I sat at in my kitchen this morning, crying in my coffee. And for once, it wasn’t about me. Well, not directly about me.
As Frederick Buechner wrote, "When you find yourself with tears in your eyes, especially unexpected tears, it is well to pay the closest attention."
Before me I spread out a handful of pictures of little girls from Third World countries: Loveness in Zambia, Kidest in Ethiopia, Machilu in Malawi.
The photos of their sweet faces were included in a request from World Vision to sponsor girls. Because in many cultures, especially people living in poverty, girls get a lot less medicine, food and education than boys.
We’ve sponsored children through World Vision for several years now. For a while, we sponsored Edna Blanc in Haiti. Then, as often happens, her family moved away from the area where World Vision provides services. When I got the letter saying she’d no longer be my sponsored child, I cried. We’d only exchanged a few letters and birthday cards but I had her photo on my fridge and I prayed for her all the time.
The same thing has happened with a boy that I’ve sponsored this year. Yothin Sarinon and his family are moving away from the area in Thailand where they could receive sponsorship.
I read the appeal letter to my thirteen year old daughter. And we had a great talk about how women and girls are often mistreated. “Compared to boys, they’re less likely to receive adequate medical care or food,” the letter said. That means if there is a brother and a sister who are sick, the family will give medicine to the boy but not the girl, I explained. I looked at the precious children’s faces on my table, and I longed to gather them all into my arms and bring them home.
Sponorship is costs about $30 per month—about one dollar per day. I spend that on coffee, easily. You could even downsize your coffee from a Venti to a Grande or Tall, and use the difference to change a child’s life. I decided to sponsor two girls. But there are still more girls—on my kitchen table and around the world. Won’t you join me in sponsoring a little girl? Go to www.worldvision.org/sponsorGirls In changing a life, you just might change your own.
Before me I spread out a handful of pictures of little girls from Third World countries: Loveness in Zambia, Kidest in Ethiopia, Machilu in Malawi.
The photos of their sweet faces were included in a request from World Vision to sponsor girls. Because in many cultures, especially people living in poverty, girls get a lot less medicine, food and education than boys.
We’ve sponsored children through World Vision for several years now. For a while, we sponsored Edna Blanc in Haiti. Then, as often happens, her family moved away from the area where World Vision provides services. When I got the letter saying she’d no longer be my sponsored child, I cried. We’d only exchanged a few letters and birthday cards but I had her photo on my fridge and I prayed for her all the time.
The same thing has happened with a boy that I’ve sponsored this year. Yothin Sarinon and his family are moving away from the area in Thailand where they could receive sponsorship.
I read the appeal letter to my thirteen year old daughter. And we had a great talk about how women and girls are often mistreated. “Compared to boys, they’re less likely to receive adequate medical care or food,” the letter said. That means if there is a brother and a sister who are sick, the family will give medicine to the boy but not the girl, I explained. I looked at the precious children’s faces on my table, and I longed to gather them all into my arms and bring them home.
Sponorship is costs about $30 per month—about one dollar per day. I spend that on coffee, easily. You could even downsize your coffee from a Venti to a Grande or Tall, and use the difference to change a child’s life. I decided to sponsor two girls. But there are still more girls—on my kitchen table and around the world. Won’t you join me in sponsoring a little girl? Go to www.worldvision.org/sponsorGirls In changing a life, you just might change your own.
