Take a look

This is the page I need you to visit. It's a very important page. It is filled with cute kids that need to be prayed over and SPONSORED!

You don't have to sponsor a child to look at this page. You don't have to sponsor a child to pray over them.  But, it would be nice if you could.

Look over the page.

Does a child jump out at you?
Does a country jump out at you?
Does a symbol jump out at you?

Pray for that child.
Pray for the care centers in that country.
Pray for the situation that symbol represents.

Look. Pray. Sponsor if you can.

Compassion, Fried Plantains, letters and such

I've recently gotten letters from my Compassion kids.  Apparently Plantains with Salami is a popular dish in the Dominican Republic.  Now I'm wondering how the plantains are prepared.  And Eury likes to eat Fried Plantain with Spaghetti.  Fascinating.  Not a combination I would have thought of.

Grabiela is now able to write her letters.  She drew a little pair of red lips for her kiss and asked for prayer for her dad because he isn't a Christian.

Eury says he wants to learn to draw and that his family is very happy.  He drew and colored a picture of his center with two little smiling people beside it. 

I've been bouncing around in my brain trying to come up with a stunning reason our family sponsors two Compassion children.  And, just to keep it simple:  It's the right thing to do.

And, why do I blog about Compassion and the kids we sponsor?  It's the right thing to do.

If I can get one more child sponsored or make a person aware of the many layers of Compassion then that is beyond delightful.  

Compassion changes people.  Not just the child in the program, but also family members.  That's HUGE.  That's how vicious cycles get broken.  That's how hope stays alive.

You can become a Compassion blogger.  Just click here to find out how.  They've made it very simple.  I like simple.  I need simple.  Click on that Join The Network button in the top left corner and it will walk you through the steps.

Oh, and here is a Fried Plantain recipe from Aunt Clara's Kitchen:  Dominican Cooking.  I still haven't come across one that combines them with spaghetti, but I'm thinking there's probably no marinara sauce involved.

Do you want to play a game?

So, I got asked to play a game.  I already knew that I would lose.  The name of the game is Survive125.  Standing in the grocery store yesterday, looking for healthy things to put in my body, I thought about the game and knew there was no way I could do it.  And that broke my heart, because nearly 1.3 billion people are faced with this challenge everyday and it isn't a game to them.  It's life.

I actually teared up while playing the game.  Faces of people I love and other images were flashing across my brain.  I saw water barrels sitting by the street waiting for clean water to be delivered.  No money?  No water.  I saw children dressed in rags that sort of looked like school uniforms.  No uniform?  No school.  I saw children so hungry they can't lift their heads and their eyes are dull.  No food?  No life.

Do you think this is how it has to be?  The people behind this video say no. 

58: is a global initiative to end extreme poverty by living out Isaiah 58.  Don't know about the Fast of Isaiah 58?  Well, grab your Bible or read about it here.

Also, 58: isn't trying to reinvent the wheel.  They partner with organizations that have proven track records.  Two of my favorites are in the mix:  Compassion International and International Justice Mission.

My challenge to you is for you to play the game.  See how long you can last on $1.25 a day.  I only made it to Day 14.  I started crying before I ran out of money. 

Help children in poverty and get a free t-shirt

Malaria is a nasty thing to deal with.  Two friends have ended up in the hospital years after getting it.  It just keeps giving if it doesn't kill you first.  A child dies of malaria every 30 seconds even though it is a preventable, treatable disease.

But, we can do something to help.  Compassion has a Malaria Intervention fund that provides households in poverty with mosquito nets, malaria education, and treatment.  You can give through this fund at any time.

OR


One of the countries that is really hurting is Rwanda.  The very cool company, Sevenly, is partnering with Compassion for a short time (ends Monday morning) to let you get a sharp t-shirt when you sponsor a child from Rwanda.  You have to use this link to get your t-shirt.  And, you have to do it by Monday morning, 9:59 AM PST - that's April 9th.  But, you really need to do it.  There is one boy, Boncoeur, that has been waiting over 189 days for a sponsor.

OR

If you aren't in a place right now where you can sponsor monthly, here is another option to get a Sevenly Malaria tee.  Flat out buy a t-shirt from Sevenly and $7 will be donated to provide a life-saving mosquito net to children in Rwanda.  It's the same terms as above:  Do it by Monday morning, April 9th, 9:59 AM PST.

So, you've got three options.  Two involve t-shirts.  All involve compassion. 

Charity

I took this picture last year when I was in South Africa at the Dwaleni feeding.  It has haunted me ever since.  I never saw this child show any emotion or even move very much.  I didn't even know if it was a he or a she.

So, imagine my hope when I saw this picture on Kacy's blog post at Christmas time.

I was pretty sure it was the same child and I quickly asked Kacy to confirm it.  The answer was YES! The child has a gender.  The child has a name.  The child has a smile!  And food in both hands!

And, then this past week Kacy featured Charity in this blog post.  Oh! How it made my heart sing to see this little smiling face.

Just A Minute

I was a little freaked out when this post suggestion was made. No positive moments came to mind. I don't know if it was because I was such an average and below average child that people simply didn't see anything they felt should be encouraged. Nothing came to mind and still doesn't. It could be I simply don't remember. Lots of things are fuzzy from my childhood. In high school and college there were people that let me know they really liked my writing style, but every time they expressed positivity, there was one certain person telling me that they didn't like anything I wrote. They felt it was their job to make sure I never thought too highly of myself.

Another reason I freaked was because I have five children. Three are grown and two are quickly on their way to adulthood. Have I done the same thing to them? Have I spoken life into them or have I squashed their dreams and desires? I think I have encouraged them more times than squashing, but I'm too scared to ask them how they feel on the subject.

Compassion's president, Dr. Wess Stafford, recently released his second book, Just a Minute. Watch the following to hear a story about his daughter, Jenny, and a moment in their lives:



Take just a minute to speak life whenever you can. Don't be freaked out like me. Make sure you pour into the children around you.

Daughters of South Africa: Thuli and Annika

This piece was written for a site that got hacked and wrecked before it could be posted. So, I decided to run with it here.

While on a trip last March, I was blessed to meet two lovely daughters of South Africa. Both agreed to take time from their busy schedules to sit down with me to answer a few questions. Both spoke to my heart. And both have the most lovely accents. Wish you could hear them.

First up is Thuli Sannie, wife of Stembiso, a local pastor, and mother of Blessing, a delightful toddler that entertained me one afternoon with his laughter and silliness.

What was it like growing up as a woman in South Africa?
I think it was good. I'm happy to be a woman in Africa. I'm proud of it. I think it is very good.

Was there a hard time for you growing up?
I never had a hard time growing up. I had the support of my parents. I'm number five in my family so I had the support of my brothers. We had twelve at home. Six girls and six boys. Thuli is the third girl.

Do you think it is hard to be a man or a woman here?
It depends. It's how you grow up. Men have to work hard to get food and clothes to support the family.

What is one dream you have for your community?
To see the women be independent, having their own business that they can teach others and not have to depend on men. Not having that makes us poor.

What is one dream you have for your family?
To see my family safe. I'm praying for that. For us to love one another, to know each other deeply.

What is one dream you have for yourself?
To help people, to see people have hope, especially the women. Sometimes they don't have hope. My prayer is that God can help me about that. Thuli also desires to help the teenagers not turn to sex so easily. She wants to be courageous in teaching them a different way to live.

What are some of the lessons you think need to be passed down to younger women?
They need to be independent, go to school, not drink and not do drugs. Girls fall pregnant so easily and children grow up without fathers. We need to teach that it is okay to say no to sex.

Annika is an artist, wife of Zach and mother of Ariel, Zoe, and Charlotte. She is on staff with Ten Thousand Homes, an organization dedicated to the orphans of South Africa.

Annika feels she lived a very safe, sheltered life growing up which made for an easy childhood. Her parents were not racist, so she knew very little about apartheid and the horrors that were happening in parts of South Africa. It wasn't a subject covered in school. Because of her family's beliefs they had no qualms when the schools were desegregated.

One of her dreams for the community is to see her sewing project, SOSEW, expand for women struggling to feed their kids. It would give women a skill they enjoy. They would be able to use God's creativity while making a difference in their lives.

She dreams of her family continuing to minister together, that they will always have a heart for what God is doing and engage in that together.

One of the ways Annika connects to God is through her painting. She would love to be able to paint on a regular bases and someday have a gallery of her own. Her artwork can be found hanging in various locations on the Ten Thousand Homes base. The Ten Thousand Homes logo is based on one of her pieces.

When asked about what one lesson she thought needs to be passed down to younger women she answered: The greatest thing you can find is peace with yourself and how God has made you.