Tuesday, March 13, 2012

Precious Ones

Thank you to my new followers. There have been a number of you lately and I am very blessed by that!

I finally had the chance last week to organize the correspondence and little things I save for sending to my sponsored boys in East Africa.

These little ones, and one not so little one, are precious to me and I enjoy receiving their letters. Though it is hard to believe, I think they also enjoy receiving my letters and the little things I send to them. It lets them know that someone far away cares for them and is praying for them and their families.

My newest sponsored boy is actually now a young man. His name is Haile and he lives north of Addis Ababa in Ethiopia. He has a father, mother and 5 siblings.  Haile is 20 years old and will continue to be sponsored until he is 22 years old. He writes to me in in his native language which I think is Amharic.  Someone translates his letters for me to read.  When I send him my letters in English, someone must translate them for him to read.

Haile has a different financial sponsor and I volunteered to be his correspondent sponsor because for whatever reason, his financial sponsor does not write him. I'm blessed to be able to write to this young man and encourage him in the faith.

Haile will soon be on his own and fending for himself in the world but for now he lives with his father and mother and 5 siblings.  He has been asking me to pray about a dam that is going to be built on the Nile. I think the young men along the dam route are hoping that they will be able to find work on the dam.

In this photo you can see Haile's letters in his language. At the top is a photo of the tall young man he is turning out to be. At the bottom is a post card of Canada's animal which I will send to him in a future letter.

Next is John. He lives in one of the slums of Nairobi Kenya with his mother and father and siblings.  John is 8 years old and  has a younger brother.  A baby brother was recently added to the family so there are 3 boys altogether.

John loves numbers.  So among other things, I bought him some number stickers. He will be able to practice counting and mathematical tables.  John is the second child I decided to sponsor with Compassion International Canada. I am his financial sponsor not just his correspondent and I am hoping that I can be a great encouragement to him over the years.

See the organizer. It has several tabs so I am able to keep stickers, letters, writing paper and envelopes and correspondence from Compassion International Canada  organized and easy to find.

The third boy I sponsor is Peter.  Peter lives in a village located north of Nakuru, Kenya. He lived with his father, mother, 3 sisters and 1 brother but sadly his mother died recently and so there are now 5 young children with no mother.  I feel very badly for him and his siblings and pray that all will be well with them. I hope my letters can encourage him and show him motherly love and concern.

Peter also loves numbers and wants to be a pilot.  I bought him some plane stickers.

My letter last week to all the boys included some appropriately themed paper gift bags (I didn't take photos of them). The bags will be a good place for the boys to store their letters, stickers, post cards and other little paper gifts I send.  This might seem like such a small and insignificant thing.  But in a poor village, you will not find these kinds of "extras" in a humble home.  Small incomes have to be spent on top priorities like school and school clothing and food.

I hope you've enjoyed learning about my boys.  I hope to write about them here from time to time, and about the wonderful work of Compassion International.

A letter and drawing from Peter.

If you have ever though of sponsoring a child, I can tell you that Compassion International (CI) is a wonderful organization to consider doing it through.  CI really goes the extra mile to try and make it easy for you to correspond with your child. You can check them out at their website here. There you will also find links to Compassion International offices in many different countries around the globe.

14 comments:

Anonymous said...

The simple small act of supporting and writing to these boys will bless them I believe for the rest of their lives. Thank you for sharing.

blessings, jilly

Joyful said...

Thank you, Jilly. Your comment brought back some precious memories. I can remember when I was 10 ish and how much it meant to me when a grown up, other than a parent, would pay some attention to me; either speak to me and listen to what I had to say, compliment me or give me a small gift. Those little things did a lot to make me happy. I need to remember that when I write to these dear boys. Have a wonderful evening :-)

Denise said...

You truly bless my heart. Thank you for reaching out, and touching the lives of these dear ones. Be blessed in your efforts. I love you.

Joyful said...

Thank you for your encouragement, Denise. I love you too. Hugs. xx

momto8 said...

again i would like to thank you for your example of kindness to other human beings....

Pat said...

What a blessing you are and will always be to these boys, Penny. It touched my heart to read about your faithfulness and kindness to them, so far away. May the Lord continue to bless you in your ministry.

Joyful said...

Thank you mom408 for your kind words ;-)

Joyful said...

Pat I'm very happy that my post touched you today. God bless you too.

OtienoHongo said...

Pleased to see that the art of letter writing still exists in a world of instant emails and text messages. I know the boys will cherish the correspondence. Have you watched the film "A Small Act", demonstrates how such acts can have an impact not only on the individual but the community itself

Joyful said...

Hello Charles, yes, it does seem that letter writing is almost dying art. I do like to receive letters myself. It makes the correspondence that much more special. I haven't seen the film but I will look for it. Perhaps they have it on line somewhere. Sounds intriguing.

Anonymous said...

Love your blog, Penny. Keep doing what you're doing and I know the Lord will bless you for that.

Thank you for being the change you want to see.

Joyful said...

Thank you for your encouragement. I believe in "being the change" I want to see and hope that many more would join me in this. God bless you!

Jo said...

Hi Penny, at last I managed to open this post. I love reading about "your boys" as I have an idea where most of them are. Bless you for the joy and love your bring to these young lads. Hugs Jo

Joyful said...

Hi dear Jo, I'm so glad you were able to open the post. I know you know about Kenya and where the boys live. Thank yo for your kind words of encouragement. Hugs. xx

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