I recently managed a team of editors working on letters written to sponsors by Project Facilitators. We read over 3,500 letters.
Many of them included compelling stories of how your letters affect children in our sponsorship program – stories, not from our perspective, but from the perspective of those who work with the children and our church partners.
From these 3,500 letters, we compiled a list of the 10 most motivating reasons to write your child.
- TEN
Letters to children are very important; the connection is made. When the child’s name is read out as having received a letter, the excitement and joy is contagious! As they read the letter, they see you. If they do not have your photo, they paint the best picture of you in their minds, and that remains in their heart forever. They talk about you to their family every day as they pray for you; they tell their neighbors, friends, and their schoolmates, because you are so alive in their lives. (from Uganda)
- NINE
Sponsor letters have been making a great impact in the lives of children, such as strengthening the relationship as the child gets to know sponsor family. The child feels as if the relationship is one of very close friends. Likewise, through sponsor letters, children get to know other parts of the world and what they look like. Children are also motivated to learn English when they receive sponsor letters. (from Tanzania) - EIGHT
Children take your letters as a sign of your concern and an expression of your love. Parents are amazed that somebody is taking time to think of them, as poor as they are. Sponsor letters are making church leaders and child development center staff renew their concern and love for the children and families they serve. (from Ethiopia) - SEVEN
Children become kinder, because they want to show their sponsors they care for others and are behaving well. (from Togo) - SIX
Sponsor letters act as a communication channel between children and their sponsors. They enable children to have an intimate relationship with their sponsors. When sponsors share their feelings and prayer requests, the children feel more wanted and cared for. Some children who are orphaned feel so loved that they refer to their sponsors as Mom or Dad. This helps boost the emotional status of these children. They have a shoulder to lean on. (from Kenya) - FIVE
The prayers, support, gifts, letters and visits that children share with sponsors do transform the children’s lives, and these experiences positively influence their character. They are uplifted spiritually, socially, morally and emotionally. When sponsor letters tell children that they are the best and God loves them, the children’s self-worth is lifted forever and they live with confidence.Children gladly share with their friends the information, the stickers, the verses, Christmas/Easter wishes and all the other gifts they receive from sponsors. Children are also deeply moved by the love expressed for them in these letters. One letter read,
“We have hung your photo on the wall and we ask God to bless you every time we see you.”
The children cannot hide their emotions when they receive such messages.
They are moved to tears, and they bless God for giving them such wonderful friends to walk closely with through the journey of life. They forget the weary burdens that sometimes pull them down. The children are compelled to keep these letters; they read them time and again.
Optimism and hope are reflected on the faces of children as they read and meditate on the encouraging messages. (from Kenya)
- FOUR
Sponsor letters are very important to the lives of the children at the child development center. When they receive a letter written to them by their sponsors, the children feel very proud and loved. It is touching to see even the little ones who cannot write anything, passionately drawing diligently and expressing their love to their sponsors.Whenever children are assembled and it is mentioned that the teacher wants to give them letters from their sponsors, all the children keep quiet and stay attentive with a very high expectation to receive a letter from their sponsor. The joy, happiness and the glow evident in the children’s faces is a clear indication that sponsor letters play a significant part in their lives. (from Kenya)
- THREE
One time I went for facilitation, and I saw an appreciation card written by a child to the sponsor and the child kept carrying her sponsor’s letters to school. She said when there is no one near her to encourage her through difficulties, she reads her sponsor’s letter and she feels assured to be a winner. (from Kenya) - TWO
There are children who accepted Jesus Christ as their Savior due to sponsor letters’ impact and prayers. (from Ethiopia) - ONE
Once, a child’s parent told me that when my assistant brought a letter to her sick child, the child got up immediately from the sick bed. After the letter was read to him, he embraced the photo contained in the letter for a long time. And that marked the sudden end of that sickness. (from Togo)
21 Comments |Add a comment
So beautiful! Thank you so much for writing this – moved me to tears. We love our sponsored children so much!
Great article Becky!
Thank you for writing this! I have been a slacker on my letters as I guess I didn’t realize it was an actual person behind the scenes. I know – selfish! I will do better!
God Bless you for caring and writting this!!!!!
I have just sponsered a child with my daughter and grandchildrenans I am really blessed by your blog. What a difference love of Jesus can show to these children. Thank You. Lyn
We just sponsored a child who is close in age to our children. We are excited to make a difference in the child’s life in Rwanda, but also in our children’s lives. It is going to be wonderful to see how Jesus acts as a penpal between our families.
Absolutely love this blog! It made me think of new things to say to my little girl I sponsor in Columbia. Every time I receive a letter from her, I am always moved. I am glad to know how much my letters mean to her. This post inspired me, and I hope that every sponsor gets a chance to read this. Thank you Becky!
I love the “10 Motivating Reasons to Write Your Child”. It is truly an amazing feeling when you receive a letter from your child. Can you imagine how our sponsored children feel when they receive a letter from us? I think they should include “10 Motivating Reasons to Write your Child” in the packet for new sponsors so they can have an idea of how writing letters to your child is an important factor in building the relationship. Nevertheless, thank you sponsors for your love!!
Ann,
I think that’s a great idea! I’ll pass it along.
Beautiful stories…Love this blog…it’s really means so much to these children. :))
Great blog! Really loved these stories.
Thank you so much for this encouraging information. I try to write every month and we have a couple of correspondence kids too. I got the most sweet letter recently and our child in India said she knew how much we loved her from our letters, tears, oh my gosh, God must be helping me do somthing very right. Thank you Compassion for such an opportunity.
Thank you so much for sharing. Here is something you can share from Bangladesh.
I just received a letter from my sponsor child. He is a young man who calls me sister. He is sharing his life with his family and what he wants to do after he finishes school. I shared verses from the Bible (don’t remember which ones) and he told me that he reads them and memorizes them. He asks for prayer for placement examinations and family and to learn English. He prays for me and my education that I will be able to complete it well.
I had to share because their letters are just as much a blessing to us as our is to them.
Through our letters to each other, God built such a strong relationship between myself and my Compassion son in Ghana that when he told me that he had asked God for me to come to Ghana and serve children there and that God told him that “it would come to pass”, my heart was moved into action.
We raised $30K plus travel to build a school for rescued child slaves in Ghana in November, and we finally got to meet not only this inspirational Compassion child, but 3 more of our Compassion kids in Ghana, as well as the Compassion children of several friends.
Had there not been regular letters exchanged, this would not have happened.
Thank you for these wonderful reminders of the importance of sponsor letters! I am going to print this to remind myself why I need to keep writing.
I ***LOVE*** this post!
These ten reasons, among many others, are what keep me going! My passion and the focus of my blog is to inspire sponsors in their ministries to their sponsored children!
This is definitely a post that needs to be shared!!
Thank you so much for this post! This is so important for every sponsor to understand – it should be mandatory reading! I have seen several of my kid’s grades go up, and have even been thanked by one of my kids in college for my encouragement, that helps him to stay motivated and to work hard. Another one told me he attended the project only ‘sometimes’ – well now he HAS to go regularly to pick up his letters! And I now feel a little less bitterness in the words in his letters. (His father died from alcoholism.) Please don’t ever stop trying to get the message out to sponors, of how important their letters are to their kids.
Amazing post and very moving!! Every sponsor needs to read this (and re-read every month if they need the motivation to write!!)
What a great reminder to us all as to why writing our kids is SO important. We’ve been blessed by so many letters over the years from them as well, and to hear things like “With your birthday money I bought flour, salt and vegetables” really puts things in perspective.
Thank you so much! I sometimes wonder what difference a handful of letters could possibly make. I plan on keeping your list around to remind me!
This is so moving! Thank you, Becky, for making my day!