Gift Giving

I love gifts.  I enjoy giving them more than receiving them.  The way a special someone's face lights up when an unexpected present is received.  Or when you know, just feel it inside, that your gift has made a difference.  That is the feeling I had when the Things reminded me about Oswaldo. 

Oswaldo is our adopted friend from Nicaragua.  We have had the opportunity to share in Oswaldo's life for over a year now through Compassion International.  The privelege is ours completely.  Oswaldo is 12 years old, same age as Thing 2.  We have learned that he is a talented artist and he has a passion for Jesus that inspires us all.  His letters and drawings are a gift to us when they arrive in the mail.  The Things reminded me around Thanksgiving time that we needed to send our Christmas gift to Oswaldo. So the six of us gathered around the computer and checked out our options.  Compassion's website is amazingly easy to navigate and we can sign in to our account and even send letters via email to Oswaldo. Of course they are translated into his native tongue and then sent to him but the process is efficient.  So, we signed in and gave our gift.  The gift giving sparked all manner of questions.  How does Oswaldo's family celebrate Christmas?  What gift will he receive?  Who gives the gifts?  Why does Compassion International do this?  Why don't they have Compassion International here in Turkey?  And so on and on and on.  We talked with the Things and tried to answer their questions the best we could.  Thing is, Compassion does all of this in the name of Jesus.  He is the ultimate gift and we hope that by helping provide basic necessities to these people they might experience the love of Jesus.  The Things understood that, on their level. 

There are countless ways to give this season. 

Compassion has a gift catalog,on their website, Gifts of Compassion.  You can also click on the link, "sponsor a child", on the toolbar to the right of this post.

 A listing of invaluable resources for the children and villages that they serve.  And even some "fun" gifts as well, such as a soccer ball.  So, if you are looking for an alternative to standard, commercialized presents this Christmas season you need look no further than Compassion.  Or simply if you need a gift for the person whom has everything, go and check out the website.  This is not intended to be a sales pitch.  I believe in the work that this organization is supporting and I know that being a part of Oswaldo's life, however minute our contribution may be, has made a lasting impact for the kingdom.  What I also know is that whatever we have given is far outweighed by what our family has received from this relationship.

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