Letters, Letters, Letters

This time of year the Child Sponsorship department is very busy. Children are sending their Christmas cards to their sponsors and the sponsors are sending Christmas cards and gifts to their child...and all of that must go through the AMG Home Office first. For a little over a week I have been working on getting Children's letters out to their sponsors. While at times this can be very repetitious and even boring, I remember the importance of the relationship between a child and their sponsor. It is so special to see how a relationship develops between child and sponsor, sometimes only through letters. Here is a letter from a boy living in Uganda to his sponsor.

David says,
"Greetings in the name of our good God. We are very fine at home and I think you are okay over there in Jesus name. I am in grade four and how I pray that God enables me to perform well this term.
We are nine in number in our family and I am the fourth of all. I am living with both parents. My mother is a farmer and my father too. I stay in Bukanko and I always come to school on foot.
I also love God and I pray from Bukanko. I love praise and Worship in church. I wish one day I can have a look on our Lord Jesus Christ.
Thank alot for the love and care. I still pray for you. As God lives we will meet one day in Uganda.
Love from your child in Christ Jesus, stay well. Good Bye."

I am always amazed when I come across letter from a child to their sponsor in which they express so much love and gratitude for their sponsor whom they have never met. And, it is always such a joy to see the love they express for their Savior, Jesus Christ. I can think of nothing sweeter this Christmas Season then to make a difference in the life of a child eternally.

Museekee Hostel in Thailand

The Museekee Hostel is located in the most northern part of Thailand in the Chiangmai province. In this area there are villages with people mainly from the Karen tribe. These people are peaceful Thai citizens who make their living mainly by farming rice and corn, as they have done for generations. These villages have no electricity or telephones and health care is minimal. Families get their water from hand dug wells and have no plumbing facilities. Most families run out of food before harvest and must scavenge for food in the forest. Also, many young women are often taken to the large cities to be given "good" jobs by unscrupulous relatives and friends. The attractive girls end up working as bar girls or prostitutes while the others end up working 12 to 14 hour days in a sweat shop with little food or breaks.

For this reason Miss Zothansiami Ralte decided to start a boarding house for young Karen women in the last 80s. A few years later she married a Karen man and together they turned this boarding home into a more tradition childcare center where children from the surrounding villages can come and receive nutritious meals, clothing, medical care, education and learn of Christ's love. Without the Museekee Hostel most of these children would never have the opportunity to attend school.

We recently received new children from the Museekee hostel who are in need of sponsors. This is Archidphon and he is 4 years old and from the Karen tribe. He is the youngest with three older brothers and sisters. Both of his parents are farmers and only make enough for their basic needs.

This is little Sudarat and she just turned 5 years old in September. She is also the youngest with one older brother and one older sister. Her parents are also farmers only making enough to provide food and shelter for their family.

$28 a month provides a child with a good education, food, clothing, medical attention all in a loving Christian enviornment. Also, it not only helps the child but it benefits the entire family.

The Museekee Hostel Program in Thailand is a great ministry and I pray for God's protection and for his blessing over the children and staff. I ask that God would provide sponsors for the children in need and that this ministry would continue to grow in the name of Jesus Christ.

Pray for Manila

More than a month's worth of rain fell on the capital, Manila in just 24 hours flooding 80% of the city. More than 450,000 people have been made homeless. The death toll is now over 300 with another storm headed toward Manila.

The office headquarters of AMG Philippines is in Quezon City, Metro Manila, one of the hardest hit areas. AMG has 32 childcare projects in the Philippines, serving over 3,000 children. Seventeen of these centers are in Metro Manila (eight of those have been flooded). Some of the AMG centers are being used as temporary shelters for the many left with no where to go.

Please pray for the AMG staff in the Philippines as they asses the situation and do their best to help those in need. Pray for the city as this next storm is on it's way toward Manila. Pray for the families of those in the Child Sponsorship program for safety. Pray that even during this devastating time people would come to know of Christ's great Love and that God would be Glorified.

Romans 8:26-30

26 And the Holy Spirit helps us in our weakness. For example, we don’t know what God wants us to pray for. But the Holy Spirit prays for us with groanings that cannot be expressed in words. 27 And the Father who knows all hearts knows what the Spirit is saying, for the Spirit pleads for us believers in harmony with God’s own will. 28 And we know that God causes everything to work together for the good of those who love God and are called according to his purpose for them. 29 For God knew his people in advance, and he chose them to become like his Son, so that his Son would be the firstborn among many brothers and sisters. 30 And having chosen them, he called them to come to him. And having called them, he gave them right standing with himself. And having given them right standing, he gave them his glory.

Please visit the AMG International Website for more information

Guatemala

I realize that I tend to write about many of the sad stories I come across while serving in the Child Sponsorships department here at AMG. So, today I want to share a promising story of a young girl in Guatemala. Families in Guatemala have a totally different frame of mind then we have in America. Our goals are to get an education and better ourselves, and we can do that because most of us don't worry about where our next meal will come from. In Guatemala most families are just trying to survive. Sometimes that means the children must help farm the land with their parents or a family has to pick up and move to a different town in search of a better life. Thankfully the AMG Childcare Center offers hope for a better future. Recently I came across a letter from a precious little girl to her sponsor. Her name is Leah Lexa and she is not quite old enough to write but the childcare worker writes this about her:

Your sponsored child Leah Lexa greets you wishing you God's blessings, I want to tell you that "Leah is a playful girl, she likes to make jokes to her classmates but she like to study too. The parents are very thankful with you for sponsoring her. She wants to tell you that she is in good health, her father's name is Jesus and her mother's name is Rosa, she attends the church and she says that she will pray for you, your family and friends, so long."

Reading this letter brought me hope because this little girl understands the gift she has been given from her sponsor. Last year over 900 children accepted Christ as their Savior in Guatemala and my prayer is that little Miss Leah Lexa will come to know Jesus as her Lord and Savior. I pray that Leah Lexa will use this gift of sponsorship to complete her education and take advantage of all the opportunities presented to her so that one day she will be a successful Guatemalan citizen who can help her people and lead them to Christ.

Peru

Peru has always been a special place to me. Both of my grandparents served as missionaries there and my Dad's sister is currently a missionary in Lima, Peru. Growing up I heard exciting stories of my parents adventures in the Jungle of Peru. I have had the privilege of visiting Peru a couple of times and LOVE it there. Everything about Peru is beautiful: the scenery, the language, the people...etc. It is a joy to be able to serve the people of Peru here at AMG International.

Today a boy living in Lima, Peru caught my attention. His name is David and he lives with his mother and many siblings in a small one room shack made from cardboard. He is fourteen years old and does not have much contact with his father. Even through his many hardships the letters he writes to his sponsor are filled with hope and joy because he knows his sponsor cares for him and that there is a God who loves him. He writes "I don't know who you are or what you look like but I love you, God bless you and thank you very much for your support." In another letter he writes, "I'm very happy in the center (childcare center) because we sing songs and learn Bible stories, we always pray for our sponsors..."

I pray sweet David will reach his goals in life and grow to be a Godly man who can lead his family and community in the ways of the Lord.