Outpourings of Love in Ziplock Baggies

My mailbox has been overflowing. Not with letters from my Compassion children, but with gifts of love from sponsors throughout the US, Canada, and Europe sending small bits of hope to their children halfway around the world with me via my luggage as I prepare to travel to Thailand in a few days.

With each arrival, it has been an honor to check off the name of the sponsor sending the gift and open the package to see the lovingly selected, packaged, and labeled gifts to their child. Each package has a distinct fragrance...one floral, one musty, one sweet...carrying the heart and flavor of the region and home from which it traveled. As I open each one I savor the sweet letters the sponsors have included for me, unnecessary but appreciated thank-yous, and much appreciated prayers, when it's really me who should be thanking them for the opportunity to witness such compassion. I smile at the items that sponsors have carefully chosen for their kids, each sponsor knowing the individual desires of their children from countless letters and prayers, trying hard to pack freighter-truck sized love into quart-size ziplock baggies.

Stuffed animals, bracelets, candy, cars, balls...all small items with a big message--"You are important. You are loved by me and by Christ. You matter. You can make a difference."

I have had several sponsors tell me that they appreciate that I am willing to carry these gifts to a country where I don't sponsor, on a trip that is business not pleasure, and when I will have very little free time. Oh, but what I want each of them to understand is that the blessing has ALREADY been far sweeter than the small amount of space dedicated in my luggage, than the few minutes it will take to travel the short distance from my hotel to the country office.

This outpouring of love in ziplock baggies has reminded me once again of the great love fostered by Compassion International, and of the great miracles God has worked to place me within almost-walking distance of the country office during this unrelated trip.

My trip to the Compassion office will be a short one--just long enough to drop off the packages--but I know that the impact these sponsors have had on me and on the children to whom these items are destined to reach will be eternal.

Jonah Themed Sponsor Packet-Free Download

Here is a Jonah Themed packet, suitable for girls or boys, complete with coloring sheets, mini book, and game... Enjoy!

Jonah Themed Sponsor Packet

Free Printable Sponsor Packet ~ Soccer Theme!

As promised, here is the next free printable packet.  Please check back often, as I will be adding Noah's Ark, Daniel and the Lions, God's Princess and Prince, and several Teen themes, including Solar Systems, Angels, and Devotionals.

Enjoy! If you like these, consider making a donation to Compassion International!

Soccer Theme Sponsor Packet

Ten Fun things to Send your Sponsored Child

Spring brings so much pleasure to me. I love the longer days, the warming sun, and the color of new leaves and bright blooms after a cold, gray, dark winter. There is something about spring that wakes us up and makes us want to do more, to work harder, to shake off the doldrums and get to living again.

Spring also makes us a lot busier. I know for me, personally, this spring is shaping up to be one of the busiest I've had in years. I have several work-related trips planned, I'm dancing quite a bit, there are birthday parties to attend, Mother's Day jewelry orders to fill, garden beds to be planted and tended, and yardwork galore. I'm also planning a yard sale with a fellow sponsor to benefit Compassion, so I need to start pulling all my stuff together that I plan to sell--and I have no idea where to begin!

In the busy new outdoor life of spring, it may be harder to remember to sit down and write our Compassion kids. The official Compassion International blog recently posted a series of pictures of sponsored children holding their most prized possessions...the letters from their sponsors.

It seems that the overarching agreement among sponsored children who have graduated the program is that sponsor letters were extraordinarily influential in their lives. In fact, children who recieve letters from their sponsors are more likely to remain in and graduate from the program than children who do not.

That's the amazing difference that Compassion sponsors make.

There are so many amazing posts out there with topic suggestions if you run out of things to discuss with your sponsored child. Blogging from the Boonies has some awesome suggestions. Compassion.com had some great suggestions, as well. Here, I thought I would chip in my 2 cents with some ideas for "extras" (besides stickers) that you can send along to your sponsored children to add to their excitement when they get your next letter.

1. Paper Dolls ~ Paper dolls are so fun, and so easy to find. Dollar General carries books of paper dolls for about $2 each, and Dover Publishing has amazing paper dolls (and they offer frequent discounts). If you have a pinterest account, search "Paper dolls" and you'll find many free paper dolls--print on cardstock and cut out for a great treat!  Another fun paper doll idea--make paper dolls of YOUR FAMILY for your sponsored child! Simply have your family members stand against a plain background and photograph, then print out on cardstock and cut out. You can use decorative scrapbook paper to make clothing for your paper doll selves. For extra fun, print your sponsored child's picture as well, and make him or her into a paper doll! Here's an adorable printable paper doll to get you started: http://oliverands.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2011/03/paperdolls2.jpg

 

2. Paper airplanes ~ For young children you can pre-make the paper airplanes and tuck them into a small envelope so that they are ready to fly when the child receives them. For older children, print out instructions from the internet (or photocopy instructions from a book) and send along with sheets of decorative paper. Here's a blog with many printable instructions: http://paperplaneideas.blogspot.com/

3. Recordable Cards ~ There are a great many musical cards out there--some that include flashing lights and pop up! Most of them are birthday or holiday-specific, but Hobby Lobby carries a lot of Christian themed musical cards that are generic in nature. Some feature contemporary Christian songs and some feature classic secular music. People from the Compassion mailroom indicate that not only do the children love to recieve these cards, the staff in the mailrooms love them as well! If you are ambitious you can find cards that also include a record button, and you can record a personal message from your family--what a gift to your sponsored child to be able to hear your voice!

4. Friendship Bracelets ~ We are unable to send real jewelry or string through the mail, but there are some really adorable paper bracelet (or necklace!) tutorials out there that feature strips of paper folded across each other. Here's one fantastic tutorial: http://increations.blogspot.com/2008/09/origami-bracelet.html
You could coat the paper with a layer of mod podge or spray acrylic for durability. For older kids, send a completed bracelet along with instructions and materials for your child to make his or her own! And don't think these are just for girls--in other cultures some men wear jewelry as well, so your little boy may well enjoy wearing a cuff-style bracelet in "manly" colors or a superhero theme. To close the bracelet, many sponsors have reported that small (tiny) velcro circles that stick-on have made it through. You might also try including some glue dots or punch a hole in each end and perhaps the child can find a small piece of string or grass with which to tie it closed.

5. Photo album ~ I plan to do this for my children this spring. The most beloved and requested items from sponsored children are photographs of their sponsor family. You can make a simple photo album using commercial software (or even MS Word) or online tools and print your album at home or your local copy store. Staple with a cute decorative cover and you have a treasured gift for your child. This is super easy to do for multiple children because it's as easy to print 4 copies as it is to print 1 copy. Include a photo of your sponsored child in the album so they know they are part of your family, too!

6. Thin books or book chapters ~ I recently discovered that it is okay to send thin books as long as the cover is removed and the book meets the 1/4 inch thickness rule. In fact, for older teens you can send big books (think C.S. Lewis) chapter-by-chapter. Yes, it hurts to tear a book apart, but visit a used bookstore, yard sale, or Goodwill for a copy of a beloved used book and start ripping! Be cognizant of language differences, however--if your child speaks a different language the translators will not translate an entire book. You may be able to find used foreign-language books through Amazon or Ebay (or even at your local used bookstore--particularly in Spanish).

7. 3D bookmarks ~ I love the 3D and "moving" bookmarks that craft stores and bookstores sell. Even young children love these.

8. Magazines ~ You can remove the cover and send thin magazines. For little kids, National Geographic has great animal-themed magazines. Zootles is a good one for little kdis, as well. Highlights is wonderful for English speaking children. Target ocassionally carries some Highlights activity pads and posters in the $1 section that are wonderful.

9. Lapbooks ~ Lapbooks are among my favorite things to send. Originally a homeschooling idea, a lapbook is simply a folder-sized study unit organized around a central theme, containing multiple activities. For example, you might choose a Noah's Ark theme and include coloring pages, stickers, a matching game, a mini book, paper dolls, etc all depicting the story of Noah's Ark, and you might tuck it all into an animal-themed school folder. Some great resources for lapbooks include www.lapbooklessons.com (www.lapbooklessons.com/NoahsArkLapbook.html for Noah's Ark), http://www.heartofwisdom.com/homeschoollinks/lapbooks-scrapbooks-make-learning-fun/, http://www.homeschoolshare.com/lapbooking_resources.php, http://pinterest.com/MeetPenny/lapbook-ideas/

10. Paper bag puppets ~ How much fun are paper bag puppets? They are easy to assemble yourself, and you can find plenty of templates on Google and Pinterest, or you can be lazy like I was and purchase a Paper Bag Puppet kit from Alex toys, which comes with 5 ADORABLE puppets in individual plastic sleeves, with all the pieces necessary to make the puppet AND instructions AND stickers for decorating the puppet. How easy is that?? I punched out the pieces to keep the package within the size limits, and then stuck them all back in the plastic sleeve with a photocopy of the instructions, and my mailing was ready to go! http://www.amazon.com/Alex-Toys-Little-Hands-Puppets/dp/B0013GRW1K

I hope this post gets you excited about spring mailings for your sponsored kids. I would love to hear your ideas and comments! What do you plan to send this spring?

Blessings and Happy Easter!

Made with Love

Yesterday my toddler came tearing into the bedroom early in the morning holding a pair of cojoined wooden hearts decorated with stickers and the word "Mommy" written in glitter glue. As all moms know, these precious homemade crafts are the best gifts in the whole world, hands down. No flowers or chocolates or diamonds can compete with these treasures made with love by tiny hands.

I carried that pair of hearts to my office and proudly hung them on my wall, right in front of my computer, so I can be reminded all day long of the great joy God has given me through the love of this little child.
This pair of hearts reminds me of something else, though. It reminds me that children are made with love, as well. Not just the love of two people coming together to create life, for all too often babies are born outside of the confines of loving partnership. But the spirits of ALL children, regardless of the circumstances of their earthly creation, are made with love by Christ. All children are equally loved and important in the eyes of God.

I think about how Jesus must feel when he looks at these precious spirits, honed in Heaven by the touch of his own hands, made with love to grace our planet with some ordained purpose, and I wonder how he isn't wrenched with despair.

Imagine what might happen if my sweet son handed me his homemade Valentine and I took it and threw it on the floor and stomped on it, crushing it into pieces. Or if I just tossed it aside, on the table or in the trash, without so much as a glance or a murmer. Imagine his heartbreak if I said to him "Why did you make this? We don't have room for any more of this stuff around here. Just throw it away. I don't want it." It makes me sad just to think about how he would feel.

But we do that every day to Jesus' precious gifts, whether intentionally or simply by our lack of notice, lack of time, lack of attention. We ignore the plight of the hungry, the needy, the silent, maybe because there are so many that we are afraid to help one because we can't help them all. It's overwhelming. Jesus didn't say we have to help them all. He knows that HE is the only ONE who can help the whole world. But he has equipped us to help just one. At least one. In some way, however insignificant we may think it is. Whether through sponsorship, one-time donation, or just spreading the word that children need help and that there ARE ways to help.

If Jesus walked up to you on the street today and you recognized him (because I think he DOES walk up to us, frequently, and we don't recognize him), and he handed you a gift with a tag that said "Made with Love by Jesus," would you throw it in the trash? Would it depend on the gift? He has already handed us the gift of the cross, freely, without strings attached. Would you refuse his other gifts?

My prayer today is that if you haven't sponsored a child, you would consider lifting up one of Jesus' precious gifts that has been made by love by the Father himself. If you are a sponsor, my prayer is that you will take a moment to write to your child and let him or her know how carefully they have been crafted by the love of Jesus, and how important they are to his heart.