This is a letter I received from my sponsored child, Catherine’s pastor.
It was sent to all the sponsors of the children at this Compassion Center.
Here, Koffi Wokpogbe explains some of the many challenges their community has is faced with, yet how God has lead them through, all the while giving glory to Him. The Compassion Center is run through the local church.
He is one of the front-line workers, ministering to the children as they learn to seek Jesus, are challenged in their studies, and become mature and accomplished adults.
I believe that people in poverty don’t only need us. We need them. There is something powerful about partnering with a church across the globe regardless of age, race, skin color, gender, political opinion, or even minor theological beliefs.
There is something powerful about receiving a translated letter that has come so far. Even if some minor details were lost in translation, the work and the grace of God in their lives shines through. There is something powerful about the Church coming together as the hands and feet of Jesus and building each other up. We can support them through sponsoring their children and monetary gifts, and Compassion sends us updates from the front-line workers with the children. Their letters are filled with stories of God’s grace, encouraging updates on health and recovery from illness, and practical ways to keep them in our prayers.
The greater gift has to be their letters to us.
Finally In the letter, he mentions one girl who was so excited to receive the first letter from her sponsor that she ran through the compound shouting “I have a sponsor!” I so want to know if that was my girl Catherine. I received this letter only a few months after sponsoring her so it’s possible.
A message from :
COMPASSION / TOGO
Pastor Koffi Wokpogbe
xxxxxxxx-xxxxxxx Togo Presbyterian Evangelical Church
xxxxxxxx Region, Togo
Dear Eleana,
Hello, my name is Koffi Wokpogbe. I am the pastor of the xxxxxxxx-xxxxxxx Togo Presbyterian Evangelical Church. We are in the xxxxxxxx region of Togo. We minister to the sponsored children of the Bethlehem Child Development Center.
Thank you for sponsoring and supporting the children of this center. May God Almighty reward you a hundredfold for all your efforts. Through your sponsorship, you sow joy in the hearts of of the parents these beneficiaries and in my heart.
We face many challenges in our community. The major challenge is the lack of appropriate classrooms to provide a good environment for the teaching of children. However, we know God will enable us to overcome any obstacle as we follow His direction.
Last year, three (3) children were seriously ill, two boys and a girl. Their parents had no means and, therefore, these children were left at the mercy of the disease. But, through the Compassion program, the children were brought to the hospital and received urgently needed operations. It is only by God’s grace, Compassion’s intervention and the faithfulness like donors like you, that the children all survived, and are back with their friends. May the name of the Lord Jesus be praised!
I wish you could be present when we distribute sponsors’ letters to the children. One child is a good example of how much they value your correspondences. She never stops asking if she has received a letter from her sponsor. The day she received the first letter was the most beautiful day of her life. She ran through the compound shouting, “I have a sponsor!” It was a wonderful thing for her and her family. Letters give children hope and reassure them that there is someone on the other side of the world, who loves them and who thinks of them. I pray that every sponsor will write to their child and give them this very important hope and assurance.
Pray that each child will grow up in the fear of God, become committed people to Christ and develop into great leaders for our community and our country. I also ask you to pray for us to be able to enlarge our center and provide a safe and clean environment in which the children can learn and grow.
Thank you for your faithful, generous and self-sacrificing support. Without every one of our sponsors, this work would not reach as many children as we are reaching today. Thank you for bringing joy, light and a hope for a better future to the vulnerable children of Togo.
May God fill you with His blessing,
Pastor Koffi Wokpogbe