As my wife and I have begun the journey of family building — getting married, nesting into our home, walking through the baby section at department stores — I have been remarkably struck by the seemingly loose definition Jesus uses to describe His family.

“For whoever does the will of my Father in heaven is my brother and sister and mother.”   — Matthew 12:50, NIV

Trying to wrap my head around this, I thought about how I would respond if I were James (Jesus’ brother), hearing Jesus say,

“Who is my mother, and who are my brothers?” — Matthew 12:48, NIV

My first thought is, I’d be a little insulted. I mean, at this point Jesus was getting some serious attention from some pretty important people … and He virtually disowned me. I thought for sure I would get a little recognition. I’m His brother, after all.

A Far Better, Eternal Family

Then I backed up and looked at this with a wide-angle lens.

Jesus is the Son of God before he was James’ brother. He is part of an eternal family — Father, Son and Holy Spirit — the family of God.

Not only that, but Scripture says God the Father adopts new people into His family through Jesus (see Ephesians 1:5).

When we receive the Holy Spirit, Jesus says we are reborn (see John 3:6-7).

It began to click. Jesus was building an eternal family — one that James would eventually be part of once he had the eyes to see it.

Opening the Family Fortress to the Least

If Jesus, the perfect, holy, eternal Son of God, could tell meager fishermen and conniving tax collectors, “I’m not ashamed to call you brothers” (see Hebrews 2:11), then why am I so protective of my family fortress?

Consider the orphan. Or maybe just the kid whose parents work all the time and still can’t send him to school. He rummages around the streets during the day, looking for scraps of food behind restaurants. Or she hurries behind the building when she sees that strange man who has taken some of her friends and hasn’t brought them back.

These kids are stressed out, fearful and lonely. They need the family of God to love, protect and provide for them.

What if they could say,

“Whoever does the will of my Father in heaven is my brother and sister and mother”?

The Family of God, Extended

These kids are my family through the gospel. That is why Jesus is so disgusted with those who turn their eyes from their hungry, thirsty, naked and sick brothers and sisters in Matthew 26:7:

“As you did not do it to one of the least of these [my brothers], you did not do it to me.”

When we, adopted members of the family of God, sponsor, visit, love, write, protect, speak up for, adopt and foster these children in our own families, we are living out the gospel.

We are doing the will of our Father in heaven, and Jesus calls us brothers and sisters.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR: Jordan Mogck writes for the blog familia Dei | Missional Family in the Life of the Trinity. He and his wife live in Minneapolis, Minn., where they lead a Community Group and the Community Service Team at Antioch Community Church.

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My Account l Sponsor a Child l Help Babies and Moms l Crisis Updates

Almost a decade has passed since Vilma Canales completed Compassion Honduras’ Child Sponsorship Program, yet this 27-year-old woman still recalls those years as the best time of her life.

Growing up, Vilma lived with her mother and her two sisters, Sandra and Anahi, in Honduras’s western state of Copan, well-known for being the location of the Copan Ruins and home of the Mayan civilization.

Vilma’s childhood was normal despite the family’s lack of economic resources. Her mother was the backbone of the family, a hard-working, single mother who provided for her daughters until the last day of her life. Vilma and her sisters never knew their father.

When she was registered at the child development center, Vilma was a very shy girl. As time passed she overcame her shyness and became interested in knowing more about the Lord and the Bible.

“I came to the development center through my older sister who was working as a volunteer. It was in 1997 when I opened my heart to the Lord, the best decision that I have made in my life.”

As a child, the economic situation at home was difficult, and adding to the difficulty was the fragile health of Vilma’s mother. Vilma knew in her heart that she was not alone and that the Lord was in control of her family.

Just before passing away Vilma’s mother asked Vilma for two things: to look after her sisters and to do something good with her life.

“With the death of my mother, I felt lonely and hopeless. I was really concerned because I was left in charge of my sisters.

“It was quite difficult because of our lack of economic resources. I got a scholarship to finish my education because it was right when I was starting high school that my mother passed away. I worked as a volunteer at the church and received an offering that somehow helped me to feed my sisters.”

“During all that time I received nice words of encouragement, love and support from my sponsors, this lovely couple, for nearly 10 years. I thank God for their lives.”

Throughout the years, Vilma and her sisters have seen the hand of God in every need.

“God has been faithful to us. We are much better now because both of my sisters are working. I know that this is only the beginning of a better and new life for our family. I have seen the help of God all this time. Even in the worst times, He was always there providing for all our needs.”

Vilma completed the sponsorship period and was able to graduate from high school, but she wanted more and continued pursuing her dream of becoming a professional. She obtained a college degree from the National University of Honduras.

“I’m so happy that I fulfilled the promise that I made to my mother. I was able to accomplish this with few resources and hard work. I praise the Lord for this great blessing because I can inspire others to achieve their dreams, because anything is possible with God’s help.”

But there was also another wish in Vilma’s heart. She loves Compassion’s ministry and didn’t like the idea of being away from the children.

“I wanted to continue with this ministry because I consider myself a product of Compassion.”

So when the news came to Vilma that the Honduras country office was looking for a Partnership Facilitator for the western region, she was immediately interested and started to pray.

“I thought that this would be a great opportunity to continue with the organization and work for the children in my region. I went through some interviews with office staff, including the Country Director, and while going through all this I prayed a lot with all my heart for this position.”

Vilma was the strongest candidate for the position, and she received the job.

“I felt overwhelmed with so much joy and gratitude to the Lord, I started to cry. I was at the center and my pastor was with me when I received the news, and I still recall her words: ‘Vilma, the Lord blesses those who have been faithful’.”

Vilma is currently serving on the worship team in her congregation and enjoying life with her sisters. She hopes to support the churches she’s been assigned so they can continue with the holistic development of the children in their communities. Vilma knows Christ is needed in these communities and in this society.

“I’m going to serve 13 development centers in my area. It is great to be able to make this journey again and see many children coming up through the church with hopes and dreams.”

My Account l Sponsor a Child l Help Babies and Moms l Crisis Updates

My husband and I sponsor a 10-year-old girl in Burkina Faso named Evelyne. Evelyne has five siblings, none of whom are in the child sponsorship program.

Compassion’s policy is that a maximum of three children from the same family can be registered in the sponsorship program. However, some countries limit the number of children registered from one family to one or two. And when a country first opens its sponsorship program, it is common for only one child per family to be allowed in the program due to capacity limitations.

That may seem harsh, but it’s quite strategic from a Kingdom perspective. Compassion’s desire is to reach as many families as possible in the communities where a child development center has opened.

Compassion works through local indigenous churches in 25 developing countries, and these are poor churches. It’s one child development center to one church – no exceptions.

When a church partner opens a child development center, there may be room for only 200 children. And the reality is, there are more children than spots available (“the harvest is plenty, but the workers are few,” so to speak).

By registering one to three children per family, our church partners are canvassing a larger area of the community, thus having a greater opportunity to share the gospel with more families. In reality, child registration limitations help more people in the long run.

So, back to Evelyne.

Evelyne has an older sister named Elise, whom I first started noticing in the photos that accompanied Evelyne’s letters.

Whenever my husband and I would send a family or child gift, we would receive a photo of Evelyne (in the blue denim skirt) and her entire family. I love these photos because they show how the family uses our gifts. They purchase food and clothing primarily, and Evelyne’s entire family gets in on God’s love.

In one of the photos, I noticed Elise (in the pink skirt). The expression of her eyes and the smile on her face spoke to me.

“You care for my sister Evelyne because you are her sponsor, but I would like to get to know you too.”

Elise reached out and grabbed my heart from that photo.

I realize that God wants me to look at my sponsorship of Evelyne from a whole new perspective. My goal now is to win Evelyne’s entire family to Christ.

Now, when I write to Evelyne, I always include Elise by asking about Elise and letting Evelyne know that I pray for her entire family. I also ask Evelyne to share my letters with Elise and the rest of the family.

Sponsorship is a family affair, no matter how many children from the same family are in the program.

My Account l Sponsor a Child l Help Babies and Moms l Crisis Updates

Little Mariam was still sleeping, although the roosters had already crowed several times. Laid on her mat, she was huddled under her covers; it had rained the previous day, and the weather was a bit cold in the first hours of the morning.

Though she was registered in grade two, Mariam was lounging on her mat even after 7 a.m., because she was already on holiday. Moreover, even if she was not on holiday, she could have slept until sunrise because it was Thursday morning and she would not have had a course.

During the rainy season, Mariam, like her brothers and sisters, does not have the privilege to see her father because he moves to a village located a few kilometers away from the city to cultivate there in order to nourish the family.

The mother who stays alone with the five children sells fritters to provide for the needs of the family to the best of her ability.

Abruptly, Mariam who had been sleeping quietly jumps up and rushes outside, as if something important has just occurred.

In the courtyard, Mariam’s sisters, Assanata and Zourata, are preparing to leave. They both have weekly appointments that they would not miss for anything in the world. They are registered at the Assemblies of God Central Church of Koudougou Child Development Center.

Every Thursday, Assanata and Zourata leave the house around 7:30 a.m. and come back only after 2 p.m., humming songs that are completely unknown to the other members of their Moslem family.

Mariam always awaits their return so she can taste the food that her sisters bring home, and she does not fail to learn the songs that they sing as they return.

Any letter that Assanata and Zourata receives is an occasion of rejoicing for Mariam too, who is always given part of the gifts that are sent by the sponsor of her twin sisters.

When her sisters go to the child development center Mariam stays at home with her mother and her little brother Madi. She gives a hand to her mother by bringing the millet, which is used to make fritters sold by her mother, to the mill to be made into flour.

Once back from the mill, Mariam sweeps the house, the kitchen and makes the washing up while having her eyes riveted on the way – waiting for her sisters to come home.

Sitting under the only tree of the household, Mariam is lost in dreams deeply moved by the situation of poverty in which she lives with all her family.

She imagines herself in possession of four hundred thousand CFA Francs. Then she sees herself in a large shop of the capital city where she buys clothes, shoes and above all food provisions for her family.

She also sees herself building a new house for her family to replace the small one that was built with earth in which she and all her family live cramped.

“I would certainly not fail to put in electricity,” she says to herself.

Moreover, in Burkina Faso solidarity is still an enduring value, she would find it good to give part of her “fortune” to the needy people who would come her way.

Mariam also wants to be registered at the child development center because she says to herself, “If I were sponsored, all my dreams would be carried out.”

It sometimes happens that she sits down and wonders why she isn’t registered.

Mariam’s mother does not raise questions any more, she is filled with joy to have two of her children registered to a child development center and to have a sponsor who writes and sends presents. Without this sponsorship, her children would not be able to go to school and big health issues could also arise.

Far from sowing discord and competition between the sponsored children and those who are not sponsored, as one might expect to see, this sponsorship on the contrary reinforces the African values of solidarity and sharing between Assanata, Zourata and Mariam.

At Christmas, one does not know who of the three girls is sponsored and who is not. Thanks to their spirit of sharing that, with time was sharpened by the biblical lessons received at the child development center, Assanata and Zourata joyfully share part of their biscuits and lollipops with their beloved sister Mariam and their brother.

Mariam is certainly happy to have her twin sisters registered at the child development center, and her desire to find herself there is undoubtedly related to the difference that the sponsorship made in the lives of her sisters and all the family.

My Account l Sponsor a Child l Help Babies and Moms l Crisis Updates