What's Hope Really Worth?
Making a difference in the life of a child
Posted 11/05/2010
There is little question that sponsorship itself makes a difference in the life of a child as needed funds are being provided for that child to have access to things they would otherwise do without. But how much does the act of sponsorship actually mean to the child emotionally?
Last week the Pure Mission sponsor families received letters from their children in Malawi. As the letters were matched with pictures drawn by the 
children in preparation for sending them out to their respective sponsors, one thing became painfully clear. The pictures, while precious, looked just like drawings made by American children. The content of the letters, however, made it obvious that the things these children deal with on a daily basis are worlds away from what most of our own children have to ever worry about.
"Please pray my Grandma stays well" was written by a double orphan who lives with her two younger sisters and her elderly grandmother. Sickness, disease and death are a part of daily life in Malawi. Good health and the opportunity for medical care are not taken for granted by these children. "Please pray for me because I get malaria many times" is a heartbreaking statement to see.
"I thank the Lord for providing me a sponsor like you". When was the last time we were truly thankful for God's provisions in our own lives as adults, much less as children? While gratitude for physical provision is a recurring theme, the importance of the emotional and spiritual role of the sponsor was also very clear. "I thank God for the prayers your family are praying for me. I promise to do the same for your family."
Letter after letter asked God for help beyond what the financial aspect of sponsorship could ever cover. "I ask you to pray for me so that God can give me a bright future and wisdom to finish my school without problems."
Sponsorship is about more than simply money. Sponsorship is giving a child hope for their future; not only providing the resources so they can eat and go to school, but affirming that there is someone out there who loves them and cares for them. Someone who is a constant in their lives, and not likely to be taken away suddenly by sickness or disease. Someone who is praying for God to meet their needs, even while being a part of how God IS meeting their needs. There are over a million children in Malawi alone waiting for someone to care.
Pictured above is Dennes Simbani. He is 13 years old and a part of the Esther's House non-residential program. Dennes does not have a sponsor.
Will you be that special someone today for a child in Malawi? Give the gift of hope.
http://puremission.org/give/sponsor-a-child/
