The Joy of Sponsorship

By Sarah Teasdale Jun 22, 2017 3 Min Read

The Joy of Sponsorship: An Article by Melissa Presley

My heart is naturally bent toward encouragement. Focusing on the good stuff. As a mama of four, I can’t even begin to put into words all the ways that the Lord has blessed me through my children. The work He has done in them, and in me… good stuff. But I have learned that the best way to encourage is sometimes to go beyond the warm fuzzies. There are mamas and dads out there who can’t provide for their children. They love them, yet just do not have the means. Also, there are children out there, millions of them with no parent, no one to provide a hot meal, no one to love or hug them.

Our Ibrahim

Like in Sierra Leone. There lives our sponsored child, Ibrahim. Beautiful, smart, loving Ibrahim. He wants to go to school. Ibrahim wants a meal and medical care. He has a dream and wants to make a difference too. But he needs help; I’m thankful I get to be a small part in helping him. I’m grateful to be able to talk openly about hard things and tender feelings and will trust the One who brought Ibrahim in our path and connected us. Our family may never meet Ibrahim face to face, but our lives are intertwined through our great God. Through our sponsorship, he can have the opportunity to go to school. To have a meal that he needs. To be able to make a difference too.

I look at his past pictures and letters he has sent to us and I see a boy with bright, beautiful, hopeful eyes, who is stronger today than when we first “met” him.

What Can You Do?

I hope you can consider what you can do. And then simply do it. Get those hands dirty… it’s what God wants His people to do. He wants us to get in there and get to work. It may not be comfortable, you may have to give up some things, but sometimes it’s in the doing that you find the JOY and the desire, so don’t wait until it feels like the ‘right time’- you might be waiting forever.

I promise that if you step out, even in just a small way, to care for just one of the “least of these, “ you will be blessed in the process.