An Opportunity to Serve

 

"Poverty is not necessarily an issue to solve; it is an opportunity to serve. As we go through each day, our heart's cry should be, Lord, where would you have me give, serve, and invest myself to bring hope to the poor?"
~Orphan Justice author, Johnny Carr

So interesting that this quote should be one that we have been asked to write about as Compassion Bloggers this week. Just yesterday, in the sermon given by our pastor, he told us, “The gospel is not about feeding poor children or building wells in poor communities.” As a Compassion Advocate and Sponsor, I have spent the last three years learning so many things about this wonderful organization.

Over the past few weeks, many Compassion Bloggers have been sharing their hearts and writing on topics that sometimes have been a little difficult to tackle. Why do we do this, you might be asking?

I believe that Compassion’s mission statement says it all:

Releasing children from poverty in Jesus’ name

Compassion is not just solving a problem. Compassion is not just feeding poor children. Compassion is not just building wells. Compassion is giving hope to children. Compassion is giving hope to families. Compassion is giving hope to communities. Compassion is sharing the hope of knowing Jesus and allowing Him to make a difference in the lives of these children, their families, and their communities. Only He can do this when we obey His command to serve Him.

Are you ready to make the investment in the life of a children? Your $38 a month goes so much further than you can even imagine.

Compassion Share & Tell

As I was putting together my packet of items to mail to our Compassion kids this morning, I got to thinking, “Wouldn’t it be great if Compassion sponsors were able to share with each other what they are mailing to their kids? Maybe what Pinterest item they found, what Bible verses they sent, what questions they are asking?”

Now I know there are some great resources available on the Compassion web site and on Compassion’s Pinterest boards (especially on the Pinterest boards! {wink!}). But I thought if I started a blog hop, this could help each of us be accountable to each other to remember to write to our kids each month and share ideas of what exactly we are mailing to them.

So what do you think?

Here is what I put together this month:

• Photograph of dolphins I took from our recent beach trip
• Dolphin coloring page
• Dolphin facts
• Ephesians 2:14 - “For He Himself is our peace”
• Questions I asked: “Is there a Bible verse that encourages you these days?”, “Have you ever seen a dolphin or been to the ocean?”, and “How is your family and are there any prayer requests you have?”

Are you ready to join in?

Here are the rules:

• Link up by posting blog post URL- not just blog URL
• Visit other blogs and leave comment love.
• I reserve the right to remove any links that don’t fit the link up theme or that I find inappropriate

Blog hop will remain open until Friday, October 4, 2013, so be sure to come back and share your blog post with us at the Linky Tools below:

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Capture Your 365

Time for another week of Capture Your 365 photos!

black and white

ISO 100, 18mm, f/5.6, 1/250 sec

Day 250 – Black and White: If you know me and/or have been following my blog for some time, you know that I love to go on day trips to Yosemite. Having this amazing gem of a place within driving distance is such a blessing. There is so much beauty there, and each season has something special to offer its visitors. On this particular trip, my husband and I spent the day bike riding around the valley, something neither one of us had done before. We both enjoyed it so much!

simple

ISO 100, 50mm, f/1.8, 1/20 sec

Day 251 – Simple: My husband and I celebrated our 23rd wedding anniversary this month. Anniversaries come and go, but it is the simple (and sometimes not so simple), day to day stuff that we each work on together that keeps a marriage together.

routine

ISO 800, 34mm, f/5.0, 1/8 sec

Day 252 – Routine: Welcome to Monday! Monday around here usually means laundry day. Not the most beautiful photo I have ever taken, but just a small part of my routine.

around the house

ISO 800, 55mm, f/5.6, 1/15 sec

Day 253 – Around the House: Most week day mornings, you will find my daughter in her room, up on her new loft bed, diligently working on her school work.

on the schedule

ISO 800, 55mm, f/5.6, 1/60 sec

Day 254 – On The Schedule: I know there are so many gadgets and apps to help you stay on task with your to-do list these days, but I seem to always fall back to a simple, written out, to-do list on a post it note. This helps me keep my to-do list somewhat reasonable for the day, and I don’t know about you, but there is satisfaction in actually checking items off of a list.

details of the day

ISO 800, 48mm, f/5.6, 1/20 sec

Day 255 – Details of the Day: We like to have breakfast for dinner around here every now and then. I had purchased some strawberries at the local farmer’s market the night before, so waffles with strawberries sounded like the perfect dinner for this night. And a little whipped cream just makes it all a little bit more special!

on the table

ISO 800, 52mm, f/5.6, 1/15 sec

Day 256 – On The Table: It is not my intent to have food related photos in almost every Capture Your 365 blog post, but when the prompt fits, you just have to go with it! Anyway, I do enjoy using our cloth napkins at dinner. It has been a simple way to make our dinner table just a little more special, and we don’t go through near as many paper napkins any more. There are plenty of tutorials out there to follow to make your own set or two.

So there you have it! A full week of Capture Your 365 photos! What photos are you capturing during your week? I would love to see them!

Photo Treasure Hunt: Blue Treasures

Were you able to join me and my blogging friend Jill this past week on the hunt for blue treasures? Here is what I found this past week:

compassion t-shirt

usa flag

fabric

ocean

blueberries

I sure hope you share with us the blue photos you found this past week! If you would like to join us on this blog hop, we want to just remind you of a few rules:

Link up by posting blog post URL- not just blog URL

Link back to one of us (grab button if desired)

Visit other blogs and leave comment love.

Be sure to take note of next theme and start collecting more photos.

We reserve the right to remove any links that don’t fit the link up theme or that we find inappropriate

The Photo Treasure Hunt theme for this next week is……yellow! So get out there, take pictures of yellow things. Then come back next week to join in on the Photo Treasure Hunt blog hop!

But in the meantime, share you blog link with us with Linky Tools below:

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Dear Jesus, Send Me a Sponsor

Dear Jesus,

My name is Crista and I live in the Philippines. I am 7 years old, and I live with my mom, my dad, and two little brothers. My teacher says you know everything about me, but I thought I would remind you, just in case. My family has been bringing me to the local church to learn more about you. You must have a really big heart to love so many people so much, and I am thankful to learn that you love me too.

But Jesus, I have a really big favor to ask. I have a friend who attends the Compassion program with me and she receives these wonderful letters from a family living in a place called the United States. They send her pictures and stickers and they share Bible verses with her in the letters. She shows me the letters with a joy filled smile on her face. Is it too selfish of me to ask for a sponsor too?

There are many children at the Compassion program who have a sponsor and are receiving letters. They are all so happy on mail day when the letters come. I want to receive letters too. Do you know of a family that could sponsor me? Is there someone out there that will love me too?

I have written this post as an assignment with the Compassion Bloggers for Blog Month. While this post is fictional, there are many children like little Crista who are patiently waiting for that one family to make the sacrifice to be their sponsor. Will you prayerfully consider sponsoring a Compassion child today?