By kristen
My duffle bag is packed, waiting by the hotel door.
In just a few hours, I’ll be leaving Kenya, flying thru the night to Amsterdam.
We had a debriefing meeting with the Compassion blog team last night and we cried as we started decompressing and processing all that we’ve seen.
Our leader, Shaun Groves, told us a story about a man named Everett Swanson. In the 1950′s, he was visiting a friend in Korea immediately after the Korean war. There were thousands and thousands of orphans left without parents and homes during this country’s devastating time.
Everett Swanson saw children piled up in the doorways of homes, trying to stay warm. They were abused by the guards who tried to scatter them because they were a nuisance. Everett watched as a guard picked up a child by the wrist and ankles and threw them into the back of a truck.
He said to his friend, “No one, no matter how small, should be treated this way.”
And he wept for the children.
His friend looked at him and said, “Now that you’ve seen, what will you do?”
Now that you’ve seen, what will you do?
Now that you’ve seen, what will you do?
Everett Swanson returned to the United States and started Compassion International.
Compassion is now reaching one million of the poorest children in 25 countries.
I’m going to be honest with you: I don’t know how to do this. I don’t know how to return to my normal life. I don’t know how to take what I’ve seen and experienced, smelled and touched and live the same way in my perfect little bubble.
Now that I’ve seen the face of a Maasai woman with my own name and learned of her hardships, walked thru the dark alley of hell, called Mathare Valley, touched the face of an orphan named Susan, learned that one of my own sponsored kids is living in dire poverty with a crippled father, watched an angel dance, I have to answer the question that burns in my heart and keeps me awake throughout the night….
What will I do?
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Two of our sponsored children live in Africa. I’m leaving my heart with them.
http://vimeo.com/moogaloop.swf?clip_id=10018565&server=vimeo.com&show_title=1&show_byline=1&show_portrait=0&color=&fullscreen=1Many of you have sponsored a child this week. I am so thankful that you saw the need, heard God and acted. I am grateful that you carry this heavy burden with me. Some of you are asking the same question I am: What will I do now that I’ve seen?
For those of you who’ve read along, but haven’t been able to sponsor yet, I implore you to talk about it as a family. There are still children waiting to be sponsored.
During the next several days, I will be reconnecting with my family. There will be a lot of hugging and crying and figuring out how and what we’re supposed to do. Will you pray for me as I process all that I’ve been exposed to?
I love y’all.
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