Part I, by Jason

Almost six years ago I picked up a packet of information and brought it back to my Baylor Apartment. On the outside of the packet was the picture of a five year old girl from Thailand named Sirinya. I filled out the required information, I wrote that first check, and then I placed it in the mail. It all began with the urging of a friend that believes in an organization called Compassion International. I have always retained a bit of skepticism toward organizations like Compassion, wondering where the money really goes. Those thoughts are long gone. I have letters, I have the drawings from a sweet little Thai girl, and now, I have the memory of a smile that I will never forget.

In early June, Christy and I traveled with a guide to Chiang Rai to meet the child that I have sponsored through Compassion for 5 1/2 years. Days after meeting her, thoughts of our visit still consumed my mind. In a few hours years of sponsorship and letters became real, and Sirinya took a piece of my heart. I’m sure I should have expected this, but it came as a bit of a surprise to me.

We have been working with marginalized people in this country for over 10 months now. The experience of meeting Sirinya, her grandparents, her schoolmates, and the Compassion project workers was educational, but understandably, nothing that we saw was shocking. We have grown accustomed to the people here and to the poverty in which some of them live. Stepping into the reality of a village or a family in need is simply something that we do. Still, Sirinya’s smile, her beautiful personality, her world, her story, and our shared history of scattered letters filled my heart. It was like meeting a daughter that I didn’t know I had. The meeting was brief, but when we left there was a feeling that I could not quite understand – it didn’t make sense to me. Weeks have passed now and I think I have the words – it’s love – love for someone that we barely know, but still – its love

Part II, by Christy

I imagine it was a day of both heartache and joy. A woman breathed her last as the cries of her newborn surged in to fill the void in the room. A family of 11 now became a family of 10. Who would care for this baby? What must it have been like for my friend Wah to hold her baby sister as she stood so near the lifeless body of her mother?

Wah describes this time in her life as, “tiring.” In the face of grief, this slight teen looked at her sister, gripped her faith, and accepted her responsibility. She continued to attend school, yet struggled to stay awake as she rose every few hours each night to care for her sister.

In the face of such opposition, it must have been tempting to step away from her education to take on the role of mother, but Wah persevered. Her family lived simply and did not have money for luxuries. She told me recently that when she was a child she did not eat eggs or snacks because there was no money in her village for such things. When I asked her to recommend a nice gift for a child who is in a similar situation, she smiled and said, “Clothes!” When she was young she dreamed of having beautiful new clothes.

I have never heard Wah utter a complaint about the hand she was dealt. I attribute this to her strong relationship with Christ. She was introduced to faith at a young age, and one of the strongest Christian influences in Wah’s life was Compassion International. Wah was a Compassion child. God worked through Compassion and Wah’s sponsors to provide her with an education and the hope of a bright future.

Nearly a decade has passed since Wah received her final month of sponsorship. She is now employed at UHDP as the Office Manager. This is her “official” title, but she cringes every time it is uttered. She does not consider herself a “boss” or “manager” but strives to be a servant to everyone around her. She is succeeding. I have lived numerous places and have known many people, but I have rarely been in the presence of one as generous and kind as Wah. Most evenings, she invites Jason and me to eat the food she has prepared. She shares her time and her love with us. She does this because she loves people and she believes this is what Christ would do.

Too often we enter into this thing called “mission” with the hope of changing those around us. We pack our bags with clothes and education, and head into the world intent on transforming those in our path. What a beautiful reminder it is to step back and recognize that in the midst of our pride, God does in fact transform. He transforms us. He has used Wah to transform me. Her service, her smile, and her kindness have reminded me what it means to be the hands and feet, the incarnation, of Christ to another. This, my friends is mission.