 11

Please pray for 14-year-old Jeanitha, a Haiti orphan who has suffered from Type 1 diabetes for several years. She lives with her sister, who struggles to provide even one meal a day.

Thursday 12

Pray for the Mbale district of Uganda, which has seen a recent cholera outbreak. A Compassion-assisted child and a caregiver have been diagnosed with cholera but are in stable condition. Our 11 Compassion centers in the district have provided education and water purification kits to local families.

Friday 13

Please pray for comfort and provision for the family of 13-year-old Rosa in Peru, whose home was destroyed in a fire that consumed 300 other homes.

Saturday 14

Please pray for a change in people’s hearts in remote areas of Togo, where idol worship is prevalent and parents do not understand that some sicknesses originate from their lifestyle.

Sunday 15

Please pray for three children from the Jesus El Camino Tamborada Student Center in Bolivia, whose homes were severely damaged in recent floods.

Monday 16

Pray for a number of children from the Ebenezer Child Development Center in Ghana who suffer from eye defects — especially for Steven, whose caregiver-grandmother is blind.

Tuesday 17

Praise God for enabling us to help Wilson in Haiti, who was dying from severe anorexia. Compassion transported him from Cap Haitian to Port-au-Prince for intensive care. He is now on the mend!

Wednesday 18

Please pray for the family of 5-year-old Desi in Indonesia, who was struck and killed by a truck while riding his bike.

Thursday 19

Please pray for God’s Spirit to calm a violent child attending one of our centers in Brazil. This boy was severely beaten by his father and needs to discover and embrace Jesus’ gentle, unconditional love.

Friday 20

Please pray for Compassion-assisted child Isai in Bolivia, who recently received a kidney transplant from his mother. Both mother and son are recovering.

Saturday 21

Tomorrow is Compassion Sunday! Please pray that God will raise up tens of thousands of men, women, teens and even children around the world to provide loving sponsorship for children in poverty.

Sunday 22

Please continue to ask for the Lord’s protection of our children, ICP staff, and their families in Cali, Colombia, where heavy rains and flooding have left a path of destruction.

Monday 23

Please pray for comfort for the family of Worachote in Thailand, whose father died in a motorbike accident.

Tuesday 24

Pray for the families of eight children from the P.A.G. Gee Child Development Center in Kenya, whose homes were damaged by heavy rainfall.

Wednesday 25

Please pray for Nimisha in India, who endured major heart surgery at age 9 and now must undergo heart surgery again.

Thursday 26

Praise God that two Christian radio networks, KLOVE and AIR1, recently partnered with Compassion’s Water of Life to provide nearly 40,000 safe water systems for families in Rwanda!

Friday 27

Please pray for CSP mothers in El Salvador and around the world who are single and are raising their children on their own.

Saturday 28

Please pray for wisdom and grace for our ICPs in Togo as these pastors and leaders reach out to a needy and superstitious people.

Sunday 29

Please pray for God’s peace and comfort for the family of Sagar in eastern India, who recently passed away.

Monday 30

Please join the staff of Espaço Esperança Student Center in Brazil in praising God for enabling Compassion to buy a hearing aid for one of their students, Carlos. The aid has substantially helped his cognitive progress!

Lent: The Family I Chose

***Don't forget to sign the petition (and this one too!) to save refugees from North Korea!***

I know.  I missed a day.  I, however, have been sick, and it was all I could do to exercise my rabbit before falling asleep after work yesterday.  Perhaps I will do a double post in the coming days to make up for it.

Blessing #22 - The children I sponsor through Compassion International.  (You knew it had to happen at some point.)

I just finished up writing letters to my Compassion kids.  My cousin Becky always gets so excited about doing this.  Sometimes I do, sometimes I don't, to be honest.  Tonight, I'm so tired, that I wasn't thrilled about the aspect of all the work that was going to go into it, but I love the results.  I love forming relationships with these kids, and I love learning from their hearts for people and G-d.  Trust me, I'm pretty sure that I get more from them than they do from me.

I've debated for a long time whether I should show you my kids or not.  On one hand, I'm thrilled to know them, and I want everyone to know them too.  On the other, I'm afraid that people will be focused on the number of them, and that's not the point.  Yes, it's a semi-shocking number.  But, since I've decided to show you their precious faces, I want you to know that I sponsor the number of kids that G-d tells me to sponsor: no more, no less.  That is how I believe all people should operate.  I also think you should know that not all of these are financial sponsorships.  Some of them are only "correspondent sponsorships," which means that someone else is paying the money, but, for whatever reason, they were not sending letters.  I believe that the letters are crucial, because it is through the letters that the children actually feel loved, and that may be even more important than the financial sponsorship in breaking the cycle of poverty.  So, I volunteered to fill that gap.

Now, without any further adue, I'd like to introduce you to my sponsor kids, the family I got to choose:

This is Abel.  He is 8 years old.  He is the latest addition to my family.

This is Enock.  He just turned 13.  Please pray for his sister; she returned from the fields one day, having lost her ability to talk.  No one can figure out why.

This is Estefany.  She is 8 years old, although you'd never be able to guess it from that sassy picture.  Her father passed away before I started sponsoring her; I can't imagine how hard that must be for her family.

This is Juan.  He will be 14 soon.  He isn't incredibly verbose, but he sends me wonderful drawings, usually of Bible characters.

This is Moumita.  She is 8 years old.  It's incredibly hard to get a visa to go to her country.

This is Natthida (Taeng).  She will be 12 soon.  She is the only one of my current Compassion Kids that I've gotten to meet.

This is Raquel.   She should be 17 or 18 now, if my memory is correct.  She left Compassion's program shortly after I met her in 2009 so that she could pursue a job.  I was able to write her a couple of letters at an address she provided before they started bouncing back to me.  It's so frustrating not knowing how she's doing.  But I work hard to entrust her to G-d, and I know I will see her again one day.

So, yes, that is my family.  Are you ready to add to yours?

Do you sponsor any kids (through any program)?  You should tell me about them.

March Prayers

March 2012 Prayer Calendar

“See, I am doing a new thing! Now it springs up; do you not perceive it?”— Isaiah 43:19, NIV

Thursday 1

This month, please pray that all the children we serve will discover the freedom to dream — and that God will use Compassion to help move their dreams from imagination to reality.

Friday 2
Please pray for our Leadership Development Program (LDP) leaders in Asia as they make significant organizational adjustments for the Asia region.

Saturday 3
Pray for the health of our LDP students in Ecuador, some of whom are dealing with back pain, arthritis, and kidney and urinary tract infections.

Sunday 4
Pray for André in Brazil, whose brother died in a car accident. André survived the crash and was in intensive care for 53 days. He is home now but needs physical and neurological therapy.

Monday 5
Pray for 14-year-old Beatrice in Rwanda, who suffers from psychological problems. Pray for God’s intervention in her mental and emotional health.

Tuesday 6
Pray for Christi and her family in eastern India. Christi’s father recently passed away.

Wednesday 7
Praise and thank God with us that between July 1, 2010 and June 30, 2011, 163,527 children and mothers in Compassion’s programs invited Jesus to be their Savior!

Thursday 8
The workers of Ebenezer Child Development Center in Ghana are praising God for the peace and harmony that exists among them. Pray that God will continue to help them, and all Compassion workers around the globe, to truly be one in spirit.

Friday 9
Pray for the health of Marcela in Colombia, who has been diagnosed with iron deficiency anemia secondary to chronic blood loss.

Saturday 10
Please continue to pray for God’s protection of our children in Tanzania, whose families sustained serious losses from the heavy rainfall late last year.

Sunday 11
Pray for our Philippine field staffers who are ill: Nonoy, Pons, David, and the mother of Keith; and for the recovery of Pastor Pabalate from a recent stroke.

Monday 12
Pray for 12-year-old Manuel and 14-year-old Juan, brothers in Peru, whose father died in a recent automobile accident.

Tuesday 13
Pray that during the coming year, the Holy Spirit will move many thousands of Compassion-assisted children and caregivers to trust Jesus Christ as Savior and Lord.

Wednesday 14
Pray for preparations for the opening of five Child Survival Programs (CSPs) on Sumba Island, Indonesia, in April 2012. These will be the first CSPs on one of the region’s poorest islands.

Thursday 15
Pray for our LDP students in the Dominican Republic and worldwide to make wise college and career choices and that God will guide them in their studies and leadership training.

Friday 16
Praise the Lord for 50 new LDP students in Colombia!

Saturday 17
Pray for families in the area of Mindanao, Philippines, whose children have died or are missing after the devastation caused by Typhoon Washi.

Sunday 18
Pray for God’s comfort of the families and sponsors of four children in India who recently died: Delipkumar (injured while playing); Vignesh (drowned while helping a small child); Ajith (hit by a tractor); and Sagar

Monday 19
Pray for 15-year-old Console in Rwanda, whose mother has stage-four ovarian cancer. Console is the only one left to take care of her mother.

Tuesday 20
Pray for Compassion-assisted child Yusnelis in Colombia, who suffers from lupus.

Wednesday 21
Pray for the Lord’s protection and care of our children in Tamako, eastern Indonesia, as the region continues to recover from recent severe flooding.

Thursday 22
Pray for children in Bolivia who have been abandoned by their parents. May our loving God meet their needs and enable us to help relieve the suffering.

Friday 23
Please pray for Compassion Sunday on April 22 — that thousands of churches will participate and that tens of thousands of children in need will receive loving, faithful sponsorship.

Saturday 24
Pray for the youth in our centers worldwide as they prepare to graduate the Child Sponsorship Program and face the challenges of young adulthood.

Sunday 25
Pray for sponsored child Vignesh in India, whose father passed away in January. Vignesh had already lost his mother; he is now under the care of his grandmother.

Monday 26
Strong winds recently damaged or destroyed homes of nine sponsored children in Indonesia. Pray for our children and their families and for Compassion staff who are providing relief and support.

Tuesday 27
Pray for 15-year-old Edgar and his family in Peru. Edgar’s brother recently died from tuberculosis.

Wednesday 28
Pray for David and Caleb in eastern India, who are both suffering from malaria.

Thursday 29
Pray for the families in the area of Veracruz, Mexico, whose homes were damaged or destroyed by recent heavy rains.

Friday 30
Pray for good health and long life for Madam Oyaremo, a caregiver in Ghana who is 80-plus years old and the only relative to care for her grandchild.

Saturday 31
Praise God that during the past fiscal year, more than 50,000 babies and their caregivers received lifesaving assistance through the Child Survival Program. Pray that, by God’s grace, more and more programs will be established worldwide.

Lent: The love-hate relationship

***Don't forget to sign the petition (and this one too!) to save refugees from North Korea!***

Blessing #7 - Food

We all have a love-hate relationship with food, don't we?  I like cooking, and I often like eating, but I really don't like what happens when I over-indulge in those things.  Who does?

This morning I got a reminder email for an event that I forgot I'd ever signed up for: the Isaiah 58 Challenge end of the month fast, and, wouldn't you know it, this month it was a fast from food.  Being unprepared, I opted to not participate today, but I haven't had dinner yet, and it's bugging me.

I'm hungry.

I have a headache.

I'm getting irritable.

I'm ever so slightly dizzy.

People are posting pictures of food on Facebook.

And I'm trying to do taxes.

I wonder how people feel who are lucky to get one meal a day.  Does the aching stomach wear off?  Does the headache eventually go away?  Do they learn to squelch the irritability?  Is there a trick to walking a straight line while dizzy?

I realized how blessed I am to have those questions (although, I'm not totally sure that being born to wealth is a blessing and not a curse).  But, as someone (I honestly can't remember who, right now) has drilled into me,

I am blessed to be a blessing.

Who can you bless today?

I'd like to introduce you to

Abel.

Abel is the latest addition to my "family."  I wrote in my last post about how my mindset is changing.  I want to elaborate more on that.  I was doing some prayer, prompted by my reading of Francis Chan's Crazy Love, asking G-d to help me vote for the man He thinks is the best leader of America.  That particular prayer actually has very little to do with anything Chan has to say, but bear with me.  But that's okay, because G-d's answer has very little to do with my prayer.  The immediate response I got back was:

"I think abortion should be stopped."

This definitely caught me off guard, because, until 3.5 hours ago, that was not my opinion.  So, I started praying some more, and fell asleep, but, when I woke up, I was overcome with the notion of how a sacrifice isn't really a sacrifice if you're not sacrificing.

So I started thinking about that, and I realized that my income has increased considerably, but my giving has not.  My immediate response was that I needed to sponsor another Compassion child.  As soon as I got home, I popped on Compassion's website, and began scrolling through the first page of kids, overwhelmed, and, once again all but in tears attempting to decide which one.  Who is it that actually is going to get their needs cared for?  Oh, how well the devil knows me.  He knows that that tiny whisper is almost always enough to chase me away from that page.  And it almost did tonight, too.

At the bottom of the page was Abel.  He was the only kid on that page to be denoted as a child who had been waiting for over six months for a sponsor (193 days, to be exact) - indication 1.  He lives in Peru and speaks Spanish - indication 2.  I all but threw up and burst into tears when I scrolled on to the next page - indication 3.

I threw on the brakes and turned the car around.  Abel's wait was over.

It didn't occur to me until half an hour ago how truly fitting this sponsorship is.  Abel.  Abel is the child I'm choosing to sponsor as an act of sacrifice to G-d.  Abel is the child whose name alone will keep me reflecting on the act of dying to self.  Abel is the child who is named after a man who did what was right in the eyes of the L-RD, even at the cost of his own life.  Abel is the child who will inspire me, simply by having his own name, to draw back to G-d.

G-d works in the most mysterious ways.  Praise be to G-d.

February Prayers

February 2012 Prayer Calendar

Has not God chosen those who are poor in the eyes of the world to be rich in faith and to inherit the kingdom he promised those who love him? (James 2:5, NIV)

Wednesday 1
Please pray for all the children Compassion serves, that the darkness of poverty will flee as the light of hope shines more and more brightly in their lives.

Thursday 2
Pray for the Compassion-assisted children and families whose homes were recently damaged by landslides in Antonia Santos, Colombia.

Friday 3
Pray for our staff in Togo as they register children in regions where idolatry predominates. Pray that parents will allow their children to be registered.

Saturday 4
Pray for healing for 13-year-old John in Haiti, who suffers from Pott’s disease — a spinal illness that could paralyze him for the rest of his life.

Sunday 5
Pray for our adolescent Compassion-assisted girls in Burkina Faso, who face many social pressures. Some are getting pregnant and others are becoming disinterested in the helpful programs offered by their Compassion centers.

Monday 6
Pray for 14-year-old Danitza in Peru, whose home was destroyed by fire. As Compassion helps his family, ask the Lord for His comfort and provision.

Tuesday 7
Pray that our Leadership Development Program mentors in Thailand will have wisdom from God and will keep their commitments to mentor our LDP students.

Wednesday 8
Pray for wisdom, strength and provision for our Child Survival Program mothers around the globe who are single and are raising their children on their own.

Thursday 9
Pray for a full recovery for 9-year-old Gilbert Samuel Hdun in Bandung, Indonesia, who was hit by a car in mid-December.

Friday 10
Pray for our children, staff and their families in the aftermath of recent earthquakes and volcanic eruptions near Tomohon City in East Indonesia.

Saturday 11
A cyclone hit the coastal area of Tamilnadu, India in late December, damaging the Puduvai Child Development Center and the homes of 70 Compassion children. Praise God that the children and their families are safe; please pray as their homes and center are repaired.

Sunday 12
Pray for Compassion-assisted children Ruby and Miriam in eastern India, who both suffer from brain malaria.

Monday 13
Praise God that no one was harmed during a recent burglary of the Compassion field office in Uganda! Pray for the staff as they replace lost equipment.

Tuesday 14
Pray for God’s healing for Elsabet, an LDP student in Ethiopia who has had to withdraw from Arbaminch University because of serious illness.

Wednesday 15
Please lift up 9-year-old Kamolwan and her family in Thailand. Her father recently passed away.

Thursday 16
Praise God for His protection and safety for our Compassion children from destructive rains that struck the area of Dar es Salaam in Tanzania!

Friday 17
Pray for Compassion Philippines, where 2,725 sponsored children in Cagayan de Oro City and Iligan City were impacted by severe flash flooding. The homes of 359 Compassion families were destroyed and 101 homes were damaged.

Saturday 18
Pray for 13-year-old Magda in Peru. Although her cancer has stopped growing, she struggles with depression. Please pray for her healing and encouragement.

Sunday 19
Continue to pray for Prasit in Thailand, who has leukemia — and for his parents, who are unable to work full-time due to frequent travel to be with their son.

Monday 20
Please pray about the rise in malnutrition we see at our child development centers in Haiti despite the nutritional support we provide. Pray that we can help these children attain health.

Tuesday 21
Praise God for His care and protection of our children and staff from a fire at our child development center in Kakina, Bangladesh!

Wednesday 22
Pray for the parents of sponsored children in Burkina Faso, that God would provide the resources they need to keep their children in school.

Thursday 23
Please pray for God’s comfort and strength for the families and friends of the seven sponsored children and three Child Survival Program children who died in the recent, devastating flash flood in the Philippines.

Friday 24
Please continue to pray for the children and their families in Nicaragua who have been affected by recent heavy flooding.

Saturday 25
Pray for the healing of eastern India children Faijen, Sushila and Benjamin, as well as the father of Bikas, who all suffer from tuberculosis.

Sunday 26
Pray for the health of our children in El Salvador as the dry season’s winds bring cool nights and dust, which can cause respiratory diseases.

Monday 27
Pray for Compassion families in the community of Mwanza, Tanzania, as they continue recovering from destructive flooding.

Tuesday 28
Please continue praying for the Lord’s protection of our children in Colombia from prevalent illnesses after recent heavy floods.

Wednesday 29
Pray for God’s guiding hand on Compassion’s leaders, employees and volunteers around the world as they expand efforts to release more and more children from poverty in Jesus’ name.

Vacation: Natthida (Taeng)

My whole reason for this vacation, and especially for going to The-Middle-of-Nowhere, Thailand was to see this lovely lady:

My sponsor child - Taeng - and me, outside her home

I've been sponsoring Natthida (Taeng) for about five years now, and the story of how we got started is definitely one near to my heart.  Before Taeng, I had been sponsoring Raquel of Honduras for quite some time.  I had been wanting to sponsor another child, but I wasn't sure I could afford it, so I started hosting Compassion events, when I presented Compassion to churches or even concerts and festivals, trying to get children sponsored that way.  At the start of every event, I made it a habit of picking up every child packet and praying over them.  At smaller events, I'd try to get to know something about each child.  It made things feel more personal, and, as a result, it got more children sponsored.  But still, I couldn't shake the desire to sponsor more.  So I prayed:

 G-d, if there ever comes a child across my table who shares my birthday, I'll sponsor him or her.

And then I continued my habits.  I can't tell you the number of April 22nds and April 24ths that crossed my table, entered my hands, almost had my name on them, but then I'd think of my bank account and my deal with G-d, and I'd wait.

Then, once day, it happened - the packet was there.  Terrified, I put the packet on the table, and prayed a new prayer:

G-d, if this is what you want, confirm it for me: don't let anyone sponsor her.

A copy of the first letter I ever sent Natthida,
which was found in a binder, holding copies of all
of our communications.

But halfway through, I new I was being foolish and cowardly, and I picked up the packet, wrote my information on the form, stapled my money to it, and added it to the stack.  Never before and never since have I encountered a Compassion child packet that shared my birthday.  For some reason, G-d specifically paired Natthida and me.  In meeting her, I began to realize the magnitude of the amount of responsibility He has placed on me and the amount of trust He must have in me, because I am now one of the maybe 6 Christian adults with whom she has contact.

Me and Taeng

For a while, Taeng was attending church and writing to me about what she was learning, but that has stopped.  Her community being mostly Hindu and Buddhist, her family began to fear neighbors' reactions to her church attendance and have had her stop.  She now sells (delicious) deep fried pancakes on Saturdays (which is when her church met) instead.  She does not believe in Jesus' salvation.  For a while, I know she was ripe to believe, but now, I know I must redouble my efforts.  I hope you will join me in praying for her and her family as well as for me - that G-d will give me the right words to write to her to lead her in the correct direction.

Taeng's house.  There are two beds in the house.  Taeng and her sister share one bed, their mother sleeps on another, and their father sleeps on the floor.  If you look to the left of the blue present on the shelf, you will see that the only framed picture in their home is of me and my father.  (I won't lie, I started crying.) 

We went to the zoo, which turned out to be Taeng's favorite spot in town.  I really liked finding that commonality: we both really enjoy zoos!  We also found another commonality: we are both the fast-museum kind of people (unlike my father, who likes to read every word on every sign).

Feeding the MASSIVE fish in the lake near the zoo

Next, we made a quick trip Natthida's grandmother's house, where Natthida helps to make these delicious, deep-fried pancakes and walks around selling them.  She wanted to make some for me, a request to which my taste buds were more than obliging. 

Trying to find more common ground, I noted how this was similar to my job making omelets in college, which was answered with an invitation to give the pancakes a try.  Natthida was giving me instructions over my shoulder.  Apparently, she was impressed with my results. :)

Natthida's little sister kept trying to sneak into pictures, so we just welcomed her in.  I never figured out how the boys were related, but I'm assuming they're cousins.

with Natthida and her mom

Then, we went to the Big Pagoda (I told you the better pictures would make sense here).  The Compassion people seemed very uncomfortable, as they kept insisting that they were Christians, so they knew very little about it, but it's a huge landmark in Nakhon Si Thammarat, and they wanted me to be able to see it and be impressed with it.

It was right about here that Taeng looked over at me and said, "You skin is so pretty!  My skin just absorbs the sun, but yours reflects it.  You're kind of hard to look at."  I laughed and reassured her that in a couple of hours it would be bright red.  This intrigued her a lot, so she asked me to lie down in the sun and show her.  I politely declined and attempted to distract her by buying her things. hahah.  I'm so American.

Exploring the pagoda

Saying goodbye was definitely the hardest part of the trip - having to release this beautiful girl (who's already sick) back into the care of people who, although well meaning, cannot provide all the medical treatment/advice she needs.  She cannot get all the religious encouragement I would want for her.  By no means do I think I could provide a better home for her, but I'm so used to being the kid who takes over the project when I feel like it's not being done to the absolute best of it's potential.  I'm a micro-manager, and I can't micro-manage this.  I have to trust G-d.  I CANNOT be in control on this one, and that's so scary for me.

One thing I will always take with me, though, is the memory of the sound of this sweet child's voice as she called out her classroom window to me, halting my progression to my ride back to the hotel.  I looked up, and there she was, leaning out the window for a third goodbye.  Maybe she didn't specifically mouth the words, "I love you, too, and I want you to be safe, too," but I feel like they were implied.