Paul, a new sponsor, wrote about his recent trip to Ethiopia.
On the last days of my trip to Ethiopia, I found myself with a handful of leftover birr — the local currency. My first thought was simple: I’ll buy some things for the child I started sponsoring during the trip. Clothes, toys, little items that any three‑year‑old I’d known in America would surely enjoy.
But time ran out, and instead, I joined the team for their very first home‑food delivery to a few of the families in the program.
What happened next changed my understanding of sponsorship forever.
When we stepped into their homes, I immediately realized how different their reality was from what I had imagined.
There was no electricity. No running water. No bathroom. No storage space. No closet where extra clothes could be tucked away, or bedrooms where toys would be strewn about until eventually picked up as a chore before a special weekend of fun.
And in that moment, it hit me: Sponsorship isn’t about giving children “things.” It’s about meeting basic survival needs and serving them through Christ.
Food. Clean water. Basic clothing. Medical care. Education. A safe home. A Christian community of support.
These are the things sponsorship makes possible — the things that allow a family to plan, to breathe, to have faith and to hope.
I saw this truth again when I met another child whose mother sells small hygiene items on the medians of busy roads. She works long hours in the sun, often earning just enough to feed her children for the day. Because her daughter was born outside the city, she had no birth certificate — which meant she couldn’t attend school.
Something so simple for us — a document, a form, a process — was completely out of reach for this family. When survival is the daily goal, even routine paperwork becomes a luxury.
But sponsorship changes that.
With consistent support, this mother can now count on food. She can count on medical care. She can focus on what is next: her daughter being able to attend school. She can count on the stability she has never had before.
And because she can count on those things, she can finally move to the next level of life — the level where hope grows.
Scripture tells us:
– “Defend the weak and the fatherless; uphold the cause of the poor and the oppressed.” (Psalm 82:3)
– “Whoever is generous to the poor lends to the Lord, and He will repay him for his deed.” (Proverbs 19:17)
– “Whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for Me.” (Matthew 25:40)
Sponsorship is one of the clearest ways we can live out these commands. It is stewardship. It is compassion. It is obedience. It is love in action.
And it is changing lives — not just for the children, but for the families, the communities, and the sponsors themselves.
If you’ve ever wondered whether sponsorship truly matters, I can tell you with confidence: it does. I’ve seen it. I’ve felt it. I’ve stood in the homes of families whose lives are being transformed because someone said “yes.”
Would you like to sponsor a child for $40/month? Visit hopeinview.org/sponsorship to get started.