Nothing can Separate us…
“For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.”
– Romans 8:38-39
Tears roll down my face. I am sitting in front of my computer at the mission center office, translating a letter from a sponsor to their sponsored child.
I start thinking about why I am crying. The letter is not written to me. I am simply responsible for delivering the original thoughts of the writer to the recipient, without anything getting lost in translation. But though I am not the intended final destination of the words on the pages, I find myself personally comforted by them. There are hard weeks, and this was one of those weeks. Of course, no one besides God knew the ins and outs of my personal struggles. Yet it is like the sponsor who wrote this letter knew.
“Though it may not always be right away, God will answer your prayers. Even though it may not be in the way you desire, God responds in a way that is better than we could ever imagine. You have power and I believe Holy Spirit who is with you will lead you in the most incredible path.”
They seem to be speaking directly to me, acknowledging my struggles, and giving me a pat on the back, encouraging me to continue moving forward.
But that is not the entirety of why I am touched. It is like I can tangibly feel the weight of love the sponsor has and wants to deliver to their child, a child they never even met in person and yet endearingly call them “My dear beloved daughter…”
I can almost picture the sponsor as they carefully consider and pray about how to respond to what their sponsored child shared with them regarding the harsh reality and giants they face. This isn’t an ordinary love. It is a love that knows no bounds and cannot be constrained; it is the love of Jesus.
And the thing is…we all are formed by our Creator to respond to love. I am blessed to witness the blossoming relationship between a sponsor and sponsored child within the love of Christ. The impact on the child is so evident in the following correspondences.
“I send you my thanks for answering my letter and I ask that you pray for me. I will not let the enemy conquer me; I love the two of you very much.”
“I live alone with my mother and brother. When I was young, my father abandoned me and I never received a gift from him and never came for my birthdays. He wasn’t there when I first entered school and yet you always remembered me.”
“You and your wife’s letters are more precious to me than any material support. Please give me some advice on how to overcome any difficulty I may face. Just as parents tell good stories to their daughters, you are like a father that God has sent me.”
Though this sponsored child doesn’t have much interaction with her biological father, God sent her another father who would be a channel of His wondrous love. And for the sponsored child, it is of far greater worth than anything else the world can offer.
The impact you can have on the life of your sponsored child is likely beyond your imagination! There is a possibility that God will use you to even touch unsuspecting others. Nothing can ever separate us from the love of God! What great love it is.
If you would like to write a letter to the children you are sponsoring,
you can write it on personal stationery or stationery we have provided. You can also write it online at www.coj.org.
We ask that you be a messenger of dreams and hopes during difficult times.
