As a family, we recently started to sponsor a young girl from Indonesia through the Compassion International organisation.
It’s something that we should have done a long time ago, but we finally did the right thing and we are rapt that we did.
Organisations like World Vision, Compassion and others do an outstanding job of making a difference in the lives of thousands of children through their child sponsorship programs and I highly recommend what they do.
Here are 7 reasons why I believe everyone should sponsor a child from a developing country:
- It’s affordable. For the cost of less than a coffee a day, you can sponsor a child. If you can afford a coffee, you can afford to do this.
- It makes a massive difference. For this price, you are providing educational opportunities, food, clothing, access to clean water and housing.
- It doesn’t just impact one child. Even though you’re sponsoring one child, there are often wider community benefits as well. This is especially true with increased access to clean drinking water, with wells being drilled that the entire village can use. Child sponsorship also benefits future generations, as any child who is removed from abject poverty is able to better provide for their own children when the time comes.
- You don’t just give money, you give hope. The money makes a difference, but I suspect that the knowledge that there’s someone who cares enough to invest in them means a lot to a child. In the harshest of living conditions, such hope makes a difference.
- It gives your children a different perspective. I don’t want my children growing up unaware of how other children live. Sponsoring a child as a family gives them the chance to learn more about the conditions of other countries and hopefully will assist in developing them into people who want to make a positive contribution to those less fortunate than themselves when they grow up.
- It’s something. Sometimes, the statistics of world poverty are daunting and with over a billion people living in appalling conditions, it’s difficult to see how we can make a difference. Just like the boy who returned starfish to the ocean, sponsoring a child makes a difference in that life at least.
- It feels good. Doing things just because they feel good is rarely a sufficient reason to do them, but in this case, it’s quite justified. It does feel satisfying to sponsor a child in a developing country and that’s nothing to be ashamed of.
- It’s a Christian responsibility. If you’re a Christian, it’s hard to go past Jesus’ words in Matthew 25:40, when in the context of looking after the hungry, the thirsty, the lonely, the naked, the sick and the imprisoned, He says, “Whatever you did for the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me.” If you’re not a Christian, it’s still a nice thing to do.
I hope that this encourages you to take action on an important global issue. If you found the information in this post helpful, feel free to share it with your friends.
Together, we can make a difference!
Do you sponsor a child?
If so, what organisation do you use and what country is your child from?
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11 comments
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November 16, 2011 at 9:07 pm
Debbie
Hi Darren,
I currently have the privilege to run a Children’s Home through The Salvation Army, we also have a sponsorship program that runs internationally. My purpose for writing is not to promote that 🙂 but to share one more reason why you should sponsor a child from the child’s perspective!
So here is the 9th reason why you should sponsor a child:
9. Your Sponsor Child will feel loved
For us, the money helps us to provide for the children, their basic needs: schooling, food, warm bed and medical care… for the child, they have a family who love them who just live further away! I have seen the faces of our children when they receive a letter, card, photo or stickers from their sponsor family and they just brighten up. Being a sponsor child may make the donor feel good, but it also brings an awareness to the child that they are special enough to be supported by someone they may never meet.
Thanks for encouraging people to give through these programs, I can assure you it really does make a difference.
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November 16, 2011 at 9:11 pm
Darren Poke
Wow, thanks Debbie for this extra reason. Please feel free to promote what you do with a link because I know that you do an awesome job.
Blessings to you and your family.
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November 16, 2011 at 9:10 pm
Debbie
Oops, I am in the Philippines for those who are unaware. My ‘comment’ is from the perspective of the people/person/child in a ‘developing country’.
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November 16, 2011 at 9:38 pm
Darren Poke
And here’s the link to the Salvation Army’s Child Sponsorship program, also highly recommended. http://www.salvationarmy.org.au/you-can-help/child-sponsorship/details-about-child-sponsorship.html
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November 17, 2011 at 1:54 pm
Debbie
God bless you, Darren . . . and Debbie.
We sponsor a child through Compassion. She’s from Honduras. Before her, we sponsored a boy until he was 18, from Peru. I can’t imagine not doing it now. Somehow the money is always there. Thank you for this post. I pray it encourages others to sponsor a child too!
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November 17, 2011 at 2:26 pm
Darren Poke
That’s great Debbie.
If just one more person is inspired to sponsor a child, then it’s been worth it.
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April 2, 2013 at 12:19 am
Becca
Hi,
I used this website for reasons why you should sponsor a child (for educational purposes). I need to know the name of the person(s) who made this website for my bibleography so if anyone could help me out with this I would be very greatful. Thank you!
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April 2, 2013 at 7:16 am
Darren Poke
Hi Becca, I (Darren Poke) am the person who made this site.
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June 25, 2014 at 3:04 am
Stephanie Hampton
Hi, I sponsor JeVaughn through The Caribbean Christian Centre for the Deaf. I met this 10 year old boy on a mission trip to Jamaica and instantly fell in love with him so I sponsored him as soon as I got home and it’s one of the best decisions I’ve ever made.
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June 25, 2019 at 12:05 am
Child Sponsorship
I utilized this site for reasons why you should support a tyke (for instructive purposes). I have to know the name of the person(s) who made this site for my bibliography so on the off chance that anybody could enable me to out with this I would be grateful. Much thanks to you!
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June 25, 2019 at 7:28 pm
Darren Poke
Thanks for supporting this, my name is Darren
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