I visited Uganda recently and saw 3 new kids that really stole my heart. While not going too in depth with my excitement, as you can find out through our Uganda Spotlight. These kids are not through Compassion International. Although, Compassion does work in Uganda. These kids are through an organization called Auntie's Angels. Its a very small organization, but one I am excited to be apart of. These kids are my pen pals. I don't financially sponsor them in anyway. But, I have tons of pictures!!!! There names are:

Jacob Ssali

Age: 9 years old
Grade: 2nd grade
I picked him because even though he is not an orphan, he is still one that needs to be loved. :)

I recently went to Bolivia and I met our spotlighted kid, Abraham, who was more than happy to talk with us. He said that he loves calling his sponsor Kimmy because that is how she signs all the letters she sends him. He said that in every letter, he greets her in the name of Jesus Christ and he was telling me how eternally grateful he was that he got letters and photos from her. He was telling me how he and his brothers are fine, and that he wanted me to tell his sponsor, Kimmy, that he does in fact know Limber. He was excited to tell me how birthdays are celebrated. He said that they celebrate birthdays by having a party, but as well, in the party they have clowns that tell jokes, they have dances, and lots of games. and they always have party guests! He wanted me to ask his sponsor what V.B.S. stood for and what I meant by basketball. And he wanted me to tell Kimmy that he is learning to swim. And that at first, he found it a challenge, but, little by little he is learning how to swim. He wanted me to also ask his sponsor Kimmy about what sports she plays and if she likes them. He also told me that his school offers many sports but he chose swimming. He told me over and over again to thank his sponsor because he was very grateful for the letters she sent. He and I exchanged our goodbyes and he said that he cant wait to talk with me some more! :)

So, I found out from Compassion I will be traveling to all my kids in a few weeks! :) Can you say I am one happy sponsor right now? I will have the opportunity to talk to Abraham twice, Brayan twice, Mekdelawit twice, but only Mark once. And that is understandable. I was told that due to his daily chores of having to fetch water it really makes him having very limited time with me. But, even once will be OK with me. :) So, just keep looking at the flight schedule of when we will be lifting off. :) There is still plenty of time for booking your flight. If you have any problems with your flight or your baggage, feel free to comment below, or to contact the nearest flight attendant to get your problem resolved. I am excited to be able to take you along for the journey! Its truly a life altering experience. I hope to hear from Abraham about his brother Alfredo. When we last spoke, his brother was in the military. So come along! We will be leaving shortly.

Dear God,

I know I have been coming to you allot lately for many different things; manly my health. But, today right now, I want to talk about something else. I know there are thousands of children that Compassion helps every day, but a good portion doesn’t have sponsors. It saddens me to think that those kids go to bed each night not knowing if they were loved. Lord, you know I love my sponsored kids with a passion. I think of them on a daily basis. I even know what time it is where they live! I know that Bolivia and I have the same time zone so I always think “Its 7 A.M. here. I wonder what Abraham or Brayan are doing right now.” And I know in the Philippines its exactly 12 hours ahead. So Mark is probably getting ready for tomorrow as it is 7 pm there. And I always think of things to send them and I never imagined how much something so simple like a birthday card would mean so much to someone in Ethiopia. It amazes me. I wish that every child that Compassion helps would feel the same way my kids do. I hear from Mark’s mom just saying “Thank you for helping my son” in every letter over and over again. And Mekdelawit said “I love you” and it brought tears to my eyes. And Abraham calls me his sister and always says I love you. Lord, I know the difference that compassion makes in the lives of these kids, and you know the difference as you are the cornerstone for their ministry. Lord, I wish people could see the difference that Compassion makes. Ever since I got Roopa’s last letter and I only sponsored her for 6 months before she graduated and I could hear the sadness and the impact I made on her life. And before that Lord, to be honest, I didn’t think I made much of an impact. I felt that my words were just that; Just random words on a piece of paper. I didn’t think that I had made a difference. I know every sponsor probably feels that every now and then but I really kept thinking “What is the point of sponsoring kids? Am I really making an impact?” and in Roopa’s own handwriting she said “Yes.” No translation was needed for that. I read that and I cried. I burst into tears. It mattered to her. I mattered to her. And she didn’t want to leave me but she was too old for compassion. She never called me her sponsor, I was always her friend. I really wish people would see that it’s more than a check for 38 dollars a month. Because of my words, Abraham is more open. He would be very shy in his first letters and he wouldn’t say much. But, because I told him that every time I read his words, I pray for him, and I respond to everything he says. Even if he talks about his ducks, I talk about his ducks. He is the only kid I know that not only owns ducks, but loves ducks. J It makes me laugh. Lord, I am hurting that he is sad that his brother is in the military and I pray every night that you would protect Alfredo and that when his military duties are done, he will come home and it will make Abraham very happy. And people ask me, “How do I know the letters are written by the child?” Easily, every letter Abraham writes he writes “Dear Kimmy” because that is how I end every letter. It’s not what Compassion calls me. They call me Kimberly. And he prays for my brothers and sisters by name. He says that he wishes me and my sister Victoria wouldn’t fight. (She moved so I am ok now. J ) And he even prays for Kaylie. Even though he spells her name wrong it just gives me that added knowledge that even misspellings and grammar mistakes means it’s a 14 year old kid in high school writing it rather than a teacher with the IQ of 145. I can’t forget the letter I got and he wrote it all backwards and the translation reflected that. And I had to figure out real quick how to read Spanish to understand him. J Please, Lord, please give these children sponsors, so that more people can have stories just like mine. J

In your name I pray,

Amen

So I was traveling through Bolivia recently visiting Abraham and I came across the cutest little girl I think I have EVER met! She is 4 years old, (the same age as Abraham's brother Dante) and she told me her birthday was December 22, 2007. That's a Christmas baby! I discovered that she lives with her mom and dad. And just seeing them, I know that they love their daughter VERY much. She has 3 other siblings! I am amazed! And she was all giggles with her dolls and she told me that was her favorite thing to play with. And since she isn't currently attending school, I bet she plays with them allot! (of course when she isn't helping her mom and dad by running errands and cleaning!)

But, why listen to me? What can I do to show you how pretty she is? I know! I'll show you her! Her name is Jhoselyn Condori. I love that name!

If that doesn't get your attention, then I don't know what will. :) I am blogging this week to try to get as many kids as possible sponsored through Compassion international. These kids have the hardest lives out of any child you will ever meet. Your sponsorship of just 38 dollars a month (roughly 1.27 a day) will provide not only 3 hot meals a week, biblical learning, a safe haven for some of the most at-risk kids, medical check ups, vocational training, plus much, much more, but most importantly, they are told that they matter. Poverty tells children "You were born with nothing, so nothing is what you will always be." And that isn't true. I hear it all the time from my sponsored kids and their parents "Thank you so much for caring for me/my son/my daughter" they pray for you, and they will share their prayer requests with you as well. And if that isn't enough to get your sponsor juices flowing, go to the Compassion International website and look at the child that needs you for yourself.