Dear God, Why Me?
“Dear God, why me?” I don’t mean, “Why have you allowed this tragedy to fall on me?” But rather, “why have you allowed such blessing to fall upon me?”
Potential in the Most Unlikely of Places
Certainly Tales has already achieved more than most in his little corner of the world. He’s been a role model to his mother. Maybe this same strength his mother saw will be enough to propel him out of the vicious cycle of life he’s currently living in.
Behind the Façade, This Is God’s Island
What does a child do when her greatest earthly protector turns out to be a predator? What does she think about her heavenly Father when her earthly father is her abuser?
They Missed the Story
This was one of the worst natural disasters in human history. Millions of people affected. An entire nation shaken. The world captivated. And there was barely a mention on the anniversary. But, I think, perhaps what disappoints me most is the stories they missed.
Delivering Hope
Sponsored children receive letters from their sponsors. Unsponsored children do not.
Andrea, one of the Compassion workers and our translator, told me that the only time there is a true distinction between a child who is unsponsored and a child who is sponsored is when letters are handed out. It’s a little bit like the unsponsored…
Poverty Eradication: That’s a Tall Order
I think the volunteers at this center, the facilitator, the pastor and the director understand the importance of eradication. I know they rely on God for the victory, but I think your faithfulness and your commitment to your sponsored children is running poverty out of the minds and hearts of these children.
The streets are still filled with debris, smoldering tires and overturned cars. Few cars can pass, so transportation is limited to motorcycles and feet. There are still pockets of violence throughout the city, but it’s so much quieter today. Quiet enough for me to think. Which can sometimes be dangerous.
Grace in the Chaos: A Report from Haiti
I thought I was imagining it at first. I do have an overactive imagination, after all. But I couldn’t mistake the chanting. I crept to the window, and as icy cold water from the air conditioner dripped on my feet, I heard the city exploding. Nothing had blown over. It had blown up. I lay…
Battered, Broken, Beautiful Haiti
I saw people begging on the streets, just as I thought I would. But I also saw a young man, profoundly handicapped, sitting in a dark alley, pounding his head against the wall. That single image of brokenness, of pain, sits in my chest like a stone. Haiti somehow breaks my heart.
Undercover With Compassion
I have been feeling challenged lately to get closer to the heart of Compassion, where we interact with sponsors, churches and children. I recently read a quote from a top executive of a large retail chain (I can’t remember which one — maybe Best Buy). He said, “I have never wasted a day visiting a…
Leave Things Better Than You Find Them
“I grew up poor, just like you,” explains Albert Pujols. “No matter how successful you may become in baseball or in life, you can never forget where you came from. Never be ashamed of being poor; never forget that Batey Aleman is your home. You will always have a responsibility to your God, your family…
This is About God
So many people erroneously think that because the poor live such difficult lives, marred by illness, hunger, gangs and all other symptoms of poverty, that they are somehow used to death around them. I am here to tell you, a parent is a parent in all cultures and classes and that loving bond is not…
Anticipating the Launch of Batey Baseball
The anticipation of the official launch of “batey baseball” with Albert Pujols, the president of Rawlings, 60 Minutes, the Pujols Family Foundation and of course Compassion, is evident at Batey Aleman. People have really come together in this community to take ownership of it, to take pride in it, and to give thanks for it.…
The Heart and Soul of Guatemala (in Pictures)
Pictures courtesy of Keely Scott. Visit compassionbloggers.com to experience all of the highlights of the Guatemala blog trip through the words, pictures and videos of the team.
From Cristo Rey de Gloria Student Center (GU-970) in Guatemala. Shaun Groves takes you on a two-minute tour of the child development center and shows you what it looks and sounds like when the children are there.
A Cup of Gratitude
The woman gleefully handed me a cup. It was filled with a warm drink made of corn and cinnamon. Our staff guide looked at me and said, “She wants to offer you and the group this drink. Please take it, so you are not rude, but don’t drink it for it might make you sick.”
Our Sixth Blog Trip Begins Sept. 8
The Compassion Bloggers are traveling to Guatemala on their latest trip to see our ministry in action.
Made for Each Other
Each of your sponsored children is uniquely yours. You may not know the reason exactly, but that child was chosen by you for a reason. And you were chose for for that child.
Baking Without a KitchenAid in Sight
The girls teaching me to bake were part of a baking class at the Compassion student center I was visiting in Quetzaltenango, Guatemala. As part of the class, they make snacks for the nearly 400 students at the center. They also make baked goods they can sell in the community. With that money, they have…
A Pear and Prayer
There is nothing in the world like visiting a Compassion-assisted child’s home. Absolutely nothing. Nothing can prepare you for the sights, the sounds, the smells. Most of all, nothing can prepare you for the beating your heart is about to take. It’s like you got in a fight with the Holy Spirit. And every time,…
United by Baseball, United Through Christ
I found out today that the word “batey” is Creole for a shanty town. I find it hard to imagine feeling good about wearing the word “batey” on a uniform. I would have difficulty feeling a sense of belonging with that polarizing label sewn across my chest.
For these kids, that does not matter. Where…
If You Build it, He Will Come
Yesterday was Father’s Day in the Dominican Republic. It’s no coincidence that the day we handed out uniforms to these young men and boys is a day that represents the absence of a father for many of them.
When we arrived at the batey, we assembled all of the parents for a meeting. The assembly…
Bringing Baseball to the Batey: Rained Out
Yesterday, I made it into Batey Aleman, during a complete rainout. Tropical Depression Bonnie paid a visit and the rains haven’t ceased.
Right before going to the batey, I stopped at the Compassion Dominican Republic office and saw the 87 boxes of Rawlings and Nike equipment lining n entire wall three feet deep. I also…
Bringing Baseball to the Batey
A batey (buh-TAY) is a sugar plantation in the Dominican that mostly uses the labor of Haitians. Most bateys are defunct, but in some case the Haitians have been permitted to stay on the land, living in slums with little clean water or any means of support.
Received from Ken Laura, a member of our Haiti Relief Team working in Port-au-Prince.
Sunday, April 25 — I moved last week and it has changed my situation and my perspective. Instead of sleeping in a tent beside the main road of Delmas listening to trucks roar up and down the street all night, I…
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