Form Letters for Miles!

There is just something so wonderful about these long posts of letters. They may not be exciting to read to the average Joe, but for me, going back over the years and reading the letters from my children is just such a blessing. I thank God for each and every child I get to write to.

This post will be chock full of form letters from the youngest in my brood.

We'll start with a letter from one of my little guys, Dedilhomme. He's writing this letter on the My Hopes for the Future letter template.

Dedilhomme is 6 years old, lives in Haiti, and his letter is dated April 9th, 2018.

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1. In the future I hope to be: A Teacher

2. In the future I hope to visit: USA

3. In the future I want to get married: Yes

4. In the future I want to go to university: Yes 

5. In the future I want to have kids: Yes 

Dedilhomme says it is a great joy for him to write to you in the mighty name of Jesus. He loves you so much. How did you spend Easter? He was glad to celebrate Easter with his family. He asks for you to pray for him to grow up in God's grace. 

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Next I share a letter from another one of my boys. This time, from Lenin. This letter is titled My Community.

Lenin is 6 years old. He lives in Peru. His letter is dated April 30th, 2018.

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1. My community is located in: Ferrenafe 

2. My community is called: Espedito Ruro 

3. A common type of transportation in my community is: Bicycle 

4. People in my community speak this language: Spanish

5. One fun thing to do in my community is: Riding a Bike 

Dear Sponsor Kayla, 

I write on behalf of Lenin. He wants to thank you for the letter you sent. He also thanks you for the pages of the car and the motorbike. He wants to tell you that he is well. He says that he likes to be an older brother and he takes care of his younger siblings. He says that it is cold in Peru now and he gets warm when he goes to sleep. He wants to know if you prefer cold or hot weather. He would like you to pray for God to take care of his family. He says goodbye with love. 

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As I look ahead at the letters I will be sharing in this post, it looks like this post will be a male-dominated one. Not really surprising if you look at the make-up of my sponsorship family. :) 

This next letter is from Muuo, who is writing on the My Holiday/School Break letter template. 

Muuo is 7 years old and lives in Kenya. He wrote this letter on May 7th, 2018. 

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1. There are three school breaks in a year. 

2. They are in the months of: April, August, and December 

3. My school breaks normally last for: 3-4 weeks 

4. During my school breaks I often: Stay at home 

5. During my school break I love to: Help in the garden 

6. My favorite activity during my school break is: Riding my bicycle 

7. My favorite person to spend time with during my school break is: My brother 

8. One thing I would like to do during my school break in the future is: Toy car racing 

9. One person I would like to visit during my school break in the future is: My grandmother 

10. In the future during my school break, I would like visit: Nairobi 

Muuo sends you loving greetings. He asks how you are doing over there. He says he is well here together with his parents and siblings. He says he is happening to learn about the broomball game. He has never heard of it before. He says yes, he is born again. He became born again at the project when one Saturday, the preacher of the day asked who wanted to give their lives to Jesus, and he did. He says bye for now and wishes you God's blessings always. 

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Onto a letter written on the My Family template. This letter is from Djimitri. I always love learning the name of my kids' siblings. I keep a document for each of my kids and love to be able to add family members' names. 

Djimitri is 6 years old and is from Togo. He wrote this letter on April 19th, 2018. 

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1. My siblings from oldest to youngest are: Daniel, Hope

2. In my family, I spend the most time with: My mother 

3. Extended family members that live with me are: None 

4. My family lives in the: Urban region

5. My food is prepared by: My mother 

6. My favorite way to help my family is: Sweeping rooms 

7. Please pray for my family for the following needs: Health and happiness 

Thank you for all your support. Please pray for my family. 

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Just like earlier in this post, I also received the My Holiday/School Break letter from my boy Hillary. 

Hillary is 8 years old, lives in Kenya, and his letter is dated May 12th, 2018. 

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1. There are three school breaks in a year. 

2. They are in the months of: April, August, and December 

3. My school breaks normally last for: 1 month 

4. During my school breaks I often: Go to the beach 

5. During my school break I love to: Travel

6. My favorite activity during my school break is: Playing with my brother 

7. My favorite person to spend time with during my school break is: My brother 

8. One thing I would like to do during my school break in the future is: Go to Kisumu

9. One person I would like to visit during my school break in the future is: My grandmother 

10. In the future during my school break, I would like visit: Other countries 

Dear Sponsor, 

Hello, my friend. I hope you are well. Thank you for the many letters you sent to me. The stories you share with me are so interesting. I learned to never enter somebody's house without permission. 

Yours,

Hillary

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I have two more letters to share with you in this particular post and both letters will represent the female side of my sponsorship family (finally!). ;) 

This letter is from Yeraini and it is written on the My Community writing template.

Yeraini is 6 years old and lives in the Dominican Republic. She wrote this letter on April 30th, 2018. 

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1. My community is called: Baley #6

2. My community is located in: The countryside 

3. A common type of transportation in my community is: Motorcycle

4. A common job in my community is: Housekeeper 

5. In my community the weather is: Hot

Dear Kayla, 

Yeraini sends you much love. She gives you thanks for everything you have done for her and for the letter you sent to her. She really loves the tale of Little Red Riding Hood. Please pray for all of her friends from school. She says goodbye with much love. 

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We have reached the last letter of the post, which is a letter from Nicol. She wrote her letter on the About Me template and then included a long letter at the end. Nicol's letters are always extra special, with either a long message or extra photos. She's a special girl. 

Nicol is 5 years old, is from Colombia, and wrote this letter on May 2nd, 2018. 

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1. My name means: Crowned Woman 

2. I am the 2nd child in my family. 

3. I am 116 cm tall. 

4. The color of my hair is: Brown

5. The color of my eyes are: Brown 

6. One thing I do really well is: Homework 

7. Things I like to do are: Playing, drawing, and painting 

Hello Dear Kayla, 

Nicol and her family thank you for looking out for her and for sharing your anecdotes. This is Nicol's teacher writing to you on her behalf because she can't do it yet. She says her mom reads your letters to her and she would like to meet you someday. As she is studying, she spends most of her time doing homework. She gives you a verse; Isaiah 60:22. She is learning about vowels and numbers. Regarding your question, she says she's in good health. She had a happy Christmas with her family. During that time, the project had a party where they gave presents to the children. She says she got a doll that is as big as her. She also spent time with her family, sharing presents. Also, she accepted Jesus in her heart because he died on the cross to save us all. Nicol tells you Jonah's story in the following way: Jonah got in the boat and God made the waters move fast. Jonah was swallowed by a whale. Then he prays for Jesus to forgive him and take him out of the whale. He is placed on the beach and he keeps his promise of going to Niveah. She sends you blessings. May God bless you. Many kisses.

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A Big Mix of Letters!

I've been missing from my blog for over a week. I basically lost a week of my life. School ended and I hit summer vacation hard. ;)

But, let's get back to business. Not sure how many letters will be in this post, but I think I'll stick with my usual attitude; when I get tired of typing, I'll stop. :)

Up first is a My Hobbies & Pets template from Zenebu. Her hobbies sound more like chores to me. I wonder if there was a mix-up in translation when the letter was being written.

Zenebu is 7 years old and lives in Ethiopia. Her letter is dated February 26th, 2018.

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1. Some of my hobbies are: Making coffee and washing utensils at home. 

2. I like to do my hobbies with: My friends 

3. My favorite hobby is: Playing house 

4. One hobby I would like to begin someday is: Running 

5. As a pet, I would like to have: A cat 

6. My pet's name would be: Sifan 

Please pray for my parents. I got your letter. I liked the picture. Thank you so much. I received some Christmas money. I bought a plastic water container. I am learning well. I had the 10th rank in the first semester. 

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Up next is a letter from Airin. She filled out the My House template. I have probably mentioned it before, but the house themed templates are some of my favorite. It really helps me get an image of where my kids live, which I think is important.

Airin is 8 years old and lives in Indonesia. Her letter is dated April 23rd, 2018.

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1. I get my water from: A well

2. The walls of my house are made of: Wood 

3. In my house: I do have electricity 

4. I wash my clothes: Near the well 

5. My house has this kind of floor: Wood 

6. My house has this kind of roof: Iron sheet 

My beloved sponsor Kayla,

Thank you for your letter. It's very nice to write to you again. Thank you for the gift money. I bought shoes for going to school, a school uniform, a bag, and shoes for going to church. I will answer your question. I have received Jesus as my savior and learn more about Him at the project. We had a great Easter. 

Love,

Airin

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Next is a chatty letter from Sunrei. I love her letter so much because they are generally not based around a certain topic (I still love set topics, of course), but she just seems to write whatever she wants to, whatever she feels like talking about. It's so lovely. 

Sunrei is 11 years old, from Peru, and she wrote this letter on April 24th, 2018. 

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Dear Sponsor Kayla, 

I greet you with the love of Christ. I hope you are very well when you receive my letter. I thank you for your beautiful letter. I mostly like to play at home. I play hide and seek with my sister. My little sister Fedra's birthday was on April 23rd. My sister Seika's is on May 15th and she is going to be 4. My church's name is Jesus te llama. I am studying in 5th grade. There are three new girls this year. They are Nair, Arianza, and Aneth. The rest of the class is the same as last year. What is your favorite story? I ask for your prayers for my family. I say goodbye. 

Sunrei

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Another letter from Rebecca is what we'll read next. As always, my smarty pants girl is doing well in a variety of competitions. She is really going to go far in life! It is also so nice to read that her project is watching out for her health. 

Rebecca is 10 years old, lives in the Philippines, and her letter is dated April 14th, 2018. 

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Dear Ate Kayla, 

Good day! How are you and your family? We are doing good here. We recently had our moving up ceremony at school. I am a "With Honor" student and I received awards for Outstanding Performance in Science, Outstanding Performance in English, and the GSP Award. I was also the master of ceremonies (host) of the program. 

Thank you for sending me a letter. The snow is so nice. I hope I can travel there and see snow someday. Please pray for my father, that he can find a job. Yes, I have accepted Jesus at my personal savior. I am healed from my cough and I am fine now. A doctor prescribed me some medicine and the learning center here bought the medicine. My memory verse is Matthew 4:4, "Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes from the mouth of God." 

Love, 

Rebecca

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This next letter is from Rujikorn. I used to hear from her every 2 months like clockwork, but this letter is the first one I've received from her since January. I'm sure she's been busy with school and the project, etc, so I understand, but I was so glad to hear from her again. She wrote a long, detailed letter, as always. 

Rujikorn is 13 years old and she lives in Thailand. Her letter is dated April 12th, 2018. 

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Dear Kayla, 

Hello! My family and I are doing well. I hope that you and your family are doing well. Thank you so much for your letter. Thank you for the tale and the beautiful pictures. I feel so happy to read it. I laugh because of the three goats. They are so clever and funny. I like them so much. I like the winter in your country so much. I like the pictures as well. It is summer here now. The rainy season will be in a month. I miss Agness and I like her picture so much. I will pray for her studies. May God bless her with wisdom until her graduation day. Thank you so much for your prayers and blessings. I will study hard as often as I can. I will study until I graduate. I would like to get a good job. Thank you for encouraging me and praying for me. I am so blessed and encouraged. I like the tale of Little Red Riding Hood so much. It is a good lesson for me. I will not talk to strangers. I enjoy going to school every day. I always attend the project activities. I enjoy leading the worship service every Sunday. The school is off now and I attended summer camp. We did sports and studied the Bible. God's love never changes and is eternal. Please pray for my studies and my parents' work. I always pray for you. May God bless you and strengthen you. 

Love in Christ,

Rujikorn

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This next letter is from Yeidys and it's actually my very first letter from her. It's a very nice introduction letter and I'm glad to learn all these details about her. I'm really going to enjoy getting to know her. 

Yeidys is 12 years old and is from Colombia. Her letter was written on April 12th, 2018. 

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Dear Kayla, 

May the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you all the days of your life and may you prosper in all that you undertake. I want to tell you some things about me. First of all, I thank God because he keeps me in good health. I am doing very well in school. I want you to know that my name means "imaginative." In my family I am the 2nd child. My height is 150 cm tall. The color of my hair is black and my eyes are dark brown. One thing I know how to do very well is draw and one thing I like doing is singing. I take this opportunity to answer your other questions. My favorite food is chicken soup. My favorite color is yellow. My favorite music is romantic music. My favorite activity is drawing. My mom's name is Martha. My older brother is Eddy Alberto and my younger sister is Greidi Yulisa. My grandmother also lives with us and her name is Teotista. I wish to learn more about you and that is why I look forward to your next letter. I want to ask you to continue praying for me and my family. I give you the verse Romans 8:37. I love you. 

Yeidys Andrea

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I will share one more letter in this post today. It is my very first letter from Jaw-bu-keh. He, along with a tutor, is filling out the introduction template. 

Jaw-bu-keh is 7 years old and is from Thailand. His letter is not dated. 

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1. My favorite toy is: My bicycle 

2. My favorite fruit is: Strawberries 

3. My favorite season is: Winter 

4. My favorite food is: Fish 

5. My favorite color is: Yellow 

6. My favorite animal is: Chicken 

7. I live in the: North 

Dear Sponsor 

I am Miss. Pattaranit and I write this letter from Jaw-bu-keh because he is very young and can't write yet. He is handsome and he's in a good mood. He likes to play in the water with his friends. He has six siblings. He is the fourth child. He wants to know are you the eldest, middle, or youngest child in your family? Please pray for him and his family in their work. their health and their daily life. May God bless you and may you have a lot of happiness. Love in Christ. 

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From the Field Friday: ET-163

After traveling from Ethiopia to the Dominican Republic, we head back to Ethiopia today. I guess we couldn't get enough of that country. :)

Today's letter come from Compassion program ET-163, which is the project my boy Yohannis attends. 

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Dear Kayla, 

My name is Tizazu Fekadu and I am an evangelist in charge of the spiritual area at the Wolenchiti Kale Hiwot Church, which operates the Child Development Center attend by Yohannis. 

May the Lord's ample grace and peace be with you! God bless you for your willingness to collaborate with our center by supporting Yohannis. Your generous help is a great blessing to him. 

The majority of the community in our surrounding area has the lowest living standard, and though the people are engaged in farming, there is a great shortage of harvest. One of the greatest obstacles in the community is the climate change, as there are floods that come which ruin houses and the farmland. The other challenges are lack of potable water, enough medical centers, and shortage of electricity. The great challenge of our church is the lack of resources as the income of its members is very low, which does not enable the church to meet all of the spiritual and material needs. 

The church is doing spiritual works among the community, both in town and in the rural areas by opening various branches. Apart from this, the church supports 30 children from the families most in need and also provides food support for six of these families every three months. The church also gives to the community literacy classes. The vision for the church is to expand in the work of evangelism and in holistic ministry. 

The vision of the center is to support the people with their needs and prepare a way for gospel outreach. As the center is giving holistic support to the children, it helps the children to develop physically, psychologically, spiritually, and socially. Though the center has started operating recently, two families of our children have come to the Lord during our home visits. Now the children want to spend most of their time at the church. We are reaching out to the community with the gospel and we have opened a school for those interested to have the basic knowledge. 

I must tell you that the children who get letters from their sponsors are very happy, whereas those that don't receive letters feel very sad. For this reason, we encourage sponsors to continue to write letters if they can. The letters give hope to the children and show them that someone from far away cares about them. 

Pray for us that we will be able to minister properly to the children and their families that God has given us to take care of. Thanks for all your support for Yohannis. God bless you. 

In Christ,

Pastor Tizazu Fekadu

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A Whole Slew of Updated Photos!

What could be better than a post full of collages of my kids with their latest, updated photo?

Not much, I think.

All photos can be enlarged by clicking on them.

Brisa from Nicaragua

Carolin from Dominican Republic 

Hillary from Kenya

Jhojaira from Peru 

Jhoyra from Peru

Lina from Colombia

Mariza from Nicaragua

Muzuro from Uganda

Rodrigo from Bolivia

From the Field Friday: DR-437

I know that some people aren't huge fans of these letters from pastors or project workers because the information from letter to letter is often repeated. For me, I think that shows how consistent Compassion is across the world, with their core set of standards.

With that being said, I love the individualized details in each letter. It really helps me to picture what each of my children sees, does, experiences on a daily basis. I think these letters are a huge asset to sponsors. I hope Compassion continues to send them each year.

Today's letters is from the Dominican Republic, project #437, which is where my young lady Marinelis attends.

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Dear Kayla, 

I am Antonio Gomez, pastor of the evangelical church, Templo Biblico Bellas Colinas, where we minister to Marinelis in the Child Development Center "Beautiful Hills." 

I want to thank you for the sponsorship and help you have given to Marinelis. 

This community is comprised of people who have moved from other areas in search of inexpensive living, but also includes facilities for professional technical studies and technical vocational centers, where young people can prepare for their future. Some of the greatest challenges that we have here are the proliferation of centers for the sale of alcoholic drinks, youth pregnancy, and the lack of opportunities for personal growth and development. 

It has been almost seven years since our center started, in partnership with Compassion International, with our mission to "Form lives for God for a better world." One of the greatest impacts that we have noted among our young people at the center, compared to youngsters who have not had the opportunity to be blessed with this great advantage is the significant improvement not only in school grades, but also in their physical and spiritual health. Last year, about 25 children professed their faith, and more than half remain firm in the Lord. 

In addition, our center has a water purification plant, which enables us to satisfy a great need in the community by providing drinking water at a low cost. Next month, we will be starting a Bible school for adults during which we hope to have a great impact on the 140 mothers and fathers of the children at our center. Apart from this, on the last Sunday of each month, we have special evangelizing meetings and talks for the parents. We are expecting an attendance of about 160 parents. 

We believe fervently in the relationship that is established through the exchange of letters between you and your sponsored child, which creates a strong bond and which has a very positive impact on the socio-emotional development of the child. These letters make the child feel very special. It is incredible to see the joy on the faces of the children, when the teacher gives them letters from their sponsors. At the same time, however, there can be feelings of sadness among the children who do not receive letters from their sponsors, causing them to think that their sponsors don't love them. 

We are currently working and praying that we will be able to complete the construction of a school and technical vocational center in a space that the Lord God has provided us, thereby enabling us to put our grain of sand in the preparation and formation of our young people. We earnestly beseech you, in the name of the Lord Jesus that you pray fervently with us for the speedy completion of this project, for the benefit of our children and parents, and for the reduction of the evils in our community. 

Thank you for your support of Marinelis. 

May God richly bless you. 

In Christ,

Pastor Antonio Gomez

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From the Field Friday: ET-205

Let's a take a journey to Ethiopia today. This time, to the project that my little one, Zenebu attends.

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Dear Kayla, 

My name is Mekonnen Wasse and I am an evangelist at the Fiche Genet Church that operates the Child Development Center attended by Zenebu. It is located in the town of Fiche, in the north of Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. 

On behalf of the Fiche Genet Church leaders, I extend our great gratitude to you for supporting Zenebu in our community. May God richly bless you. We always pray for you, that God gives you ample grace to sustain you in keeping up with your good works to release her from poverty in Jesus' name. This center is trying as much as possible to reach out to our community's children in the social, physical, economic, and spiritual aspects. 

In the town of Fiche, half of the population has access to potable water and the remaining half lacks this. The situation being so, there are times when a great shortage of water appears during the summer time. The population in our community is comprised of civil servants, businessmen, daily workers, small scale traders, women who weave cotton, etc. The majority of the population lives on a very low income. In our town the people follow various beliefs such as Orthodox, atheists, protestants, and Muslims. When we look at the educational status of inhabitants, there are many of them who have not got the opportunity to learn. There are a lot of situations where many children are attacked by various diseases and face malnutrition. 

In the past years there was a military camp in the town of Fiche, and due to this there are many fatherless children. These children are exposed to various problems. One of the major problems is that these children face child labor abuse to earn their daily bread, rather than learning. When girls reach their teenage level, they start with the sex trade to earn money and have a great chance of being victims of HIV/AIDS. Though the children try hard to overcome these risks, because there are no people or institutions in their area to become good examples for them, their exposure to the above problems and to others is very high. 

For a few now the Fiche Genet Church and the Compassion Ethiopia office have collaborated the engage in solving some of the above problems of the community here. At that time, the center supported 581 children who lacked opportunity of learning and had very great economic constraints. Currently, the center supports 205 children and 347 have completed the program and departed from the center. 

Out of the number of children who have departed from here, 229 have got saved in our Lord Jesus Christ. Others got saved later at their work places. This center has given the opportunity for the church to give holistic ministry to this community. The people in this area are benefiting a lot for having their children join the center. 

Situations indicate to us that we have to work hard to release children from poverty. They need food so that they can learn at their schools comfortably and they need to get enough medical treatment. We need also to support their parents to increase their economy by engaging them in income-generating works. 

I want to tell you that the letters from sponsors and their prayers as well are a great encouragement to the children. When these children receive letters they express very great joy because they realize how much the sponsors love and honor them. Last year we received about 240 letters from sponsors. I encourage you to keep up with your letter communication with the children. 

At last, pray that God gives to all of us success and fulfillment. May God richly bless you for the great works you do for Zenebu. Be blessed! 

In Christ,

Evangelist Mekonnen Wasse

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Assorted Letters from My Older Boys

As promised, here is the third in my "assorted letters" series. Now I get to take the rest of the week to respond to all of these lovely letters. It should be a fun time! These letters are from boys that no longer use the template form to write. Most kids seem to graduate from the template letters around age 9 or so, but that is not a set number and it varies from country to country.

The letters start off with a letter from Dagim. He is relatively new to writing letters with a template, but seems to be coming into his own, personality wise. I hope to have many more years writing to him.

Dagim is 10 years old and lives in Ethiopia. His letter is dated April 14th, 2018.

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Beloved Sponsor Kayla, 

How are you doing? My family and I are fine. I am happy and thankful about the letter you sent to me recently and what you shared with me about Daniel (his assigned prayer partner). I like fruit, salad, ice cream, soccer, and drawing like he does. I also like singing hymns. Please tell Daniel that I pray for him. Formal class is good. Please pray for me to get a good result and also for my family. Let us know about your prayer requests. I love you! 

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The next letter is from Muzuro. This guy has such perfect, but TINY handwriting. I actually had to increase the size on my computer to accurately read what he was writing. I don't know how it does it. It's actually pretty impressive. Plus, this guy is a super letter writer! Like, I'm so moved by his letters. He seems like a pretty special young man. 

Muzuro is 15 years old, from Uganda, and he wrote this letter on April 14th, 2018. 

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Dear Kayla, 

I hope that you are fine, in good weather conditions. I want to thank God for protecting me from childhood up until now. May his named be praised. I was so happy to receive a letter from you. I was very happy to read the story of Little Red Riding Hood from your country. I liked the part when Little Red Riding Hood arrived at her grandmother's house and knocked on the door and the wolf said "come in", pretending to be the grandmother. This is the part that made me laugh. It was enjoyable to me. Please if you write to me again, share another story from your country. I like reading stories. I tell you the thing that pleased me the most was the coloring paper of the car. I am going to color them and put them in my book. Please send me another of a storage building. I want to thank God for giving me talents, for example in playing ball, riding a bicycle, in making items with clay and barbed wire, in drawing, and in dancing. I am praying to God to allow my talents to help my parents so that our family's suffering can change to happiness. 

If God allows us to see each other face to face, we can have a competition in dance. I know I will win. God be with you. Please I ask you to pray for my family so that our suffering can change to better. Sometimes there is no money to buy food and we go without eating something. God be with you. 

Muzuro Michael 

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Letters from this next boy are getting increasingly special for me. Carlos is set to graduate next February and I know that between now and then, there will only be a few more letters between us. I've been writing to Carlos for so long. I'm going to miss him so much.

Carlos is 17 years old and lives in Honduras. He wrote this letter on April 11th, 2018.

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Hello Dear Kayla, 

Are you healthy with your family? I am healthy, thank God. I thank you for sending a letter. I would like to visit your country and meet the people in your family. I would also like to help my grandmother and meet my sponsors through a picture. When I grow up I want to be a teacher. I am doing well in school and doing well with my family. In my country we are in summer. It is very hot most of the time. Here in Honduras we only have two seasons during the year; winter and summer. I would like to play in snow someday. I like the pictures of the vehicles that move snow, so that cars can pass by with no problems. I say goodbye with kisses and hugs. 

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The next letter is from Bryan, who is still very young, but writes nice, long letters. He seems like a very intelligent boy. 

Bryan is 9 years old, is from Nicaragua, and his letter is dated March 17th, 2018. 

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Dear Sponsor Kayla, 

How are you? I hope that you are good. I always think about you. I glorify the Lord because you are my sponsor and you are in my heart. I received your letter. I think it is so interesting the big trees. I could also see in your pictures. It is great! Thank you so much for remembering me. You asked me a question and I want to answer it. I have not had the opportunity to accept Jesus into my heart, but I know that he loves me and that I have to accept him in my heart. I have gone to the circus before, but it is not a good idea to go again because there are magicians there that do magic tricks. I know that those things are not good. 

Besides, I pray for you and your family. I could see the snow in the pictures that you sent me. We do not get snow here because the weather is too warm. Thank you so much for the pages you sent me. 

Thank you very much for remembering me all the time. Please keep praying for me. I have received so many gifts from God. My family and you are very big blessings for me! I hope to meet you some day. I love you so much. 

Your Sponsored Boy,

Bryan

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The next letter is from another one of my boys who is sent to graduate next year. I have just over a year left with him. I do not take that for granted! 

Jhon is 19 years old and lives in Bolivia. His letter is dated March 28th, 2018. 

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Hello Dear Sponsor Kayla, 

I greet you with the peace of the Lord. I tell you that I am well. GAP is a program in which we do acts of service in the community and in my neighborhood. In the Compassion project we do homework and service activities. I have already applied it to painting the classrooms and decorating so that it looks nice. Thanks to God, I did have a good Christmas. I spent Christmas with my family. At midnight we popped fireworks, then we ate barbecue. It was delicious! My best present ever is when I was 12. My parents bought me a video game and I took very good care of it. I tell you that I am studying industrial computer science in an institute and I am in my first semester. I ask God that he allows me to continue ahead. I pray for you so that God blesses you and your family. Please pray for my studies, my health, my family, and my friends. 

With Love,

Jhon

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The last letter of this post comes from my boy Jhonrex. I am so glad to hear that things are going well for him. In his last letter he told me that he was hoping to join a Cell-Group (like a small group), if he could find the time. It looks like he did! 

He is responding to a letter I wrote to him in APRIL and it was STILL SNOWING. It is much warmer (and even hot) here now. 

Jhonrex is 17 years old and is from the Philippines. His letter is dated April 21st, 2018.

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Dear Kayla ,

Hello. How are you? If you ask about me and my family, we are okay. Thank you for the letters you sent. You talked about last new year and Christmas and how cold it is where you live. I also received letters that had photos of bulldozers and of you with your family. I am glad that you continue writing to me and praying for me. 

About our weather here it is now hot because it is summer. But there in your place, it is still very cold, so please take care of yourself. I am now in a cell-group with only four other members. We study the Bible, learn about God, and pray for one another. About school, I am still pursuing Alternative Learning School because I still desire to finish studying. I am also assisting the teachers here in our center. We teach the small children. 

Please pray that I will be in good health always. Also for my family. What activities do you do there during the winter? Do you enjoy it? 

I end this message now. Thank you for your unending support. God bless you. 

Respectfully Yours,

Jhonrex

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