What is the criteria (denominational, doctrinal, etc). Compassion uses for selecting which local churches they will work with?
That’s an important question, and here’s the answer.
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You can tell by its name, Tell Me When to Pack, that this is my travel blog. I’ve been writing here about the Compassion Sponsor Tour Talitha and I took to Guatemala, because that was definitely a trip.
But we’re home now and as I’ve said before here and here, the ministry of Compassion International is intertwined with other special interests of mine. Adoption, disabilities, and poverty are not limited to places one must travel to, so I’m shifting to NoelPiper.com to write my remaining thoughts and observations from Compassion and Guatemala.
Today, I’m thinking about Compassion’s Child Development Centers. Before we traveled, I was fuzzy about how Compassion relates to an individual child. One of the days of our tour was spent at a Center. Here’s some of what I learned . . .
Please read the rest and comment to ask any questions you have about Compassion. You’ll also find the link to photos from the Compassion Center we visited.
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As part of our Compassion International Sponsor Tour in Guatemala, one morning we made a visit to the home of a child who is part of the Compassion Child Development Program (CDP). In another post, I plan to write more about the CDP projects.
Our large group of sponsors was divided into smaller groups so we could go to different homes and not completely overwhelm a household. Each family had already given permission for a visit. These were not the homes of any of the children sponsored by any in our tour. But our visits would give us a better idea of how our sponsored children live, and of the effect of the CDP in a family.
The neighborhood we were in was at the top of a large hill (small mountain?). If you’ve ever seen–in person or in a photo–a hillside totally covered with tin-roofed small houses, that’s where we were–at the top of one of those hills, like this:
From the street, we walked down crumbly steps to the family’s house.
The house is one room wide, with each room on a different level, reaching further down the hill. and opening onto the tiny hardpacked dirt yard.
Angel is almost 5 and has been part of the Compassion Child Development Program just a few months.
We hear that Angel is lively and happy at the Compassion Center. But when we were there, he was tight-lipped and unmoving, even when his grandma and sister tried to persuade him to interact with us.
I’ve raised 4 sons. I know that look. It says, “Nope. Nobody’s going to tell me what to say or how to act.” Even a story didn’t move him, when Loida read from Do You Want a Friend? , into which my Dominican friend Raquel had written the Spanish translation of each page.
The rest of the family was more welcoming: Grandpa, who earns by wood- and metal-working; Angel’s mother, whom we didn’t meet because she was at work an hour away; his aunt, who earns as a seamstress; the aunt’s small daughter; Angel’s 3 sisters; and Grandma, whose cooking and housekeeping makes a home for them all.
All of these live in 3 rooms. The aunt has one room for herself and her seamstress work.
In another room 3 people sleep in each bed.
We prayed with the family in the kitchen, which is a separate room across the yard.
By the end, a lollipop and bandanna had done their work to loosen Angel up a bit.
Later in the afternoon, one of our group talked with Angel at the Compassion Center: “Why didn’t you talk with us. Were you mad?” He smiled and said, “Yes, I was mad.”
See, I told you I knew little-boy attitudes. They’re pretty much the same in Spanish as in English.
My travel photos may be viewed at my Shutterfly Share Site.
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There was also a Compassion photographer snapping throughout the day. So here are a few more photos, and since some else was shooting, I’m actually in several of them.
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Here in Guatemala, this was the day Talitha has been waiting for–the day for meeting Juan, the 5-year-old she sponsors through Compassion International.
I was blessed to be an observer while Juan’s hugs sucked a willing Talitha into a whirl of words, love, tears, prayers, games, laughs, songs, and precious gifts.
It’s a day that falls most easily into the category of a picture is worth a thousand words. So these photos should substitute well for several tens of thousands of words.
I’m not sure how many words a video is worth. See what you think. Listen for my favorite comment from Juan. Yes, I’m sure you’ll recognize it when you hear it.
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In a town about 45 minutes outside Guatemala City at 2 pm, the stream of children began, flocking after school to the Compassion Project Center in their town. They come 2-3 afternoons a week for games, a meal, Christian teaching, songs, activities, and help with their school work. Today the lesson was about misericordia. Mercy.
I wrote earlier at NoelPiper.com about the intertwining of Compassion with adoption ministries that are close to my heart. Today I’ll add another–Joni and Friends, which is one of the reasons my attention is drawn to people with special needs. I saw among the children at least 2 boys who appeared to need extra help. A project center volunteer assisted one of the boys the whole afternoon. Mercy.
Later, I asked one of the Compassion staff people from the main office whether children with disabilities are included among those chosen to participate in the program. The answer is yes, and some people ask specifically to be connected with such a child. Mercy.
I realized that it wouldn’t be possible for anyone to sponsor a handicapped child unless a local project director invited the child into the program. That shouldn’t be taken for granted because, face it, other children would be easier for a busy staff to care for and teach. I went away with much gratitude and admiration for Lydia, this project director, who chose those 2 boys for the program. Mercy.
Here is a remarkable young man named Carter, who has an idea–a dream. As I listened to him, some specific ones of you came to my mind. I could easily imagine you rising to Carter’s challenge. Listen to him, please, with merciful hearts. Mercy.
Here are 3 children waiting as of today, according to the “Sponsor a Child” page. Might you be the one for one of them? Use the “Search for a Child” sidebar, choose “Show more search options,” at “Mentally/Physically Challenged choose “yes.”
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At lunch today I visited with Pedro. He’s a full-time university student, studying marketing and business, pressing ahead with a heavy class load to be finished as soon as he can. Still he makes time to work as a translator for Compassion whenever he can.
There will be lots of translators with our group on Saturday when we sponsors meet “our” children, so there are enough to go around for all the meeting and getting acquainted that will be going on.
I asked Pedro if Compassion pays the translators. “Yes, we get paid. But all of us would do it for free. We love doing what we do.”
Pedro has been involved in this way with Compassion for about 2 years and has been present for approximately 30 sponsor-child meetings. He had lots to say about those special days. (This isn’t a totally direct quote, but close).
I always cry when the children and sponsors meet for the first time. It’s such an emotional moment. It never gets old. It makes such a difference for the child and for the sponsor. Afterward, the sponsors pray for the children in a new way.
There is always a time for sponsors and their child and his or her family to exchange prayer requests. I’d say that 70% of the children and families don’t ask for anything. They just express great thanks and say a general sort of “pray for us.”
I remember one 80-something grandfather during a home visit. He remained in a hammock because he’d been injured in a fall. His wife couldn’t hear. You could look around at the house and see parts of it collapsing, because they couldn’t afford to repair it. But when we asked him how we could pray for the family, all he said was, “I am so thankful to be alive, to wake up every morning, to have a job.” (He’s 80 years old and he’s still working!).
Every time I finish one of these days, I go home and fall on my knees and thank God.
I’m already crying, just thinking about it. Just wait till you meet Juan.
As Pedro talked, a mental video was running in my head, thanks to our daughter-in-law Molly‘s visit a couple of years ago with “their” child in Salvador.
My travel photos may be viewed at my Shutterfly Share Site.
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If you make a purchase after you click on some of the product links in a post or after you use an on-line shopping link in the sidebar, I receive a small commission, which costs you nothing extra. I recommend only items that I think will be of interest to my readers and that I probably have used personally or wish I had.
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Talitha and I left Minneapolis this morning with 4 bags. Two held our personal belongings. The other 2 were packed to the 50-lb limit with items to minister and bless here in Guatemala. Here are a few photos from the day.
Talitha has often traveled with me when I’ve been going somewhere. This time it’s flip-flopped– it’s her trip and I’m getting to tag along. I’m having a good time watching her excitement, waiting for Saturday when she’ll meet Juan, who she’s been sponsoring for a little over a year.
In the meantime, tomorrow we and the other sponsors who are here will meet the Guatemala Compassion national staff and tomorrow evening we’ll visit with some university students who are former Compassion children. I expect to hear stories that will emphasize the long-term effects of the faithful ministry of Compassion sponsors.
For example, here’s a story that one of you told when you commented at an earlier post about Talitha and Compassion.
Sponsoring a child is very near and dear to my heart because my mother was sponsored as a child by a Christian couple (they even visited her in Taiwan)! Because she was sponsored, she received a primary school education and went on to receive scholarships to continue her education. She eventually became a nurse. When she married my father and came to the US, she didn’t speak a word of English. She took me and my twin sister to church because she knew she would be able to find good people there who would help her in a new foriegn land. Because she took us to church, we heard the gospel and eventually became believers as adults.
The ripples of your love and support as a sponsor has depths beyond your comprehension. God is truly amazing.
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Talitha and I leave in a few minutes for Guatemala with a Compassion International sponsor tour. Talitha will be meeting Juan, the little boy she’s been sponsoring for more than a year.
I hope to have time and connection along the way to let you in on what’s happening.
If you’re not subscribed to this blog yet, this would be a good time, so you don’t miss anything.
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My travel photos may be viewed at my Shutterfly Share Site.
__________ Subscribe to Tell Me When To Pack. Use the links to the right or click here. __________ If you make a purchase after you click on some of the product links in a post or after you use an on-line shopping link in the sidebar, I receive a small commission, which costs you nothing extra. I recommend only items that I think will be of interest to my readers and that I probably have used personally or wish I had. __________ I hope you’ll also visit my other blog–NoelPiper.com
If I take the wings of the morning… even there your hand shall lead me.
About
Noel PIper is a wife, mother of 5, grandmother, world Christian, reader, author and speaker who finds great pleasure in seeing God's hand at work close to home and far away. Noel also blogs at NoelPiper.com.
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