I wonder if you and I are really any different from the woman who said,

“I don’t think you understand. I hate kids.”

She was right, actually. I didn’t understand. I thought I had heard her incorrectly.

“I don’t like kids. I don’t know what to do with them. I don’t relate to them.”

I realize now that she doesn’t actually hate kids. She just feels uncomfortable around anyone who’s notably different from her. Anyone she can’t relate to easily is a little bit, well, scary. She would rather avoid them.

And I wonder if a camaraderie about something that is, frankly, a little bit shameful might actually be where we can start building our own personal and community efforts to break the chains of those held in a death grip by extreme poverty.

Brainstorm with me here for a minute.

This acquaintance of mine is certainly not the only person in the world who feels uncomfortable around kids. She isn’t alone in feeling uncomfortable around people from another culture or another economic reality.

In fact, I’ve been a bit surprised recently at just how many people I know who have stayed away from the challenge of fighting poverty because the whole thing is just uncomfortable.

Maybe your friends or colleagues wouldn’t use the word uncomfortable. Maybe they would use adjectives like overwhelming, challenging, thankless, too big of a risk, or uncontrollable. They may even fall back on some unflattering biases about the poor including the stereotype that most of the poor are poor because they just don’t work hard enough.

Please believe me when I say I am not out to objectify people who hold these preconceptions. They’re a very present reality in our Western world. Some individuals are just a little more honest about it than others.

I’ve seen these attitudes outside of the West, too. Some blurt out,

“I hate kids.”

Others softly chide,

“Stewardship is important but I need to ensure that there will be a good return on my investment or it’s just not worth the risk.”

The perceived risk makes them uncomfortable.

So how do we address these realities? Because if we’re truthful, although most of us fully believe that children and adults can be released from poverty, we have all felt the weight of those unflattering adjectives ourselves from time to time.

What causes you, an advocate for the poor, to stay strong and carry on in those moments when you feel combating poverty is overwhelming, unappreciated, or uncomfortable? Is there a specific moment or story you can point to and say,

“I have been there, I have felt that, and I know the rewards of persevering.”

We have great resources at our disposal – informative and soul-stirring resources like 58:, as well as books and video clips, talking points and Scripture passages.

But I think that to really communicate with those who are skittish, or those who genuinely want to say “I am uncomfortable around kids” or “I don’t know how to relate to the poor,” we need to find a bridge.

That connection won’t come by patronizing or scolding the other person. It’s going to come through authentic conversation — respectful exchanges in which we express that, really, we’ve felt the same way too … but here’s what happened, here’s why this thing we call “fighting poverty” is working, and here’s why it’s so important that you get involved even though, right now, you might just feel a bit uncomfortable.

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

We could answer the question for you, but you’d take what we say with a grain of salt, right?

How about what Ryan Langford has to say about us?

Ryan joined his wife, Stephanie, on our recent blog trip to the Philippines. He wasn’t there as a blogger, but he felt compelled to tell you what he discovered.

I’ve been praying a lot lately about the money [God has] entrusted to Stephanie and me to steward, and I can’t shake the feeling that He’s calling us to greater levels of both stewardship and generosity.

Generosity is being willing to part with the resources under your control for the good of others. Stewardship gives generosity focus. Its purpose is to maximize the impact of our generosity.

So with this sense of calling in my heart, I tagged along with the Compassion Bloggers as they visited the Philippines to see the work that Compassion International is doing among the children there. We had the opportunity to visit the head office, four development centers, and six homes — and to meet dozens of inspiring volunteers and hundreds of Filipino children.

As we visited all these places and met all these beautiful people, one question burned in my heart as the backdrop for the entire trip:

Does the money that is invested with Compassion International produce a good return on investment?

This is the question I ask myself when I’m making business decisions, so why shouldn’t I look for a good return when I’m investing in God’s business? So I spent the entire week asking hard questions, poring through accounting books, reviewing auditing practices, and evaluating first-hand the kind of impact and scale of impact of Compassion’s work in the lives of those we are called to love and serve for the glory of God.

I crossed the line of professional courtesy before I could shake the first hand, and that line quickly disappeared behind me as I invited myself into every area that I felt mattered in my quest to answer the question. To be fair to the folks at Compassion, though, they never seemed to mind my intrusions and every question was met with complete transparency and invitations to explore further.

Now that we’ve set the stage, read the entire post at Keeper of the Home.

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

A few weeks ago, I spoke with Larry from Georgia. Larry was so passionate about his sponsored child and our ministry. He explained how he was led to sponsor his child out of a desire to fight injustice and poverty — especially for the most vulnerable — children.

During our conversation, he asked if he could donate extra money to cover the processing fee we incur when we charge his credit card — a question I was surprised by.

Regrettably, we’re unable to accept that kind of contribution. However, there is a way that the spirit of the question can still be met, a way that helps us send more funds to our children and church partners.

Make your contributions and monthly sponsorship payments via a direct payment plan.

When you set up a regularly occurring and automatic direct payment plan (e.g., Automated Clearing House (ACH), bill pay or credit/debit card), you save us at least $1 on each transaction. It’s a significant amount when you consider that many of the children’s families we serve survive on less than $1 a day.

The most efficient payment method for us to handle is ACH. Our processing and labor costs are typically less than 10 cents, compared to credit card and bill pay (over $1) and check (over $2).

Bill pay is when you tell the bank to send us money. The bank does the work, and they charge you and us for it. ACH is when you tell us to get the money from your bank.

Also, when you sign up for a direct payment plan, we not only save on labor costs, but also on mailing costs. We won’t send monthly confirmation statements for your payments — just one statement each year for tax purposes.

After I explained this to Larry, he asked us to automatically debit his checking account each month (i.e., ACH). As he stated, every little bit helps.

If you would like to set up a direct payment plan for your sponsored child’s monthly support, please log in to your account on compassion.com and click “Direct Payment Plan.” You can also call us here in the contact center at (800) 336-7676. We’d be happy to help!

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

You’ve heard it mentioned before. In fact, if you’ve been with Compassion long enough, you’ve heard it eight other times already. We have once again received Charity Navigator’s highest rating – four stars – for responsible financial management.

It would be easy to hear this news and say, “Yeah, yeah, they did it again. They and umpteen other charities, right?”

Well, not exactly.

According to the largest independent evaluator of charities in the nation, receiving the four-star rating nine times is “exceptional.” Only 1 percent of charities has received Charity Navigator’s highest rating as many times as we have.

“We take stewardship very seriously – for the sake of the children we serve and the donors who entrust their giving to us. We are deeply honored to again receive this significant recognition.” – Compassion President Dr. Wess Stafford.

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

With programs in 26 countries, many people wonder how we maintain the excellence and good stewardship of our operations around the world. In addition to annual external audits, we ensure the highest integrity in our programs through internal auditing.

Internal auditing, both in the development centers and country offices, is designed to determine how well our operations are running and to identify weaknesses that are causing goals and objectives to go unmet.

The first type of audit is known as a Center/Partnership Audit. Its primary purpose is to ensure that development centers are complying with our standards.

“These are conducted by a Partnership Auditor who resides in the country office,” says Walt Hintz, Compassion’s Field Audit Manager. There are about 50 Partnership Auditors worldwide. Partnership Auditors look at both financial and operational issues.

The center audits cover areas such as management, structure, budget, Christian development, finances and program communications. The focus is to make sure that the kids are communicating with their sponsors, that they are attending the centers, that funds are being used for their intended purposes, and that the program is being implemented the way it should be.

The first step of the auditing process is planning. The Partnership Auditors coordinate the auditing schedule with the Partnership Facilitators (who are the link between the country offices and the child development centers) and the directors of each center.

Before any audit takes place, the Partnership Auditors review past information from each center. This includes previous auditing results, Monthly Financial Reports, and Complementary Intervention (CIV) Fund proposals and reports. The Partnership Auditors assess this information before arriving at the center so that they can have a clear understanding of the potential risks and issues.

Finally, the Partnership Auditors may interview country office staff, such as the accountant, the CIV administrator, and the communications staff who have experience working with the center, prior to visiting the center. Then it’s time to visit the centers.

On average, a Partnership Auditor spends eight to ten hours in each center. While there, the auditor conducts interviews with the teachers and students and goes through financial records, child attendance records, child files and organizational documents.

A typical risk auditors look to assess involves proper documentation of expenses. Many of the countries we work with are cash societies, and receipts are not typically given. Center workers often have to ask the vendor to hand write a receipt, and it is up to the auditor to emphasize the importance of proper financial documentation to the center leaders.

After the audit takes place, the auditor communicates the findings with the center leadership, the Partnership Facilitator and the Country Management Team. Communicating the risk areas will ultimately lead to improving the partnership between Compassion and the local church.

Post audit, the auditor conducts an exit meeting to discuss the findings from the audit with the church partner and the Partnership Facilitator who is responsible for the relationship between the center and the country office.

During this meeting, the Partnership Facilitator and Partnership Auditor will document “Action Items,” — the important issues that need to be dealt with — and rate the items according to the level of risk. The Partnership Facilitator will work with the Implementing Church Partner to develop a plan to address the risk areas.

Afterward, a the completed audit report will be sent to the Country Director, the Partnership Facilitator, and Program Implementation Manager.

Our corporate standard is that 60 percent of centers must be audited each year with no more than 30 months between audits. This audit frequency prevents centers from going unaudited for more than two-and-a-half years. Also, it ensures that higher risk centers will be visited more frequently.

In between audits, the centers are frequently communicated with and visited by the Partnership Facilitators to ensure all is well.

Similar to the Partnership Audits, the second category of internal audits is the Country Office Audit.

Country Office Audits are holistic reviews of the operations and administration of our country offices. In order to improve business processes, these audits cover areas such as organizational management, human resources, payroll, financial reporting and program communications.

Typically, this includes four to eight center visits, and unlike center audits, these visits look for larger trends that reveal management, country or process issues.

Country Office Audits are conducted by four Senior Field Auditors, who are responsible for performing audits within a geographic area.

Like the Partnership Audits, the Country Office Audits are primarily risk based. Country offices are audited approximately every 24 months.

Once in the field, the auditor has an initial meeting with the Country Management Team (CMT) of that country office. This is followed by a series of individual interviews and center visits. For a period of about two weeks, the auditor conducts interviews and reviews documentation in both the country office and the centers.

Based on what the Field Auditor finds, certain issues will become “Action Items.” At the conclusion of the audit, the Auditor provides a list of these action items to the country office and the CMT during the exit meeting. The office staff determine how to address and resolve those items. The plan is then approved and it comes back to our Global Ministry Center in Colorado for filing. Internal Audit staff receive updates as the plans are completed.

Most issues are resolved within 90 days. Sometimes, action items are dealt with immediately, and sometimes complex issues may take years. Even though the issues range in severity, the vast majority of issues are considered low risk. Very few are considered high risk.

In the end, our goal in internally auditing both our centers and country offices is to uphold our core values and provide accountability for the goals and objectives we have set out to achieve.

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

How many times have you heard about the misuse of funds hindering an organization’s effectiveness, or greed compromising decision-making and values? Regrettably, I think we all have heard it too many times.

Working in the contact center, sponsors and donors call me and want to know if we — if Compassion — is trustworthy or if it’s a scam. These conversations are difficult because I cannot convince that person — through one phone call — to trust us, to trust Compassion.

If someone has been “burned” before, they look for faults in everything — the letters from their sponsored child, the pictures we send them, the way we use the funds we receive.

I have heard questions like “Is my child even real,” and “How do I know that the funds are actually getting to the child?”

I really don’t blame anyone for asking these questions. Were I on the other end of the phone, I’d be asking the same things.

For those of you wondering, here are my thoughts:

We, as Christians, are called to be good stewards of the resources God has given us. Here at Compassion, we are very passionate about ensuring we are.

Internal and independent audits are regularly conducted for our offices in the field and here in Colorado Springs. Every financial process undergoes intensive and continual scrutiny to ensure that funds are properly received, tracked, and managed. We want our program to be effective, so we monitor the child development centers to make sure they are making a difference in the lives of the children we serve.

Our goal is that the children in our program follow Jesus Christ in faith and deed, support themselves and share with others in need, are responsible members of their families, churches, communities and nations; and maintain their own physical well-being by the time they complete our Child Sponsorship Program. We have put measures in place to make sure that these goals are being accomplished.

Is Compassion a trustworthy organization?

Yes, I think so — but don’t just take my word for it. If you are a sponsor with Compassion and have thought about this before, I encourage you to check out Charity Navigator’s review of Compassion.

Not only did we receive the highest rating of four stars last year, but we received it for the previous seven years as well. Chris mentioned that in a blog post last week, “How is My Money Used Each Month?”

The question of trustworthiness goes beyond financial accountability. Regrettably, there aren’t any independent rating agencies that I’m aware of that grade organizations on how trustworthy they are. But here are some other resources for you to review if you want more information:

• What does it mean for an organization to “live with integrity”?
• Compassion International’s profile at the Evangelical Council for Financial Accountability
• Compassion International meets the Better Business Bureau Wise Giving Alliance’s Standards for Charity Accountability

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

Thirty-eight dollars a month. That’s how much it costs to sponsor a child through Compassion, which is more than the price of sponsorship at other organizations. The difference sometimes leads to questions like these.

“When I first starting sponsoring it [the sponsorship rate] was $22 a month; that was 1989, or 1990 I forget, I’m getting old. During college I stopped sponsoring for a few years and then it was I think $26 or $28 a month . . . Other organizations have stayed about $22-24 a month . . . what extra services does Compassion offer for the extra money . . . what does Compassion provide that other organizations do not supply at $22-24 month?” — Dwight“

“I am getting a bit concerned with the cost to sponsor a child. Where is the money going that isn’t going to the children? I would hate to think it is for a glossier overedited over advertising or staff bloat to make sponsors feel better.” — Nancy White

Although these two questions may seem to be asking the same thing, they’re actually not. Dwight is asking, “What does my child get each month for $38?” (i.e., how are our programs run and what do we deliver?). Nancy is asking, “Where is the money going that isn’t going to the children?” (i.e., how do we spend your money?). They’re both important questions.

I’m not an expert on how other sponsorship programs are run, but what I do know is that some organizations don’t have Christ at the center of what they do. And some allow children to have multiple sponsors.

So two things that Compassion delivers is the Gospel and a one-to-one relationship with your child.

Some child sponsorship programs just focus on one or two areas of a child’s development, rather than being all-encompassing, and others organizations administer their programs on behalf of the community a child lives in, rather than focusing directly on a specific child.

Compassion delivers holistic child development that is child focused. These two posts help show what that means.

• What does holistic child development look like?
• What does my sponsored child learn at the child development center?

Additionally, some organizations receive government funding. We do not. We’re 100 percent sponsor and donor supported.

And finally, some programs are more localized and less global than our program is. We’re a global holistic child development ministry and we use a one-on-one sponsorship model that encourages you and your child to share your faith with each other. We’re Christ centered, child focused, church based and committed to integrity.

Some programs may have similarities to ours, but none are exactly the same. That’s what we deliver.

As for how we spend your money, no more than 20 percent pays for administration and fundraising. That’s our commitment to you. And for the past several years, we’ve been significantly below that 20 percent, usually two to four percentage points below.

In fiscal year 2009, approximately $31 of your $38 monthly payment paid for development center grants, program services and child advocacy (i.e., educating the Body of Christ about the biblical mandate to care for children and the poor), while a nickel shy of $7 was used for administration ($3.23) and fundraising ($3.72).

Because of how we manage your money we have received eight consecutive four-star ratings from Charity Navigator, an independent charity evaluator. Only 1 percent of charities rated by Charity Navigator have been recognized in this way.

So, what does the $31 buy your sponsored child?

The money categorized as development center grants is delivered directly to our church partners to cover the costs of implementing our sponsorship program. The basic elements of these activities include:

• regular Christian training
• learning opportunities (e.g., funding school attendance and/or regular participation in extracurricular educational activities)
• health treatment and training (e.g., regular physical exams, dental care, vaccinations, referral for advance medical care, instruction in physical and dental hygiene, exercise, nutrition and preventive health care)
• socio-emotional development (e.g., learning basic social skills, teamwork, art, drama, dance, etc.)
• materials and supplies including hygiene supplies (e.g., soap, toothbrushes, toothpaste), center supplies (e.g., paper, writing utensils, games, toys), fees or costs associated with field trips, camps, drama, art and dance activities, and snacks, food and supplemental nutrition each child may need
• individualized care and attention (e.g., school progress reports, center attendance records, health records, home visits by social workers and adult supervision while at the development center)

Program services include activities undertaken by our staff to select, train, equip and oversee the church partners implementing our program, as well as programmatic research and evaluation. They also cover the costs of staff who direct and maintain the daily activities at the child development center.

More personally, this is where the money comes from for letter translation, postage, taking photos of your child, and updating you on your child’s well-being.

You can consider program services as the funding source for maintaining our program’s integrity and all the things that connect you and your child.

That about sums it up. I hope this explanation is useful to you. If you want additional information about our financial stewardship you can visit compassion.com and charitynavigator.com, as well as call us at (800) 336-7676.

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

When it comes to achievement, repeats are impressive. Three-peats are utterly amazing. Any ideas on what we call an eight-peat?

In the world of charities, this translates to “exceptional.” For eight consecutive years, we have been awarded Charity Navigator’s highest rating – four stars – for responsible financial management.

But who is Charity Navigator?

Evaluating more than 5,400 charities each year, Charity Navigator is the largest independent evaluator of charities in the nation. Ken Berger, president and CEO of Charity Navigator, describes our achievement:

“Only 1 percent of the charities we rate have received at least eight consecutive four-star evaluations, indicating that Compassion International consistently executes its mission in a fiscally responsible way and outperforms most other charities in America. This ‘exceptional’ designation from Charity Navigator differentiates Compassion International from its peers and demonstrates to the public it is worthy of their trust.”

This coveted designation is particularly important today as charitable giving is down across the nation. In these tough economic times, everyone is looking for ways to stretch the dollar, and that includes charitable dollars.

For Compassion, though, fiscal responsibility is only part of the charitable equation.

As you know, we work tirelessly to bring hope to one needy child, where once only hopelessness existed. We do this more than 1 million times each day, but in unique and personal ways.

This is our calling and our passion: to release children from poverty in Jesus’ name. We do this while staying committed to our cornerstone practice of financial stewardship.

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

QMU stands for “quarterly ministry update,” and, as you may have guessed, it happens once a quarter. Crazy. At least one representative, from each team within each department goes to listen and report the latest on Compassion stats for the fiscal year. 

I took it upon myself to attend last week’s meeting on your behalf. So I would like to take this time to report that . . . God is crazy good. 

You may have heard that our economy is, well, shrinking? Crumbling? Deteriorating? I would say that it is out of control, but as a believer, I know better than to go that far. 

The only truth in such a statement would be if it were specified in this way: “The economy is out of our control.” If I may so bold I would say that, considering the God we serve, that’s a good thing.

What I am alluding to is a report that so many of our executives elaborated on: in the midst of so much turmoil in the United States and abroad, Compassion is continuing to grow. 

It doesn’t make any earthly sense. The ride of the economic roller-coaster in recent months is making people financially queasy, and we’re probably all holding on to our wallets more tightly than before. I definitely am. 

And it seems as though secular businesses and ministries alike are feeling it. Layoffs. Hiring freezes.  Budget cuts. Then there is Compassion.

And we are growing. 

Outside of supernatural forces and divine intervention, there is little explanation as to how or why Compassion is defying probability and odds.

I would venture to say that at this particular time God has chosen to bless Compassion to do His work. That then begs the question, “What about other ministries that are doing His work too?” 

I asked myself the same question. I don’t know. 

Mark Hanlon, the senior vice president of sponsor donor development, reminded long-time staff and enlightened us newbies that Compassion has seen similar days; nationwide stress and global epidemics are nothing new to this fallen earth. 

And so in the same way that we have dealt with comparable seasons in years past, our leaders have assured us that we will continue to do everything in our power to be the best possible stewards of our resources. 

We will continue in our same rigorous practices of audits and checks and balances so as to be obedient and faithful with that which the Lord has blessed us. 

“We will not bury our talents,” Mr. Hanlon declared with proper authority and inspiration.

I got goose-bumps when I heard that. And I had peace. 

“We will not be frenetic,” he said.

Fra—what? I looked at the girls sitting next to me. “Frenetic?” I mouthed with a quizzical look. 

They stared blankly back at me. I wrote it down to Google later.

There are only a handful of academic lessons that I learned when I was college that really stuck with me. Sorry Mom and Dad. One of them was this: “You have to spend money to make money.” 

You may think that this doesn’t sound very spiritual. It’s not. But Malachi 3:10 is.

“Bring the whole tithe into the storehouse, that there may be food in my house. Test me in this,” says the LORD Almighty, “and see if I will not throw open the floodgates of heaven and pour out so much blessing that you will not have room enough for it.” (NIV)

Everything that we have here at Compassion is not ours. Time. Talent. Education. Experience. Money. 

Everything that we have and all that we are has been bestowed upon us to be used up for the kingdom and glory of God.

What good does it do us or the children if we do not use what we have been given? How can saved souls be multiplied unless their bellies are filled, their wounds are bandaged, their minds are taught, and their cries are heard?

Case in point: As we continue to grow and the Lord continues to provide for the financial needs of sponsored children around the world, we will continue to act as the mediator between the giver and receiver. What we are entrusted to pass on, we will pass on.

Fun fact of the day: Frenetic is an adjective meaning “wildly excited or active; frenzied or frantic.” 

Good to know that is what we are not. 

“For God did not give us a spirit of timidity, but a spirit of power, of love and of self-discipline.” 2 Timothy 1:7 (NIV)

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

Charity Navigator announced it September 1.

We wrote a press release about it on September 25.

And I JUST got the point . . . because I got a little perspective.

Compassion received its seventh consecutive four-star rating from Charity Navigator.

I had heard that, and I knew we were one of only 45 charities to have done that. But what I found interesting is:

• 387 charities have received two consecutive 4-star ratings
• 199 did the triple
• 168 are rollin’ on four
• 59 pulled down five
• and 67 earned six in a row

That’s cool y’all. But repeatin’ the feat seven times is severely suh-WEET!

Check out what kind of company we keep.

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