It all started with Luisa...

I'm new to the whole blogging thing, so I guess I'll  just start with my entire life story... just kidding.

One of the main reasons I started this blog was to talk about one of my favorite ministries... Compassion International. Compassion is a child sponsorship program that helps children in some of  the most poverty-stricken countries of the world, and they do it in the name of Jesus Christ.

Six years ago when I was 11 years old, my family became involved with Compassion by sponsoring a child at a Superchick concert. I remember looking at all the faces of these children in need, never before knowing of this horrible thing called poverty. My mom and I picked out a tiny five- year-old girl named Luisa who shared my birthday. At that moment I was so excited to be able to help this little girl living in poverty.

For the first few months, we wrote letters every now and then to Luisa and proudly hung her picture on our fridge. But after a while, we knew we were helping her, but that was about it. My little sister and I were in school and dance classes and both our parents worked, so Luisa slipped out of our thoughts. When we got letters from her it went something like this, "Look we got a letter from Luisa. How cute. Oh she drew a picture of flowers and hearts, sweet. I wonder what 'te amo' means?" She was just that adorable little girl that shared my birthday.

Then last year, my sophomore year in high school, I began taking Spanish as a foreign language. I learned that 'te amo' means 'I love you' and suddenly I had a connection to Luisa. Spanish class made me remember that little girl we sponsor. I rushed home and dug up all the letters Luisa had sent to us and read every one. She had asked us lots of questions, told us how much she loves us and how her family always prays for our family. Wow!

I knew I needed to write to her, to answer her unanswered questions, to make- up for the five years of never writing letters. Once I began writing Luisa letters, I couldn't stop. I researched global poverty and my heart was broken by the horrifying conditions millions of children lived in every day. Luisa was one of them. But, with Compassion I knew she was going to school, cared for, and learning about Jesus.

In fact, it was Luisa who brought me closer to Jesus. Through her letters, I could see the kind of faith this then -ten- year- old had. I admired her unwavering faith in God and to tell you the truth, I was a little jealous. Because of Luisa, I began reading my Bible more, praying, and trying to live my life in a way that would please God. It's funny how when you're helping someone else, they end up changing your life.

Okay, so I guess that was kind of my 'entire life story'. I had to start somewhere :)

God bless,

Dionne