Many of us think we “know” what faith means. When it is time to put our faith in action, however, it’s another story. Honestly, I have failed the faith test many times, but God’s mercy helps me to stand up again and again.

Last year my family had to make a decision that would affect our lives permanently. We prayed together and agreed to pray individually for some weeks before getting together again. At first, I thought I was praying and trusting, but as the days passed, I was more anxious and weary.

At one point, I finally gave up and poured out my heart to God in prayer. He knew how far I could go. It was then when I began to see His hand working in guiding the decision we were about to make. My soul was finally at rest, and my faith grew stronger. An indescribable joy was flowing inside of me. I knew I passed the test this time. God answered our prayer.

At Compassion, we also get together every week to pray. A staff member once asked for prayer for a child’s critical health. She said, “I know this is a group of anointed people, and God will hear your prayer.” We prayed, and healing came to the child’s body. God did it again! We rejoiced and our faith was strengthened.

No doubt many difficulties have come along in this ministry. But God has placed anointed men and women who stand with confidence that God is in control to watch over the millions of children who will be released from poverty in Jesus’ name. Some day they will join us in faith and intercede for others.

God is there for you; trust Him! You will see great results in your life and in this ministry.

Now faith is confidence in what we hope for and assurance about what we do not see. — Hebrews 11:1, NIV

Prayer: Help us, Father, to trust in You even when we don’t see a way out. Amen!

Read all the One in Spirit devotionals.

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Shelter is one of the basic necessities of a human being. It is assumed that shelter provides security, protection, a sense of belonging, freedom, love and family.

However, no matter how our shelters are designed, what kind of materials they are made of, where they are located, how much they are secured, or who lives in them, there is no guarantee they will give us safety, as we live in a world of so many uncertainties. Psalm 91:1 (NIV) says,

“Whoever dwells in the shelter of the Most High will rest in the shadow of the Almighty.”

There is peace regardless of circumstances. In the shelter of the Most High there is joy deep down in the heart, even in difficult times, hope in the midst of hopelessness, and quietness in the storms.

When things get out of control and pressures threaten to overwhelm us, we know that Jesus cares for us and is working in us. He will never leave us. We can hold fast to God’s promises.

Jesus assured His disciples,

“Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid.” –John 14:27, NIV

In the shelter of the Most High we hear the comforting voice of God: “Be still and know that I am God.”

Are you in the shelter of the Almighty today?

Prayer: Father, help us to stand on Your promises and live by faith. Help us to rest in Your shadow, and use us to help others rest in You.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR: Mamitu Zellelew works as a program communications manager in Ethiopia. She has been with Compassion for 13 years.

Read all the One in Spirit devotionals.
 

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I had dinner with a group of our Indonesian staff members and met a new member of the local leadership team. She told me about her many experiences working with the poor before she came to work for our ministry, and I was truly amazed at all the things she had done.

I asked her to share her best advice for someone who wants to work with the poor, and she had four words for me:

“Bring an empty cup.

“Most people come to help the poor with only a full cup.

“Their cups are full of all the things they want to do for the poor, all the things they want to give to the poor and all the solutions they have for the problems of the poor. These things can sometimes be very good, but if people only bring a full cup, they can’t accept anything in return. They can give, but they can’t receive. They should bring an empty cup.”

I was humbled by her comment. How many times had I visited some of our church partners with only a full cup? How often had I spent time with the poor assuming that I had all the answers for their problems and that I was the only one who had anything to offer in the relationship?

As we talked, I began to realize that my heart needed to change about the work I was doing. While my intent had always been good, I had to admit that I thought the poor needed me more than I needed them. I have since come to appreciate just how much the poor can teach me if I come prepared to receive from them.

When I come with an empty cup, the poor teach me about the faith required to truly depend on God rather than for me to try to solve all their problems by reaching for my wallet. When I come with an empty cup, the poor teach me how to get the best use of the resources around me instead of wasting so much.

When I come with an empty cup, the poor teach me about the joy of giving to others even when I can’t “afford” to give. They teach me about the beauty of simple living, about the importance of relationships and human contact, and about finding God in the little things.

Working with the poor isn’t about doing things FOR them; it’s about doing things WITH them. Those of us in developed nations might have the financial and material resources, but the poor are often rich in spiritual and relational resources. This is no accident.

I believe that God has arranged things so that we can both benefit when we work together to address the needs of the poor, but it won’t happen unless we are intentional. We’ve got to bring an empty cup.

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Abandonment, hunger, solitude – Cristiano has been through tough situations in his life and now his experiences are the foundation of his job as a Partnership Facilitator in our Brazil office.

A Partnership Facilitator (PF) is responsible for overseeing all issues related to the partnership between our ministry and the partner church. A Facilitator works with the partner church in a very professional and respectful way in order to:

• make sure they have the same vision and goals,
• build respect and mutual trust,
• promote shared commitment, and
• establish the function, expectations and responsibilities in a very clear way.

Cristiano has been a Partnership Facilitator since 2008. His main function is to make sure that all the results we strive to achieve really happen.

Cristiano, his wife, Sheyla, and his daughter, Leticia

As a teenager, Cristiano was asked to leave home because he had abandoned his father’s dream for him to become a famous soccer player. This resulted in mistreatment from his father, so young Cristiano lived in the center of Recife and had to sleep on the street with nothing to eat.

“I used to go to the supermarket and use the deodorant and other product samples for my personal hygiene.”

He used to say to himself, over and over again,

“I’m not a thief. I’m not a thief.”

Cristiano’s life is filled with the small victories that God saves for those who remain faithful to Him. For example, Cristiano worked hard to get a job as a janitor at a midsize company. In six months, he became the local manager.

Cristiano’s father had had a plan for his son to be a soccer player. But God, Cristiano’s heavenly Father, had another plan. Now Cristiano is one of the coordinators of the Brazilian Sports League, a Christian organization that uses sports as a tool for evangelism.

Through this work, Cristiano helps churches implement evangelistic sports projects. (Brazilian people love sports!) Thousands of lives have been reached – and many of them are children.

“When I’m at a child development center, I look at the children and I know exactly what they need, because I have lived in hunger, abandonment, neglect and solitude. I know and understand why God allowed me to go through all these things.”

Cristiano’s life story is unique and inspiring. He loves his job and knows that he was chosen by God to help release children from poverty. Here is more from a conversation I had with Cristiano:

How did you hear about Jesus?

I was a teenager and crazy about soccer. My big idol was Silas. He was a World Cup player (team of ’86 and ’90) in Brazil. One day I was reading his book, and at the end of the book he invited the readers to join the team of Jesus. He was a Christian, and I didn’t know that. I was curious:

“Who is Jesus? Why is Silas talking about Him? Why is this Jesus so important that ‘the great Silas’ wants to praise Him?”

So I looked for Jesus in the Bible, and I found Him. I realized that soccer was not the reason for my existence, but the Lord Jesus was this reason.

And then you had to leave your house because your father was persecuting you?

Yes, my father had lived all his life planning my career as a professional player. After I became a Christian I lost my motivation for that because I saw that life was not just about soccer. I understood that God had another plan for me. My father was frustrated and said I should leave the house.

How did you start working for Compassion?

I heard about this job opening and I sent my resume. I participated in interviews and I was not called for the job immediately, but I was sure that I would be called one day. I knew that God had prepared me all these years to work with Compassion. I waited for a year to be called. I was sure that they would call me.

Why did you wait for so long without looking for another job?

Working for the growth of the kingdom of God was always a goal for me. When I heard about the ministry’s mission I prayed,

“Lord, this is what I want to invest my life in. Give me this privilege.”

And how did your family react?

Our financial situation was complicated, and they were putting lots of pressure on me. But I was convicted that God had chosen me to work at Compassion and that conviction was greater than the difficulties we were going through. I waited in faith. Now it’s been two years and six months that I have been serving in the ministry.

Tell us about your job and your daily life.

I usually wake up at 5:30. I prepare everything the night before — clothes, materials, plan of visits, the schedule for the day. I usually go to the child development center by bus. It takes about 50 minutes to get to the center in Recife and two hours to get to the centers in João Pessoa. I always visit one development center a day and answer emails during the intervals between the visit and when I’m working from home.

When I’m working from home I have many activities such as preparing plans for the facilitation visits of the week; answering emails; calling the centers to talk about partnership issues, disputes, and so forth; and studying facilitation module and curricular programs.

What do you most enjoy about your work?

When I’m at the child development centers and give them some individual attention. I interact with the team of the center, the children and families.

Share an experience or situation that you witnessed that really touched you.

On my first visit to the development center, Vida VI, I saw a 2-year-old child playing alone in the trash — no clothes, and completely dirty. I was touched by that. That’s where the church of Christ comes and fulfills its role in society. Such scenes are becoming increasingly rare.

What does releasing children from poverty mean to you?

It means looking at the situation of each child who lives in social risk and seeing opportunities. Releasing children is being compassionate, acting intentionally, doing the best I can to provide real opportunities for them to become responsible adults and authentic Christians who will make a difference in this world.

How can you see God’s care in your life?

God’s love overwhelms me. When I was in pain I had the best experiences with God. I could see the greatness of His love. I feel His care everywhere. In spite of the suffering and all I have been through, He was always by my side and helped me right when I needed Him.

What motivates you in your work as a Partnership Facilitator?

Knowing that I am an instrument in God’s hands to help the church of Christ rescue an entire community that may not have a perspective for the future, that is full of children and young people with no opportunities in life.

Would you like to say something to the sponsors?

Sponsors, never stop being a blessing in the lives of the children you sponsor. Keep praying for them. You are so important to them. You are instruments of God in their lives.

“For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the LORD, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.”    – Jeremiah 29:11 (NIV)

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You have prayed. You have asked your friends to pray. You would wear sackcloth and ashes in the streets of your neighborhood if it meant you would experience a breakthrough in a request you made to God so long ago.

“How long, Lord, must I call for help, but you do not listen? Or cry out to you, ’Violence!’ but you do not save?” — Habakkuk 1:2, NIV

Now, at this point, you can’t help but feel doubt. You begin to wonder if the cynics and critics are right — that the Christian walk can be summed up as an emotional crutch for the weak and unfortunate, and that only the lucky and strong survive.

If this is your experience, I have one comment: Do not give up.

After all, if this world is just for the lucky and strong, how do you explain the advances and positive turn of events experienced by the children, young adults, mothers and families we serve? Do their successes come merely by chance, or are they the result of your prayers, commitment and reliance on Christ?

Just read the Bible and you will find saints, prophets and leaders asking the same questions as you are asking: Where is God and why hasn’t He answered me?

Whether it’s David, Job, Naomi or Habakkuk, almost every character in the Bible encountered, at one time or another, fear, confusion and uncertainty when it came to their faith. So you are not alone.

However, don’t make the mistake of judging God because you haven’t seen His work in action. Remember, crying out to Him about your pain is not a lack of faith, but denying that He cares and is working for you is.

For those of you who are tired from the load of your circumstance, I invite you to read the book of Habakkuk, especially chapter 2, where the prophet says, “I will stand at my watch … I will look to see what he will say to me. … For the revelation awaits an appointed time.” [1]

God hasn’t given up on you. So don’t give up on Him. Wait on Him and on His appointed time.

1. Habakkuk 2:1-3 (NIV)

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Consider the story of Elisha and the Shunammite woman in 2 Kings 4. Scripture says that she was a wealthy, married woman who blessed Elisha with meals and a place to stay. For her reward, God miraculously gave her a son of her own.

One day, the son died. She carried him up, laid him on the bed of Elisha, shut the door, and left.

Amazingly, she did not cry or get troubled, as you would expect of a woman who has lost her only son. When she was questioned by her husband and Elisha’s servant, Gehazi, her response was,

“It is well! Everything is fine! It is all right!”

She did not call for help, but went to talk to Elisha. God then used Elisha to raise her son from the dead.

What amazing faith she had, even though her only son was dead.

The Bible says that if we have faith like a mustard seed, we can tell the mountains to move, and theywill.

The Shunammite’s son was restored to life because of her faith and the power of positive confession.

Proverbs 18: 21 says,

“The tongue can bring death or life; those who love to talk will reap the consequences.” (NLT)

Brethren, because our ministry takes place in some of the toughest areas of the world, all of us – staff, sponsors, and donors – are bound to encounter challenges.

No matter what you may be going through today, learn to confess that it is well.

When we encounter challenges, learn to confess that it is well. And so it shall be. Always return to our source of joy, laughter, love, strength, hope and inspiration, who is Jesus Christ. Worship and pray to him as we journey through life and ministry together, just as the Shunammite woman did by going back to Elisha.

Brethren, always remember Proverbs 18:21. Positive confessions are powerful enough to sustain your miracle.

Prayer: Lord, help us to confess positively when we encounter challenges. Show us your faithfulness and unfailing love as we serve you daily.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR: Florence Amponsah is a Partnership Facilitator in Ghana. Through her work, Florence collaborates with the local church to implement effective, holistic, Christian child development centers.

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See this woman? She’s a hero of the faith. Through her, the walls of poverty are crumbling for her family.

Ana Morales is the mother of our very own Tony Beltran. Tony graduated from the Leadership Development Program in the Dominican Republic and will be graduating from Moody Bible Institute in May.

Tony is known for his leadership and for speaking with passion. That passion shines through as he looks at his mother and testifies about this amazing woman.

Ana Morales is a portrait of perseverance. Poise and confidence inhabit her words.

Ana grew up in church, where she first learned to trust our heavenly Father. That trust was vital in the midst of poverty. As a child, Ana and her siblings often went without meals.

As a young woman, Ana married. After two years of marriage and with a 6-month-old baby, her husband died. She clung to that same trust that sustained her through her childhood.

“When you are young, and when you experience hard times, you grow up with lessons in courage and perseverance. You realize that you will make it and that God will provide.”

Ana Morales is a prayer warrior.

Tony recollects his mother’s early encouragement. She once told him, “While I have knees, you will go to college.” This prayer warrior was constantly on her knees, lifting up prayers to Jesus for her young son. She saw early on that Tony was admired for his passion, always willing to work hard and excellent at scripture memory.

Ana Morales is a servant leader.

Tony speaks about his time at Moody Bible Institute. About the people he’s met and the lessons he’s learned on leadership. Yet one of the many things he realizes: “The best leader I ever met was right in my house. It was my mother.”

The mother and son look at each other, recalling difficult times. Ana admits that often there was not enough food to go around for all of her children. So to make sure they could eat what little was available, she pretended she was working in the kitchen and didn’t need any food.

Ana knows, though, that it takes a community of believers.

“Compassion is a ‘Fountain of Help,’” she says, tears streaming from her eyes. Ana was able to provide the intangible things Tony needed: love, prayer and family. But she was not always able to provide financially.

Around the same time that Ana was praying for her son, the lives of the Sibley family were about to change. They began sponsoring 14-year-old Tony. Their choice allowed Tony to continue with high school and eventually move on to the Leadership Development Program and Moody Bible Institute.

Gary and Cindy Sibley joined us for the wonderful celebration of Tony’s graduation.

Cindy and Ana grabbed one another’s hands and the tears began to flow again.

“We met yesterday for the first time. It was extremely emotional!”

They share the love of the same child. They have been used by God to help raise this child to become quite a man.

When Tony was younger, Ana’s biggest hope for him was that he would finish his schooling. Now that he has earned a master’s degree she prays he will maintain the path of the Lord and God’s plan for his life.

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Author Rick Bloomer and his family firmly believe in our mission. They have sponsored children for several years and consider themselves blessed to also be able to sponsor a student in our Leadership Development Program.

Over the past couple of years, my wife and I have partaken in the discipline of fasting. We have really focused on strengthening our relationship with the Lord, and with His grace and guidance we have experienced success with many challenges.

In September 2008, our daughter, who was born with spina bifida, had her only ventricular shunt revision to date (thank God). At that time and after hearing God’s calling to do so, my wife decided to do her first fast, with a dedication toward our daughter’s health. It was a 21-Day Daniel Fast, which essentially consists of consuming all natural plant-based foods only (fruits, vegetables, nuts).

About a week after our daughter’s shunt revision, we took her out of the bathtub one night and noticed that her shunt tract looked majorly infected. It was bulging out an inch from her neck.

We knew from all of our reading and study what an infected shunt looked like. We also knew that infections were somewhat common following surgery and that if she did ever have a shunt infection, it may require a hospital stay of 10+ days before it was resolved.

We quickly called the neurosurgeon and she told us to get to the hospital right away. It was about 7 p.m. We put our daughter down to sleep in our bedroom while we packed and got ready to go.

My wife, packing the suitcase on the living room floor, looked up at me and asked, “How will I ever comply with this fast while in the hospital?”

We knew after spending 14 days in the hospital after our daughter’s birth that the food certainly was not “Daniel Fast compliant.”

Couple that with the stress that is often present when dealing with such a situation and you can understand the potential difficulty here. But after thinking about it for a minute, she made it perfectly clear that because she made the commitment to the Lord, she would stick to it. My wife proceeded to pack her plain rice cakes, natural peanut butter, and fruit.

About an hour passed and we were ready to leave. My wife went in to wake our daughter and yelled for me to come into the room. When I arrived and looked at our daughter, I could see clearly that her shunt tract was perfectly normal. No bulging. No discoloration. No swelling. Perfectly and beautifully normal.

We called the neurosurgeon and she suggested to simply observe her and then to see how things looked in the morning. Well, in the morning, she looked great, and praise be to God — she has not had one major health problem since that night.

In fact, she started walking on her own this summer … a real miracle for a 2-year-old with spina bifida!

Some people might think that the issue with the shunt was mere coincidence. But we know better. That was the awesome and mighty hand of God blessing our daughter abundantly!

I strongly believe that this blessing was due to my wife’s obedience and faithfulness to the Lord during this difficult time. She accepted His challenge to complete the fast and He blessed our family because of it.

I can relay many similar stories of God’s blessings over our lives during other periods of fasting over the past two years. This is why I am so enthused about sharing the wonderful discipline of fasting with others.

In fact, a few months ago, God placed an idea in me to engage as many people as possible in a program of fasting.

Why? Because our family has experienced firsthand the absolute power of fasting and prayer and I want others to have the fulfilling experience that we have been blessed with.

But God also gave me an idea associated with the fast that involves “fasters” requesting sponsorship for their devotion and effort during the fast, in much the same way as they would if running a race or walking a 5K. This made perfect sense to me. Give up some of my food, my comfort, and my way of life in order to provide food for others in an attempt to enhance their way of life.

We decided to call the program Fasting-for-Food, and we have been working hard to develop the program over the past few months.

Because so many individuals who fast choose to follow the Daniel Fast, we have partnered with Susan Gregory (The Daniel Fast blogger), author of the best-selling book “The Daniel Fast: Feed Your Soul, Strengthen Your Spirit and Renew Your Body.”

Susan is a wonderful woman of God and oversees a New Year fast for thousands of individuals worldwide. She will be instrumental in promoting this program.

In addition, as my wife and I have been involved with Compassion over the past few years, we thought to ask Compassion to serve as the main partner, receiving funds from this initiative.

Specifically, funds raised will be directed to Compassion’s Global Food Crisis Program, to be used to provide food and other basic needs for some of the poorest people in this world.

In the true spirit of Christmas, please remember that the wise men came and gave gifts to Him and not to each other. Our own personal fasts might be the best gifts that we could ever provide to God — the giving of ourselves through a focused time of prayer and devotion to Him.

I hope that you will consider a fast this New Year. I also hope that you can help spread the word about this program so more people can learn of the benefits of Christian fasting.

It is our intent to engage as many people as possible in a fast this New Year — with the main objective of enhancing their own personal relationships with Christ.

When individual relationships are enhanced, group relationships are enhanced and good things really begin to happen.

You can learn more about this program by visiting www.fastingforfood.com.

I pray that the Lord will place on your heart the desire to dedicate yourself to Him this New Year through a focused period of fasting and prayer.

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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 learned quite a bit about Albert Pujols involvement in all the details of this league, including the discussions he had with Nike and Rawlings about what the team would look like.

I slept a little on the hour and a half ride to the batey after cracking jokes and wearing myself out. When I finally arrived at the muddy batey, I was greeted by a gorgeous but locked up baseball field. It’s fenced in so the animals won’t graze in the outfield.

Though the field looked professionally done, it wasn’t. It was cleaned up by members of the community who so desire to bring joy to the entire community. Can a baseball field do that? No. But people joined together to create something hopeful for the future of children who don’t believe they have a future, can bring more joy than any one of us can understand. It is about community, about fellowship, about faith and about others.

I walked down the street lined with animals, shanties, and children into the child development center where I began discussing how to create the teams and the goals of the league. Imagine my surprise when my sponsored child, Adrian, walked into the door and apprehensively walked to me to give me a hug. He then leaned against my legs for a time until I hoisted him on my lap and he cuddled up into me and fell asleep – oh, after some Smarties and lollipops!

Then, after quite a debate about how the teams should be divided, especially given the immense talent of many of these children, we sat down for an amazing lunch cooked by the center staff. The flavors of the Dominican are outstanding.

After lunch we visited the income generation program implemented by a group called NEST, with the help of the Pujols Family Foundation. We watched women truly engaged in the art of sewing, with a woman who said that life is great because she is learning to sew now!

Next door is a beauty salon where the women are learning beauty techniques that will hopefully bring some income into their families as well. I am praying that this batey is about to undergo a supernatural transformation.

I left the batey wondering when the rain will stop and if it does, when the heat will start. Regardless of the conditions, my team is prepared to give the boys of this batey a reason for hope and a belief that they have a bright future ahead of them.

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Blue symbolizes trust, loyalty, wisdom, confidence, intelligence, faith, truth and heaven. It is the color of the sky. And it is the color of Compassion. It represents the unlimited potential of the children we serve.

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