Over the next few weeks, I’m going to do my best to re-visit Peru. I would love to do that in person but blogging will have to do for now. So would you care to accompany me on the trip?
Our first full day in Peru was Thursday, October 27. I was awakened at 6:45 a.m. by my early bird roommates. Anyone who knows me in the slightest is fully aware that I am not a morning person. And in my books, 6:45 is early. And then we realized that Lima’s a different time zone… it was actually 5:45. So my day began with learning to go back to sleep while my roomies got ready for the day.
Fast forward a few hours and our group was on a bus with representatives from Compassion International. Compassion is a Christian child development ministry. They are best known for their child sponsorship program. Each child sponsored receives an education, healthcare, nourishing food and a relationship (through letters) with his or her sponsor. Compassion’s work is all carried out through the local church so they’re not only meeting physical needs, they’re meeting spiritual ones too.
I’m certainly no stranger to Compassion’s work, I have seven Compassion children of my own. But despite my passion for their ministry, I wasn’t sure how excited to be about the coming day. I was thrilled for many of my teammates who would be meeting their sponsor children. Unfortunately, even with seven kiddos, I don’t have a Peruvian child. So I’d be living the day vicariously through the others. Or so I thought.
After a bumpy, dusty ride through Lima, we arrived in the first village. We walked up the 
dirt roads and past dozens of little shacks that people call home. Before long, we arrived at the church and were given a tour of the Compassion facilities. We saw the nursery where the littlest members of this town can come to play. We saw the care packs given to all new moms and met the dedicated women committed to helping new parents learn how to care for and feed their babies for optimum health. And everywhere we went in the building, we could hear the happy voices of children at play. School here is done in shifts – half of the children go in the morning, half in the afternoon. So these kids were still awaiting their day at school.
After the tour of the church and Compassion facilities, we divided into groups to visit some of the Compassion kids’ homes. I had the pleasure of accompanying my friend Ruth to see the home of her little girl. When we arrived, we met her mother, grandmother and baby sister – Ruth’s child was in school. We were warmly greeted and made ourselves 
comfortable in the home. I tried to guard my facial expressions – this certainly wasn’t like any home I had been to before. The one bed (used by the entire family), living room and kitchen was in a tiny room smaller than my bachelor apartment. But as I sat on the couch, I noticed familiar makings of a home – hand-drawn crayon pictures, warm blankets for chilly nights and family photos. And one of those photos had people in it who are so very familiar to me. It was a photo of Ruth and her family.
That’s when it hit me what an impact child sponsorship can have. It’s not just providing a bit of money for a child. It’s intertwining lives. It’s relationship. And just then, we heard some excited footsteps. Ruth’s sponsor child had run home from school, beyond excited to meet this woman she knew through letters and photos.
As part of our visit, we had brought along a gift basket for the family. The basket was filled 
with groceries and everyday items. There were also a few luxuries – including a package of cookies. Proving that kids are the same everywhere, there was an excited squeal when the cookies were spotted. She dove right in and tore open the package. I smiled, excited for this girl to enjoy such a rare treat. But what she did next surprised and humbled me. She walked around the room, making sure that each of her guests took a cookie. This meant that half of the precious package was already gone. But she seemed even more excited to share her treat, rather that saving it all for herself. I was awestruck by the graciousness of this little girl.
All too soon, our visit drew to a close and we walked her back to school. We savoured that we didn’t have to say goodbye – the next day, we would all be going to the zoo together. So we hugged this sweet girl and sent her back to class. We returned to the Compassion project, where they were preparing a delicious lunch for us. Many of the younger children, back from school, were there to excitedly say hello to us. One little one brushed against my leg so I knelt down to say hello to her. Without any hesitation, she climbed on to my lap, all smiles and hugs. One of my teammates shot this photo:
I flipped back to this photo many times during my trip to Peru, reassuring myself that the moment did actually happen and I hadn’t dreamed it. Photos like these appear all the time in Compassion’s and similar organizations’ brochures. But I always assumed that they were posed. I am now testament to the fact that moments like these do happen. These children - many of whom have known nothing but poverty and in some cases, abandonment and neglect – are the most loving, friendly kids I’ve ever encountered. They have such hope and joy. It certainly doesn’t come through possessions or affluence. They’re some of the richest kids in the world because they’ve found love through Compassion and most importantly, through Jesus Christ. And that makes all the difference.
I was going to save this for the end of the series but I think I should already start to add it in: please consider sponsoring a child through Compassion. Your gift of $41 (CDN) a month will provide for a child and also impact their community with healthcare, support from a church and great education. Compassion also provides opportunities for older students to tutor the younger ones – teaching them responsibility, childcare and strengthening their own educations for a brighter future. Of course, all donations are tax deductible. I would say you’ll change a life but that’s not true. You’ll be changing two – that of your child and your own.
