Day 16: Learning about poverty

Halfway through 31 days of compassion, I wanted to share a poverty quiz that Compassion has on their website. It's designed to help us learn more about global poverty. I took the quiz and found myself really thinking about my answers. It brought me back to the reason that I was drawn to sponsoring a child in the first place. Go here and take the quiz.

One question that really spoke to me was:

"How many children under age 5 die of hunger-related causes every minute?"

Every minute?!? Oh my word, that just breaks my heart. We have plenty of food in our house, and about a hundred stores around us. These poverty-stricken children are happy with just a few beans and rice, if they even get that.

Take the quiz, pray about how you can help end poverty, one child at a time, in the name of Jesus.

In His peaceful presence,

Sharon

Day 10: Compassion International

Who is Compassion International? This is taken directly from one of their brochures...

Compassion International is a Christian child development ministry founded in 1952. They assist more than 1 million children in 26 developing countries. Their goal is to develop children in poverty so they will become responsible, fulfilled Christian adults.

Compassion is:

~Christ Centered
"We ensure that every child hears the gospel in a culturally relevant way, and has the opportunity to trust Jesus. We hope to lead children into a lifestyle of faith and commitment to God."

~Child Focused
"Compassion engages children as complete individuals, addressing their spiritual, economic, social and physical needs."

~Church Based
"All of our programs are carried out by the local church in the communities where the children we serve live. We minister to children, regardless of religious affiliation."

~Committed to Integrity
Compassion consistently receives high ratings from independent auditing firms and watchdog organizations. Every year, more than 80 percent of total expenditures are spent directly on children's programs."

In response to the Great Commission, Compassion International exists as an advocate for children to release them from their spiritual, economic, social and physical poverty and enable them to become responsible and fulfilled Christian adults.

Become a sponsor and change the world for one child!

In His peaceful presence,

Sharon

Day 4: Birthday sponsoring

Did you know that you can go to the Compassion website and search for children who have the same birthday as you? This is a great way to get your family involved, especially your own children. Sponsor a child that has the same birthday as your son or daughter, and they will automatically feel connected to each other.

In His peaceful presence,

Sharon

Catching up...again

Well, it's that time again...catching up on posts, and trying to get back into the swing of this. It's been a busy year for me. When I became a Compassion advocate, I really didn't have any direction as to how that might look for me personally. At my church, there was already someone who was "the Compassion person", and she only did Compassion Sunday, one day each year. After that, there was no mention of Compassion at all, from anyone, throughout the year. So, I haven't done a lot with my advocacy, but things have changed. The person has moved to another state, which means there is no-one to take over this area. I've felt the Lord calling me to step up to the plate, and so I met with one of the pastors at church who is in charge of missions and mobilization. It was a good meeting, and steps are being taken to bring more awareness for Compassion at our church. It's coming under the umbrella of a brand new orphan ministry, so we'll see what happens!

I'm excited about this opportunity, and I'm looking forward to what the future holds. Now, I need to start making plans to update this blog more often and come up with ways to promote Compassion within our church and community.

In response to the Great Commission, Compassion International exists as an advocate for children to release them from their spiritual, economic, social and physical poverty, and enable them to become responsible and fulfilled Christian adults.

Become a sponsor and change the world for one child!

In His peaceful presence,

Sharon

Sharon Landers
Compassion Advocate

52 ways to pray

Compassion has a section on their website where they list 52 ways that we, as sponsors, can pray for our sponsored children. This is so helpful because sometimes, I want to pray for them in a very specific way and I just don't know how. This list helps me to focus. It's a wonderful tool that we can use to pray for our kids! In 2013, I'm going to list one prayer each week. Another blogger (Jill at Compassion Family) posts her's on Sundays. I'm not sure what day I'll be posting mine, just however it works out I guess because I have other regular posts that I'd like to start doing next year.

Thank you, Compassion, for coming up with this list!

In His grace,

Sharon

Did you know...?

Did you know...

-more than a quarter of the world's 7 billion people are children age 15 and under?
-in developing countries, a thid to almost half of the population are children?
-about 153 million of the world's children are orphans?
-and, more than 100 million (of those 153 million) live and work on the streets?
-more than 100 million children who are school age do not attend school?

Children are our future. They are future parents, teachers, pastors, doctors, nurses, scientists, community leaders. Let's invest in their lives, both locally and globally. Help release them from their spiritual and physical poverty. Let's build them up and help our children to become responsible, healthy and happy Christian adults.

Sponsor a child through Compassion International today!

Click here...
http://www.compassion.com/sponsor_a_child/default.htm?referer=126731

In His grace,

Sharon

Compassion Mobile Experience!

Compassion International has come up with a wonderful and exciting way to share the story of children in poverty. There's no way that I could explain it any better than Compassion does, so I'll just copy and paste their words from the Compassion website.  ( www.compassion.com )

Change the Story...what is it?

It's a traveling, interactive exhibit that allows you to journey through the lives of three real-life children who are affected not only by extreme poverty, but also by the Compassion ministry.

The Experience
What if you could see poverty firsthand? What if, despite age, health or finances, others could experience God's heart for the poor?

Now you can.

Change the Story will bring you as close to another country and culture as you can get without a passport. This interactive, immersive display allows you to step into the life of a child who has suffered under the crippling weight of poverty.

But the journey does not end there.

In the span of less than 30 minutes, you will travel with that child from hardship to hope. And in the midst of hope, you will see that child's story transformed through the support of Compassion and the child's life-giving relationship with a sponsor.

Change the Story is an eye-opening experience that challenges your views of poverty, transforms your understanding of the world, and moves you to be the change for a child who lives in extreme poverty!

Go here to find out where the Compassion Mobile Experience will land near you!

In His grace,


Sharon

I welcome your comments!