Life: Adjusted

As I sit at my computer, sipping a Colombiana, I am reminded of our week in Colombia. From the amazing welcome at the airport (thanks Roberto for holding up the welcome sign), to the hundreds of children that we met at the projects, to Wilson’s mom who was so overwhelmed that he had been sponsored that she had tears in her eyes from the moment we entered her humble home. She was so thankful for Jasiel, who had sponsored Wilson (who had been waiting 17 months for her). You see, her husband - Wilson’s dad had recently died. She was taking care of a very sick baby, had two other children and Wilson was really missing his daddy. Wilson’s mom, through her tears thanked Jasiel for sponsorsing Wilson. She said Wilson was experiencing a huge void in his life because of  the loss of his daddy and she is hoping that Jasiel will fill some of that void as his sponsor. Whew!!!! Yes there were plenty of tears.

I think about the homes we had the privilege of visiting – of the mom who had returned home from work and was so warmly greeted by her family. It was a beautiful thing to watch. Each one of her children and her husband warmly greeted her with a kiss. It was a good lesson for me. God used this financially poor family in Colombia to help me realize just how spiritually poor I had been in my own life. Ouch!

I think about the family who had been displaced by the guerrilas and forced to flee their home. They made their way to Bogota and found a plot of land to start piecing together a home. Old boards, tin, metal – some how being held together. Not only had they lost everything they owned, they also lost a loved one. The children’s mother had been killed and they now live with their grandmother. The two girls in the family have amazing sponsors (we saw and read the letters – such a blessing for them), who have been very generous in providing family gifts so that the family could vastly improve their home. Amen. But I am sad to say that we also met many, many children who had sponsors who never wrote to them. If you are a sponsor and haven’t written your children lately – please stop reading this and go right now and write a short letter – let them know that you love them, that you think they are the most special children ever and that you are proud of them.

I think about our dear little Sharon – the recipient of the Destiny Dress – I can’t wait for the paper work to come through so we can officially sponsor her. I can’t wait to see what God will do in her life!!!! I see the smiles of Karyn, Kevyn and Daniel and can still feel their hugs! I can also hear Karyn – trying to teach me spanish .

My heart is filled with Colombia – I pray that our new friends are safe and healthy and that God will move mightily in their lives.

Traveling to a country and seeing poverty first-hand is an experience that I wish I could give to everyone. There are really no words to describe the experience. I think for most people, the most profound transformation takes place when you return home and try to fit back into your old life – but there is a problem – you are not your old self. You have been transformed and changed. Things you saw one way before you left, you see totally different now. Your “world” hasn’t changed but you have.

For me, when I return home, I am reminded of just how poor I really am. I struggle to see Jesus every day – my life is so full of noises, distractions, traffic, computers, tv….you get the picture. But when I am in Colombia, Brazil, El Salvador and the DR – I see Jesus with the poor. Oh how I yearn for that in my life here in Canada.

Matthew 25 32-45 
All the nations will be gathered before him, and he will separate the people one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats. He will put the sheep on his right and the goats on his left.

“Then the King will say to those on his right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father; take your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world. For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me.’

“Then the righteous will answer him, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink? When did we see you a stranger and invite you in, or needing clothes and clothe you? When did we see you sick or in prison and go to visit you?’

“The King will reply, ‘I tell you the truth, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me.’

“Then he will say to those on his left, ‘Depart from me, you who are cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels. For I was hungry and you gave me nothing to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me nothing to drink, I was a stranger and you did not invite me in, I needed clothes and you did not clothe me, I was sick and in prison and you did not look after me.’

“They also will answer, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or needing clothes or sick or in prison, and did not help you?’

“He will reply, ‘I tell you the truth, whatever you did not do for one of the least of these, you did not do for me.’

For more information about sponsoring a child with Compassion Canada – please contact your Advocate or visit www.compassion.ca/advocate/tracysmith – you CAN change the life of one child for only $35 a month.

The Destiny Dress – Delivered!

There is an Advocate named Carol Schafer who lives in Alberta. Carol loves to sew and a few years ago, asked God to show her how she could use her sewing machine to bless Him. Not long after this prayer, Carol was at an event where the President of Compassion Canada, Barry Slauenwhite was speaking. During his presentation he told a story of a young African girl who had married a much, much older man. When asked why she had married, the girl replied, “I did it because he promised me a dress.” Carol has told me that it was right there and then that the idea of Destiny Dresses was born. God had answered her prayer. She vowed that she would make dresses for young girls in developing countries, so that they wouldn’t need to give themselves away.

As I was making last minute preparations for the tour to Colombia a few weeks prior to departure, I received a package in the mail from Carol. It contained a beautiful dress and a note saying that she felt that God wanted this dress to go to Colombia! Wow…I was honored to be the delivery person!

We were at project CO 330 for our visit and during the children’s presentation I noticed a very fragile and shy young girl sitting in the second row wearing a navy blue track suit. She was beautiful – but she looked so sad. My heart swelled…she was THE girl…the one I would present the Destiny Dress to.

After the presentation the children were dismissed to go to their classrooms….I thought I had lost my chance to present the dress. Just as I was passing a classroom door, she was there in the opening. Maria (our amazing Colombian staff person) asked if we could speak to her.

My new little friend’s name is Sharon. I had Maria tell her that I was looking for her, that my friend Carol, in Canada had made a dress just for her and I wanted to give it to her. I think she was a bit overwhelmed at first by all the attention, but when asked if she would like the dress, a small smile escaped and she nodded yes. Maria then asked if she wanted to try it on. Again, another small nod. She looked beautiful!!! Transformed by the dress – by the love it held.

After a few photos of her in the dress, she paused for just a moment and then threw herself into my arms. She gave me the most amazing hug I have ever had. She held on for a very long time, all the while I prayed for her. I prayed that God would make Himself real to her in her life, that He would protect her always and that He would give her the most amazing sponsor. I felt like I was hugging Jesus as I held her. Matthew 25: 31-46. What an incredible experience!

I found out that Sharon doesn’t have a sponsor, in fact, she was very new to the project. I vowed to find Sharon a sponsor. A few days later, Paul Winter (Winnipeg Advocate) had a great idea, he suggested that we, as a group, sponsor a child from Colombia – only $45 a year and includes a birthday and Christmas gift. Everyone loved the idea and then Paul suggested that we sponsor Sharon!!!!!

I was moved! I had prayed for an amazing sponsor but to get 11 committed and passionate people was beyond my thinking. Sharon is going to be one lucky little girl!

I am so thankful to Carol for allowing me to be a small part of her Destiny Dresses ministry. What an honor it has been for me.  He can move mountains – what more can He do in the life of Sharon and the other 52,000 children in Colombia! Praise be to Him!

Telling the Advocates on the bus the story of the Detiny Dress.

Showing Sharon the dress and telling her that a very special person in Canada made it for her.

Sharon in her new dress.

WOW…what an incredible moment – I will NEVER forget this hug.

Praying for Sharon.

The Icing on the Cake

Each time I lead a tour to one of Compassion’s field countries, I take child packs with me. These are children in the very projects we will be visiting that don’t have a sponsor. The idea is that the Advocate will have first hand knowledge of the project, meet the Project Director and if, we are lucky, may even have an opportunity to have their picture taken with the children so that when they are trying to find a sponsor for this little one, they can tell the story of how they met them, and give a very detailed account of the project this unsponsored child attends.

What blew me away during this tour was that the 10 Advocates who traveled with me sponsored 12 new children themselves on this tour – how incredible is that!!!!!! 12 additional children found sponsors last week. I was able to witness the project staff tell them that they had a sponsor and that their sponsor was HERE!!!!! As you can imagine, tears flowed and smiles adorned their faces!!!! God is good and I am so proud to have been leading such an amazing group of Canadian Advocates.

These photos represent just a few new relationships that started in Colombia last week. If your heart has been stirred by these amazing stories, maybe God is calling you to be a sponsor too. If you know one of these amazing Advocates who visited Colombia – talk to them about sponsoring a child so that you too, can make a difference. If you don’t know an Advocate, contact me directly and I can help you. I have a promise – you WILL be blessed by the experience – guaranteed!!!!!

Wilson and Jasiel

Celina and Daniel

Karen and Paul

Bitter Sweet

Here I sit beside Christian while he plays a video game…talk about sensory overload!!! The last 36 hours have seem like a blur. Our last day in Colombia was not unlike our others. Up early, breakfast, prayer in the lobby of the hotel and off to a project visit. CO332 – another amazing Project Director and talented group of young people. I love that each Project has it own personality, it’s own distinct place in it’s community. We were treated to a traditional dance and a very moving skit that the children perform on the streets in their community. It is the story of creation, the fall and the amazing restoration that we find in Jesus – it was very moving to see children evangelizing!!!! Whew!!!!!

Went back to the hotel for our final dinner with the Colombian staff. I had thought we had shed our last tears during our project visit but I was so wrong. We were treated with a video…not just any video…but one of our week together in Colombia. I have no idea when the staff had time to put this together – it was amazing. I have uploaded it to Youtube and will add the address here for you to watch it. We then were presented with a gift. After the child visit day, each one of the sponsored children who were there, wrote a thank you letter to their sponsor. It was presented to them in a nice folder, with a photo of their child and the translation…amazing.

Colombia does not have an official staff to host tours….this talented group of people have other roles they play in the ministry of Compassion Colombia…God has blessed them beyond words!!!! I was blown away this past week! Bravo to all of my new friends in Colombia!

Some of the talented Colombian Staff

 

I am happy to be home with my family, sleeping in my own bed and playing with my dog…but I have to admit, I do miss Colombia and the beautiful people I had the pleasure of meeting when I was there.  May God continue to bless them.

The lesson I have learned….

I was completely blown away yesterday. It´s a little hard to even begin to express what I am feeling, but I`m going to try. But I need to explain a little background first.

Sometime near the end of last year, I received a letter from the boy I have been sponsoring for a couple of years, Diego, and in it he made a comment that he would love to meet me someday. He also ALWAYS writes that he greets me with a hug and a kiss. I responded in my letter to him that I would love to meet him too, and that we should pray about it, and if it was God´s will we would be able to meet someday. ( In reality I was thinking that would most likely NEVER happen, because how on earth would I ever get to Colombia.) Then I found out about the advocacy tour, and thought that while I would LOVE to go, it would never happen.

Obviously I was wrong.

Yesterday, I was so excited, and so nervous to meet him. When we were all waiting for our names to be called to be called, anticipation was thick in the air. Then the moment where my name was called….Tania came out and was a little shy, but Diego jumped out of the dinosaur and gave me an incredible hug.

Then almost immediately he presented me with a bag, he pulled out item after item. Gifts not only for me but also for my husband, my son, and my daughter. He also gave me a card with a paragraph in Spanish but words in English that said ” Welcome to Colombia Kerrie Mayan”. I was overwhelmed with the generosity of his family.

Then his project director came over with a book with a yellow cover and tied with a ribbon, that belongs to Diego. It was filled with literally every single thing that I have ever sent him. Letters, whole pages of stickers I sent him weren´t even used, but instead pasted into this book, card for birthdays and Christmas. I simply could not believe it. I was told that he made this entire book himself, and that his mom helped him a very little bit. These letters were literally a treasure for him.

That completely stunned me. I had heard that the letters were important for the children, but I did not even begin to fathom this. I wrote every few months, but never thought that he would place such a high value on the letters. But he does.

And I can´t help but think I should write WAY more often than I do.

The kicker for me…was after the amazing day was over, and I was on the bus going back to the hotel, I pulled out the card that he had given me first thing in the day, and asked a translator if she would mind translating to me the paragraph that was in Spanish. She gladly agreed.

He wrote that God had answered his prayers and given him the desire of his heart, to meet me. That he could finally actually give me a hug and a kiss. That he loves me. The ironic part, is that I was telling him that God answered our prayers etc. during the day.

It was extremely moving. Actually calling it moving doesn´t even do it justice. I can´t even find words to express what is in my heart at this moment.

But what I have learned, is that writing letters to your sponsor child(ren) is WAY more important than we can ever realize. It is such a treasure for these kids. I encourage each and every one of you that sponsor children to write your child, and write them often. It doe´sn´t have to be a long letter. Compassion even has the option to write them online.

I was just at a dinner with LDP (Leadership Development Program) students. In it one young woman, Sol, mentioned that she only ever received 1 sponsor letter from her sponsor, in all the years she was sponsored. She was so happy to receive that one letter that she cried.

From what I have seen at the projects, many children in the projects never get letters from their sponsors.

So PLEASE, write your sponsor children.

Note to self: Bring lots of tissues next time I go on an Advocay tour

Tomorrow is our last day in Colombia, and I must say I am going to be very sad to leave. This country is so beautiful, and the people even more so. There are three very special boys I want to talk about, though.

On Wednesday, I got to spend the day with Jeanpierre (the 9 year old boy the youth group at my church sponsors), Andres (the 5 year old boy my mom sponsors), and Kevyn, my newest sponsored child who just turned 8 on the 21. From the moment they hugged me, I felt such a connection with them. I am not the sponsor of two of them, and Kevyn found out just that morning that I was his sponsor, yet we were able to spend the whole day together laughing and having fun. Even as the day went on, Andres would hold my hand as we walked from one ride to the next, and they would all ask me to take pictures of them. Through this day, I did discover that if I ever have 3 sons, I´m going to have start drinking energy drinks or something, because they can really tire you out!

I had to say goodbye to Jeanpierre and Andres that day, and of course, I cried like a baby, but I was lucky in that we were going to be visiting Kevyn´s project the next day, so I would get to spend the morning with him, and what a wonderful morning it was. He loved to take pictuers with my camera, and when the advocates were asked to stand in the front, he took my camera and took pictures of me. What a sweetie! He really started to open up when we went to his house for a home visit. ON the way there, he said ¨Amy, thank you is gracias. Hello is hola¨, and he proceeded to point out different things, say the Spanish word, and I would repeat after him. If I got it right, I got a ¨yes¨, if not, he would repeat it again until I got it. When we got to his house, he was taking me all over the place teaching me the Spanish words for everyting in his house. I did pretty good, if I do say so myself. We went back to the project to have lunch, and then came the hard part…saying goodbye. All I could really do was hug him and cry, hoping he wouldn´t notice. I had known him less than two days, and here I was sobbing like a baby as I held him in my arms.

This doesn´t cover half of my experience in those two days, but a thought occured to me as we were riding back from the park after the sponsor child visit day. Jeanpierre was sleeping in the seat beside me, and Kevyn and Andres (who both fell asleep a few minutes later) were chatting away. As I watched them, I thought of what their lives might have been like without Compassion. Instead of spending the day at the park laughing and smiling and having the time of their lives, would they be digging through the garbage looking for something to eat? Would there eyes be sad and empty as they mustered all the strength they had just to get through the day? As I thought of these things on the bus, with these precious children sitting beside me, I started to cry (no surprise there). Children are a precious gift from God, and the thought of them crying in dispair because of poverty breaks my heart. I thought I understood poverty, but really, we in North America have no idea what poverty is. We can´t possibly comprehend it because of our sheltered lifestyle. Even when poverty is right in front of us, we don´t see it, because everything is ´¨me, me, me¨

So, sitting on the bus, I thought of all the children who had slipped between the cracks as I grew up with food on the table and more thane enough to last me a lifetime. I thought of these things, and then I thought of how thankful I was that Jeanpierre, Andres, and Kevyn won´t slip through the cracks. They´re going to grow up to be strong men of God, and they´re going to help to transform Colombia. You know what Jeanpierre said he wants to be when grows up? ¨Whatever God wants me to be¨ These Compassion children are succeding where we have failed – they are putting their trust in God, not themselves, and they are not going to let poverty destroy them.

If only we all had faith and hope like these children…what a wonderful world this would be.

What a day!

By Rachel Thiesen

Today we visited a rural project outside of Bogota. The drive out was amazing and we saw many interesting sites. As we got closer to the project we saw many fields and cattle. Once again we were greeted by enthusiastic children and wonderfully warm Compassion workers.  The program (which was held outside surrounded by mountains) started with the singing of their national anthem and we sang O Canada for them. After we were treated to an amazing traditional dance performed to Spanish worship music. Other children from the project participated in the program as well. I don’t think I have ever heard a recorder sound so amazing!  One of the children asked to pray for the children in Canada – that they may have all of their needs met. It was a truly moving experience to see and hear the children worshipping God and praying for us and all Canadian children!

Afterwards we went on a brief tour of the project and then the fun began!  The project we visited is expanding and our task was to help work on a new classroom. We first carried away the garbage. Then some of us worked on levelling the floor, the stronger ones – Paul and Aaron – helped with the removal of the old ceiling beams, and some of us learned how to mix cement. 2 parts gravel, 1 cement, 1 part gravel, 1 part cement. Mix! Mix! Mix! Add water! Mix!  I don’t think I have ever worked so hard in my life but the gratitude of the people was so overwhelming that I know I would do it again. By the time we left the work part of our day we were all tired, somewhat sore, but so blessed to be able to be part of the creation of another classroom where children can learn about God!

Just as we were leaving the work project a big wind came up and ripped down part of the ceiling of the structure where we had stored our belongings. Praise the Lord that no one was hurt with the flying matieral!

Lunch was a feast of local specialities and then it was on to the home visits. It was our first opportunity to see a farm. The cows were eating the cabbage, the chickens were running loose and the view was incredible! Our God is an awesome God and His creation is beyond what words can describe! The family that we visited had 3 children, 2 who attended the project. Their hospitality was overwhelming! After our visit and prayer we had the opportunity to meet the pet rabbit and the pet rooster!  Who knew that a rooster could be such an adorable pet.

After a second home visit, in the village, we set out for Bogota with much to think about and many new friends to pray for. And a heart of the children of this rural community that have amazingly big hearts!

The day ended with a local treat  -  plantain dishes -of our choice- for supper! Who could ask for anything more? Spending a day with beautiful children, worshipping with them and then enjoying great local food after working hard!

Karen and the LDP`s

What a day. How do you describe the feelings of watching a little lady (10years old) that has stolen your heart playing bass in the new dress and necklace you gave her the day before, knowing that in several hours you have to say goodbye. Her smile and laugh is contagious, and it will never leave my mind or my heart. I have known her for two days, and my heart has been shipwrecked. She laughed,hugged, and held us all on the tour,knowing that she may never see us again but wanting to love us and be loved. She is one of millions of little girls and boys who show us God`s love, and only ask for a chance to love us back. To have a chance at a life filled with hope. Gods hope. I saw it today in Karen, and 40 other children. Wow…….

This afternoon we visited the Compassion Colombia office for a tour and met the staff. Some of the staff have been a part of our tour with us so far organizing, directing the activities of the day, getting us to the right place at the right time and translating for us. They have been incredible. Then to meet the more behind the scenes staff who provide leadership to the country`s programs, developing plans and curriculum, providing support to sponsors and project directors and staff. Some of them are sponsored children who have come through the projects, and some have been directors at one of the projects. It was amazing to see their heart for the children of Colombia!

This evening we were able to spend time with four students of the Leadership Development Program. These are students who have graduated from a project and have been selected to receive tuition through this program for university education. We met Jonathan, Wilmer, Solanyi and Yoreldi. They had a maturity beyond their years because of the tough circumstances of their childhood, but what shone through their stories was their thankfulness for the blessing of having been sponsored through Compassion. As one them said, “being sponsored changed my life AND changed my perspective on life”. Their dreams and a sense of calling from God on their lives is very evident as is their passion for other Colombian children in similar circumstances. Their stories were all about the difference that Jesus makes in lives!

Child Visit Day

By Celina Everett

After a very restless sleep last night, I awoke with the realization that today was the day! The long anticipated day where we, as Advocates and Child Sponsors, get the amazing privilege of meeting our sponsored children. The restaurant was buzzing with excitement…almost giddiness, as we prepared ourselves for an exciting, and exhausting day. We gathered in the hotel foyer to pray before we loaded the bus…and when I say loaded, I mean loaded! Not only did we have our own stuff for the day, but we were all packing extra backpacks and bags….gifts for our sponsored children.

We arrived at Jamie Duque Park, an amusement park north of Bogota, and unloaded the bus. There was a bit of excitement as we arrived the same time as thousands,.. well, maybe not thousands, but certainly hundreds, of students who thought the blond, blue eyed members of our teams were celebrities..and so the photo session started! Thankfully Kerri was a good sport about it all.. however, it was a little ironic that the one member of our team most camera shy, was the one accosted by the students who thought it a novelty to have their picture taken with the blonde “American”! haha

We were directed to a party room where we left our bags, and then were taken to an outdoor park area. This was the moment we had all been waiting for! We were about to meet our sponsored children..face to face! The children were inside a dinosaur mouth (wait for the pictures!) and then we were called one by one and were introduced to the 20 precious children whom we are privileged to sponsor.

Words can´t describe how it felt to have these little people emerge out of the dinosaur, and come and hug the person who has committed not only $35 a month, but also themselves to praying for, loving, and building a lifelong relationship through letters.

After the introductions and tears of happiness, we spent the day with our little people…sharing, hugging, taking pictures, eating and enjoying the amusement park.

The children were flown to Bogota from their homes with Project Directors, and in very special cases, their mother. I was thrilled to meet my Sara´s mother! She communicated to me, through a translator, how grateful she was to have Sara be able to participate in the program at the project and thanked me for my commitment to Sara. More tears.

After a few hours enjoying the amusement park, we went back to the party room, where we celebrated the birthdays of 3 of the children and then every child got gifts from their sponsor! It felt like Christmas. Lots of laughter, kisses, hugs and photos!

Then we all boarded buses and went to a pizza place for supper. Then..the hard part. Saying goodbye. More tears.

It´s amazing how relationships can be built regardless of the fact that the people involved live in different countries, and speak different languages. These kids know that they are loved and cared for by someone other than their family…and it makes a difference in their lives.

I am thrilled to be able to be in Colombia and meet Sara and Juan. I am privileged to be involved in an organization like Compassion that is so committed to the Gospel of Jesus Christ, knowing that it is only Jesus who makes the difference in a life! Jesus IS the difference!

Mom and Dad…I love it here so much, I´m not coming home…

Kidding!

Tomorrow we´re going to visit two projects, and I know it is going to be a wonderful and emotioanl day for us all. When we were at the church service, it was wonderful to see the kids smiling and laughing and singing their hearts. Here they are with more passion for God than I have, and they live in shacks, while I live in a nice big house.  When I see them smile, I think ¨Wow¨, and that´s all my puny mind can muster up when God´s lovea and grace is standing right in front of me.

-Amy