My wife and I were married while we were in college. We had many of the same classes so while we saw plenty of each other we were pretty far below the poverty line. One night we decided to go to a concert on campus. The singer was Randy Stonehill. At one point in the concert Randy started talking about Compassion International. Compassion International supports impoverished children around the world. Karen and I were both touched and decided to support a child. His name was Jose Martinez and he was 2 years old. We taped his picture on our refrigerator and reworked our budget and began to send $30.00 per month to Compassion to help little Jose. We would receive letters with crayon drawings and updates regarding how Jose was doing in school. Each year we would replace the photograph on the refrigerator as Jose got older. In 1985 we went to Bolivia, South America for a 6 month stint and had the chance to meet Jose and his mother. We took some pictures and talked through a translator. In 1995 we received word from Compassion that Jose was old enough to matriculate out of the program and our obligation had run its course. For the last 15 years whenever I have heard about Compassion International I have thought about little Jose. Last week I received an email from Jose Martinez asking if I was his "godfather" who had supported he and his mother throughout his childhood. He said he had been on our website and compared the picture of me to the photo he still had from 1985 and he was sure we were one and the same. Jose is living in Spain now and wanted to get back in touch and tell me what a difference we made in his life. Little Jose Martinez had made his way out of terrible poverty, was now living in Spain, has access to a computer and is savvy enough to find me after all these years. When Karen and I decided to sign up for Compassion we didn't have any idea where we would get the money. God touched our hearts and we responded. Now 30 years later we can't think of a single thing we missed from giving $30.00 a month. Sometimes you never know the difference you make in someone's life. And then every once in a while God gives you a little glimpse and it makes every little thing worth it. May God give you glimpses of the miracles you have participated in and may it humble you and give you great joy this Christmas season.
Join in realizing the vision of Christ Community Chapel with Senior Pastor Joe Coffey
9 comments:
That's beautiful. I think it is a glimpse of what it will be like in heaven to see all the different ways God has worked in and through his people. There are so many intertwined purposes God is working in our lives and the lives of others that we can't see. And when, like in this case, God allows a peak into things, it really resonates with me. I feel like it is "the way it is supposed to be." Creation groans .... waiting. I look forward to meeting Jose someday.
Scott
Amen. Amen. Amen.
That was heart touching note, and it was the beautiful work of God, As I was reading literally I was feeling it. What a great commitment. God bless.
Pratik Parage
I have been a Compassion Sponsor for several years now, with two kids, one from South America, Daniel and one from India, Ragu. I had a girl that I lost because of the elders in her village and that is when I got Ragu. That was heart breaking because I did even get to write at least one last letter. It has been heart warming and a blessing to watch Daniel grow, who is now 16 and teaching in the church in his home village. Ragu has this impish little smile and they are so full of love and I can only thank God that he has given me this chance to do something, even though it seems like such a small thing. Some day, I think God will allow us all to meet and I pray that God remains strong and the center of their lives.
The timing of your Coffey Talk was amazing Joe because it was almost exactly this time last year that, after hearing one of YOUR sermons, our family decided to sponsor an 8 year old girl from Ecuador through Compassion International. I had gotten behind on my emails and when we went over to a friend’s house from our HCC Community Group last night, I saw and asked Patty about the four children whose pictures were one her wall that they too had sponsored from Compassion and she told me about your post. We feel so blessed to be able to help out this little girl named Melina and hope that our aid will not only help bring her out of poverty, but bring her and her family closer to Christ. I love hearing stories like yours because you are taking somewhat of a leap of faith sponsoring a child that you may never meet and you hope and pray that your gift is being used for the best. We love writing Melina letters and sending her pictures and drawings and get so excited to receive hers letters and drawings as well. We would love to be able, like you and Karen, to visit our sponsored child someday because I truly believe that it would make us even more “real” to her. It is so cool that Jose sought you out to re-connect and let you know how you changed his life. What a heart-warming story. Thanks for sharing.
What a beautiful story. I'm so glad he found you after all this time!
What a beautiful story. I'm so glad he found you after all this time!
He comes down;
down from the heights of absolute being into time and space,
down into humanity; down further still,
to the very roots and seabed of the Nature He has created.
But He goes down to come up again
and bring the whole ruined world up with Him.
He is like a diver, first reducing himself to nakedness,
then glancing in mid-air, then gone with a splash, vanished,
rushing down through green and warm water
into black and cold water,
down through increasing pressure
into the death-like region of ooze and slime and old decay;
then up again,
back to colour and light,
his lungs almost bursting,
till suddenly he breaks surface again,
holding in his hand
the dripping, precious thing that he went down to recover.
C.S.Lewis
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