Compassion Means Action
Emotion is not action: do something!
January, 2019
Last month, I had the opportunity to travel to Peru along with Compassion International. The purpose of the visit was learning more about their efforts to lift children out of extreme poverty. As part of the trip, we stopped at several churches and the homes of sponsored children, as well as the national offices. Compassion embodies both the definition and spirit of that term. They maintain a clear, unabashed emphasis on Christ and the importance of the church. They focus on breaking the cycle of poverty, not merely giving handouts to ease it. And, they do all of this in ways which uphold the dignity of the families being helped.
Those living in western culture, especially here in the United States, have a skewed concept of "poverty." Most define a "poor" person as one who cannot afford fashionable clothes or cars, or as someone with limited disposable income. At the same time, the overwhelming majority of those defined as "poor" in first-world countries have access to education, food, reliably clean water, sanitation, shelter, and so forth. This is not to say that lower-income persons have it easy, at all. Still, those seen as "poor" in most western nations have a standard of living well beyond that of those the rest of the planet considers trapped in poverty.
In Peru, I spent time speaking with families who live in plywood shacks, above dirt floors, on top of hills accessible only by climbing several hundred rugged concrete stairs. Many of these families are headed by single mothers, abandoned by men who fear commitment. In other cases, one or both parents are gone most of the week seeking work several hours away. These are families who struggle to provide food, water, and clothing for their children. They're as hard-working, capable, and committed as any other person. What they lack is opportunity; they suffer from excessive barriers. Without help, children born into these households are all but certain to remain desperately poor, and pass that poverty to the next generation.
Compassion International steps in to break the cycle of poverty. This means providing food, education, clothing, and community through local churches. I was able to see sponsored children eating healthy food and drinking clean water. Beyond typical school curriculum, many were able to learn skills such as baking, sewing, or even cosmetology through their church's Compassion program. Mothers are given training in child care and opportunities for income. All of this is done with an overt emphasis on the gospel, God's love, and the importance of the local church. It emphasizes the value, worth, and dignity of sponsored children as fellow human beings, not mere statistics.
Speaking with children like Yuri, Eric, Jimmy, Alex and others reminded me of the need for Christians to fulfill the words of this month's spotlight verse, James 1:27. Yuri lives on a bland, gray rock surrounded by miles and miles of gray dust—but he wants to be a botanist. Eric's family spends weeks hacking into solid rock working to expand their one-room home. Jimmy loves math and wants to be an engineer, but lives with his widowed father in a plywood home rebuilt after it burnt and took everything they had. Alex is bright and confident, but doesn't have the resources to pursue his interests.
This is why "compassion" is crucial. Sympathy is a feeling. Empathy is an emotion. But legitimate "compassion" means being moved to action. Feeling sorry for people or wishing them well is pointless unless we're prepared to do something to help. Kids like these are just as capable of success as any child born into a middle-class suburb in the US. They have talents, interests, and aspirations. What they lack is opportunity. I deeply appreciate Compassion International's approach of giving these families a Christ-centered, long-term solution to break free from extreme poverty.
One of the trip highlights was speaking with adults who had once been sponsored by Compassion International. One was an educator specializing in technology, expanding his efforts to reach at-risk children. Another was working with a non-profit focusing on hunger. Both are thriving, and credit Compassion's influence for helping them escape from the hopelessness of deep poverty.
I'm grateful to have had the chance to meet these families and hear their stories. I'm also thankful to be reminded of the need to use what God has given us as best we can for the benefit of others. That's true compassion.
If you're interested in learning more about what Compassion International does to curb extreme poverty, or to sponsor a child, please visit them at Compassion.com, or click this link.
-- Editor
