After we left the project, we walked through the neighborhood served by project 424. In the four days we spent in the D.R., this was by far the most abject face of poverty. We walked through a neighborhood off the main roads — it was strewn with trash, with puddles and ditches filled with water and sewage contaminated from the nearby coal-processing plant.

Half-clothed children and emaciated dogs hung out in every doorway. All of this existed just a few blocks from the center with a bright mural adorning the front of the building, small but clean rooms inside, and a wonderful courtyard play space in the back where the children can play.

So is the glass half-full or half-empty?

As we were walking the neighborhood, Chris, one of the Compassion employees who oversees that project told us that the skin condition that caused lesions on the children’s skin as a result of bathing in the contaminated water had almost disappeared. Because of education about boiling the water and adding a little bit of bleach to sterilize it, almost every child we saw had clear skin. Brian had visited that very center just four months earlier and he said that he was amazed in the change that had taken place in so little time.

That glass is half-full.

Knowing that the children have to leave the clean and bright center each day and return to these homes is enough to squeeze the hope right out of a person. It seems an almost impossible situation to break out of.

It could be a half-empty glass, but in the center that morning I met a ten-year-old boy in a red cap who gives me hope (I think his name was Juanden).

As we were observing their morning Bible class, he got up and not only read the scripture about Peter walking on water to his classmates (and in front of 5 visiting Americans). He read as well (or better) as my own ten-year-old who is a rabid reader. But not only did he read the passage, but he went on to give the meaning of the passage with far more understanding than my daughter would have.

Later I asked a translator to ask if he was going to be a preacher — to keep telling people about God like he did this morning. “Yes,” he answered. A bit later he added, “I play music at church, too. I play the guitar and I’m learning to play the piano.”

That glass is more than half-full. It’s bubbling over.

The next time a group of Americans comes to visit, I hope he and the other boys with whom I visited will remember the English that I taught them. I hope that they’ll impress them with an introduction in their heavily accented English: “My nnname isss Juanden.” I hope those visitors will be able to hear one of these children teach the word of God and another sing a song of praise, just as we heard.

This simple interaction with people who care about their future fills them with hope. It seems so little — a few hours spent playing, a few words in different languages exchanged, a smile, a hug. But they remember.

It doesn’t take much to give these children hope. Would you like to make the difference in a child’s life in the D.R.? Sponsor a child today. I think you’ll find that their hope is contagious.

Psalm 9:18: But the needy will not always be forgotten, nor the hope of the afflicted ever perish.

Visit my Compassion Trip Page to see all of my posts from my journey and go to CompassionBloggers.com to read posts from all the bloggers on this trip.

I walked in and he was sitting at a table with Augustin, the translator. I greeted him warmly and gave him the backpack that I had brought for him with some gifts. Before he could get distracted by the toys, I showed him the pocket photo album that I had brought with some pictures of the family. We named each of them: Terry, Kyle, Amanda, and even Shadow the dog. I made sure, per my husband’s request, that he fully appreciated the Aggie backpack that I packed his toys in (read more about the Aggie culture from this trip on my personal blog).

Then he unzipped the bag. I had brought him a football which he grabbed with glee, and a dominoes picture game, which he immediately wanted to free from his shrink wrap. When he saw the box of 24 crayons, he indicated that there were so many, and said that he could do his own pictures.

I left two children behind when I came on this trip. Tonight I’ll be reuniting with them, and I’ll be making sure that they know that there are two other children we are responsible for. We’ll be praying for Gloria in Uganda, who I sponsored through the first Compassion Bloggers’ trip, and of course Chino, who I recently sponsored and was able to meet this week.

When I left him I crouched down to his level, and I told him that I was very happy to have met him. I told him that I was looking forward to receiving his letters, and that I was going to write him letters. I told him that I’d be leaving the photos with him so that he’d remember our visit.

I know that everyone will not have the opportunity to meet their child (although if you are ever in the country, it can always be arranged through the Compassion office). However, you can definitely become a part of a child’s life — his memories and his success. I can’t wait to follow both Gloria and Chino as they grow physically, academically, spiritually, and socially.

Visit my Compassion Trip Page to see all of my posts from my journey and go to CompassionBloggers.com to read posts from all the bloggers on this trip.

“No le importa; no le importa. Venga. Sientse.” (“It’s not important”, she assured us. “Come in, come in. Sit.”)

She was wearing her best shirt, and her one-year-old son had a short-sleeved button-up shirt. When we arrived it was open, but as he sat on the implementer’s lap, his mom fussed with him, trying to button in that sweet baby belly. “No! Hace calor,” the implementer told her, as she waved her hand away. It was too hot to be buttoned up.

She was willing to sacrifice his comfort for him to look nice for the visitors. She was willing to sacrifice her floor to welcome us — muddy shoes and all. With the muddy paths throughout the neighborhood, I know that she had worked hard to get that floor clean, because I saw no trace of dirt anywhere. After we left, she would probably be on her hands and knees for hours removing the mud from the extra 6 pairs of shoes that crowded into her small home.

But to her — No le importa. It wasn’t important. What was important is that she offered us what she had. The people whom I have met here have modeled hospitality. They have little, but they love much.

People have sent me emails and left comments saying that I am doing an amazing thing. They’ve said that they are proud of me. It did take some sacrifice for me to come, but because of the support of my family and my conviction that this was what God wanted me to do, the choice was easy. Other than that, it’s not so amazing. The sacrifice — no le importa.

I will forever be changed, and I will forever understand that changing one child’s life makes a difference. The real hope is that because of my journey, others will come to understand that too.

If you’ve been moved by the work of Compassion this week, will you also show your support by clicking over right now and sponsoring a child for $32? I know that for some of you it’s a sacrifice On what do you spend $7 a week that “no le importa”? Fast food? Coffee? Shoes?

For some of you it will be a sacrifice. And for some of you God may be asking to sacrifice a little more by taking on another child. Take a chance on what is important, and watch your cares about what is not important fade away.

Sitting here beside my computer is a red construction-paper butterfly. A young girl had made them and passed them out to all of us. They say “Bienvenido (a) nuestros corazones. (Welcome to our hearts.). They don’t know anything about us, except that we are sponsors of Compassion children, and that because of people like us, they get additional help with their education, a nice lunch each day, hope in the form of Jesus’ love, and so much more.

They have already welcomed you into their hearts. Will you welcome one of them into your heart and your family?

Visit my Compassion Trip Page to see all of my posts from my journey and go to CompassionBloggers.com to read posts from all the bloggers on this trip.

My sponsor has one son and two daughters. She loves me. She writes me many letters. I love her very much.

–Evry, a twelve-year-old girl, in answer to the question “What can you tell us about your sponsor?”

Julia (below right), 21, is a member of Compassion’s Leadership Development Program. When asked her sponsor, she said that she thought of Roger from New Zealand as a superhero of the earth because of all he had done for her in the twelve years he sponsored her. About the letters, she said: “He told me he was praying for me. He told me about the sports he liked, and one time when I was really young, but he even asked my advice when he was considering getting married.” And her answer? “If she’s a good Christian woman — yes! yes!” Julia encouraged him.

When Julia’s mother was asked about the difference that child sponsorship had made in the lives of her children, she got tears in her eyes “We were limited financially and it helped so much. If you are a sponsor, don’t get too tired, because it is very worthy.”

Julia is a vivacious young woman who claims that she was shy before her personality was shaped from the four areas that Compassion offers help:

• Physical
• Socio-Emotional
• Academic
• Spiritual

None of us who met her today have any doubts that she will continue to lead a happy, fulfilled, and useful life.

Mariolvis (above right) is 23 years-old. She has been a part of Compassion’s sponsorship program since she was 5, and now she is being sent to college through the Leadership Development Program. We asked her if she had ever met her sponsor, and she said with a big smile, “No, but it’s a dream that I still have.” When asked what she would say to him, she said

I will never forget you, and what you’ve done for me. I still read the letters and look at the pictures you sent me. I love you very much, and don’t have words to express my thanks.

Here’s the thing about Compassion. They aren’t just asking you to give up two lattes a week so that a child can eat, get medical treatment, and a better education. They’re asking for that $32 AND a relationship.

Make no mistake, they do need the money to make a difference in the lives of these children. But just as Compassion focuses on the whole child, not just the physical needs of poverty, I think that one of the purposes of a personal sponsorship is to allow you as a sponsor to get involved in that child’s life through reading their letters and writing them back.

Each child only has one sponsor. She knows the sponsor’s name. She appreciates the opportunities that basic sponsorship gives her, but the children who are sponsored, yet never receive letters, miss out on that.

After meeting the incredible young women today, it’s clear that those sponsors who not only give money but also take the time to encourage their sponsored child, will see their efforts bear much fruit. If you are a sponsor and haven’t written a letter to that child, you are both missing out.

Put her picture on your refrigerator, write her letters and let yourself get to know her personally. Compassion even schedules visits to the Compassion projects, and notifies the sponsors when they occur, so if you’d like to let her put her a face to the name, you can do that too.

Will you sponsor a child, or perhaps sponsor an additional child? I love the people I’ve met here in the Dominican Republic — both the children, and the workers. You can go directly to the Dominican Republic page by clicking on the banner, or search by country, sex, age, and special needs at the Compassion main page.

Visit my Compassion Trip Page to see all of my posts from my journey and go to CompassionBloggers.com to read posts from all the bloggers on this trip.

We are protected, but we’re not safe. It’s never safe when you stretch your comfort zone.

Last night before I went to bed, I read the devotional given to us in our trip journal:

“Come, follow me,” Jesus said, “and I will make you fishers of men.” At once they left their nets and followed him. Matthew 4:19-20

The challenged was posed, “Can we leave our nets and truly follow Him throughout this journey?”

When I was asked in the “beginnings” entry of the journal the day before what I thought God wanted me to do and see, one of my answers was “Show me the similarities and the differences.” Well, that’s done. These kids are just kids.

Yesterday I watched a little two-year-old boy playing roughly with a truck in the Child Survival Program toddler play area. He grabbed balls out of the hands of the other children playing in there with him. I’m not going to name any names (Kyle), but I’ve seen little boys play like that in my own church nursery.

The children there love to have their pictures taken, and just like my kiddos, they love to see the image on the screen.

The other thing that I asked was that God would show me that a one-time interaction with these children can make a difference. I saw that yesterday too.

When we met Sara (whose story Mary told beautifully at Owlhaven, complete with a picture), Steven, a Compassion staffer traveling with us, told her “God is going to use you in a great way. He doesn’t give you a story like that for no reason.” I told Steven how much that meant to me, and that he had answered one of my prayers for the trip, he said, “I heard her story, and I just had to take that moment to let her know that Jesus loves her, but when I told her that and saw that smile, I thought ‘She knows. She already knows.’”

I’m still praying that I will continue to lower my own safety net on this trip. I don’t want to be afraid to get to close — to get involved — to invest, even if it’s just a word or a smile or a squeeze. I don’t want to wrap myself up in the safety net so that I don’t let myself care.

Maybe that’s one reason that you haven’t sponsored a child. Maybe you want to continue to live in a safe place in regards to poverty around the world. Maybe you don’t think that an investment in one child makes enough of a difference. From what I’ve seen so far, let me say that it not only makes a difference in the life of a child, but in a community and a country.

If you have reservations about sponsoring a child through Compassion, feel free to ask me any questions. I’ll either answer them in the comments section or in a future post. If you feel uncertain about finances, will you pray about what God might have you do? It might not be the right time for you to sponsor a child, but I’m pretty sure that there’s some way that God is asking you to move beyond your safety net and to make a real difference in someone’s life who is in need.

Please visit my Compassion Trip Page, to see all of my posts from my journey and go to CompassionBloggers.com to read all of the posts from all of the bloggers on this trip.

Yes, people living in poverty do suffer physically in many if not all of these ways, certainly in comparison to American standards, but one thing that I had read about Compassion and have now witnessed first hand is that Compassion’s plan is to minister to the whole person.

Today we saw one of the Child Survival Program projects. The child sponsorship that most of us associate with Compassion starts around age four or five (depending on the country). The Child Survival Program exists to provide prenatal care and education to the mothers, as well as health and wellness for the children through age 3.

When we arrived this morning, they were all waiting for us, assembled in the church building. Each pew was filled with mothers balancing adorable toddlers on their knees, or trying to keep them from straying too far as they stretched their little legs. They began their workshop with a psalm, a prayer and some singing. Then the “implementer” (basically a case worker) led an informational session on nutrition. The moms were told what to do if their child didn’t want to eat — be more creative and make it more appealing, and encouraged them to begin the day with a healthy breakfast, and avoid excessive fat, or grease as the interpreter kept calling it, reminding them that the “grease in the milk was enough for them each day.” (By the way, Melanie and I were sufficiently reprimanded as well. I wondered aloud if a Pop Tart counted as a healthy breakfast, and she was pretty sure that chicken nuggets were full of “grease.”)

Then we visited some homes with the implementers on one of their twice-monthly visits. The women welcomed us, making sure we each had a seat as we crammed into their tiny living rooms. It was here that I really saw the whole picture. The implementer led the mother in a song, read a passage of scripture, and then discussed with her how it applied to her life. She then reinforced what was taught at the nutrition session, and inquired after the mother’s and the children’s health. She asked what she needed prayer for, and we prayed for the family before we left (A few others wrote about this same visit and have different perspectives and some great photos: Melanie, Brian, and Tim).

I asked the Pastor if there were moms who chose not to participate in the program because they didn’t want to do all of the things that they were asked to do. Without missing a beat, he answered, “Si.” He looked reflective, and explained. “Poverty is not just physical. It’s in the mind, too. When they find out that it’s not just a handout, some people can’t break away from that poor mindset.”

Rosario, one of the moms we visited, didn’t fear much for her present, but she told us that delinquency was high in the community, and she prayed that her children would not fall in with the wrong crowd. Poor choices would put them right back into poverty. It’s not so different than what many of us fear for our own children — that their choices or their peers might corrupt him.

And it makes me realize that while we are rich monetarily, we too can suffer from one of the other types of poverty. We’ve all had times when we’ve been poor in spirit or poorly motivated. And for me when I feel the worst about myself is when I focus on me at the expense of others — my children, my husband, or as I’m coming to see now, the needs of those around the world.

I’m glad that I’m a part of the solution — helping Compassion minister to the needs of the whole person in the two children I sponsor. If you want to be part of the solution, too, sponsor a child now.

Thanks to Keely Scott for the awesome photos.

Please visit my Compassion Trip Page, to see all of my posts from my journey.