Uncovering God’s Hidden Treasure

Guest Post By:  Shana Reece

Struck by the Vision

“As the wind and pressure blew my face and hair I could squint through the bright daylight and see a beautiful lush land full of resources passing quickly beneath me. I sensed God whispering in my ear saying…”There are bright spots. There are places and people to uncover. Ethiopia has everything it needs, we just need to help them uncover the hidden gems.” – Jennifer Bridges

When I first read these words written by Jennifer, I felt my heart crying out “Yes! Yes! Yes!” This vision (so clearly God’s heart for His precious children) coupled with Jen’s passion; fueled by faithful giving, prayer and encouragement of friends and family launched the Bright Spot Sponsorship program in the spring of 2013. The uncovering of precious gems began.

God has allowed my family to have the privilege of sponsoring children through several different organizations. Each child, each family becomes part of the heartbeat of our family. Their pictures hang in our dining room; our children hold them in their prayers. So, when the Bright Spot sponsorship program began, we asked ourselves, “How is this program different? What impact will this program have?”

Personal – Relational

In Matthew 10:30, Jesus tells us that “even the very hairs of your head are all numbered” by God. Imagine, our Creator loving us so deeply that not only did He create us in His image, but He cherishes the minute details of His creation. He knows each hair! (Yes, even the white one that was sticking straight out of the top of my head. The one I “lovingly” plucked out while my daughters watched giggling hysterically!)

God is in the details of our lives. He called us to love; to love one another. He lives in us. His love is made complete in us. Imagine. So we share. We share what He has given us. We share our love. We share our resources. We share our time. We yearn to dive deep into the details of the lives of those God has put in our care, has put us in fellowship with.

“Dear friends, since God so loved us, we also ought to love one another. No one has ever seen God; but if we love one another, God lives in us and his love is made complete in us.” 1 John 4:11-12

Even now, as Jennifer sits among the Bright Spot families, God’s love is pouring in and through her. While we cannot sit with her, she is developing a personal relationship with each child, each mother, father, guardian. Jennifer and the team hand-carry basic necessities, personal notes and gifts from sponsors; and they plan simple (yet so eye-opening) art projects and activities to teach and strengthen the bond of friendship. While in Ethiopia she is being the very hands and feet of Jesus; helping to provide for their physical needs, teaching His word, tending to wounds, encouraging their souls.

Going Deep

When I think about discovering and uncovering precious gems I don’t envision simply tripping over a mound in my path, dusting it off and admiring it. I envision careful scrutiny of surroundings, gentle prodding and finally slowly kneeling on the ground to brush off years of layer upon layer of dust… then holding the gem dearly, inspecting each facet, knowing its value is precious.

God has put this longing in my family’s heart: To truly know the children whom God has called us to sponsor; to be faithful friends, to be an encouragement, and to provide for their needs. The Bright Spot program has allowed our family to begin a very personal relationship with the children and as a family with young children; it has given us many teachable moments.

When we received our fall updates, our son was deeply moved by the fact that his friend T. (just 7 years old) was scared of hyenas. We talked about how as it was T’s responsibility to watch over the animals, he would often have to go out at night, in pure darkness, hearing the call of the hyenas in order to gather the animals and bring them in their small hut in order to protect them. Imagine.

Our son was touched and concerned. Like many children his age, he fears the dark… and I am quite sure he would fear a hyena. At the same time, Embrace Compassion had begun its fundraising efforts for solar. Having sold some of his toys throughout the summer, our son eagerly ran to his bank asking how much it would cost to get his friend T. a solar torch and his family one too so that if T. had to go outside, they would not be left in the dark. I was touched. I was inspired.

Then a precious teachable moment came just a few weeks ago. At the Embrace Compassion Christmas party, our family had won one of the solar torches in a raffle. At first, our intention was to donate it to the village. But, Jen insisted that our son keep it as a reminder of the gift he had given to T. God knew. God used the gift in a precious way. One of the light bulbs in our son’s bedroom had gone out (one!). As my husband went to replace the light one night, our son’s room was dark and he was scared. I told him to find his torch. It was tucked away in his bedside stand drawer. Using the attached hook, we hung it from his curtain rod and the light penetrated the darkness marvelously… but my son was still nervous. So, we sat, him holding a framed picture of T. and talked about the “scary” things outside his room: his sisters for one; their Polly Pocket dolls, the brightly lit hallway (oh wait!)… and compared it to what lay outside his friend T.’s door. It led to a precious time of prayer and peace. It led to an unforgettable moment when God’s light shown down on my son, opening his eyes once again to His precious blessings.

Love

Synonyms for Love = Admire – Care for – Cherish – Treasure – Be Fond of – Delight in – Hold Dear

It has been a joy for me to have the privilege of helping in the administration of the program. I love details. I love relationships. I love organization. I love seeing hearts connect. I love seeing individuals and families step forward in faith to be a blessing and be blessed in return. I love hearing stories of young children making jam and bookmarks to help with the sponsorship of their family’s friend.

I love listening to my children tell others about their sweet friends in Ethiopia. I love shopping with my children to pick out just the perfect item for the personal Ziplock bags we send with Jen twice a year. I love sitting side by side my son as we loom knit hats, imagining one day holding a picture of our precious friends wearing what we are creating.

Though I have never met them, I love knowing each child by name, recognizing their faces in photos, knowing details of their family’s lives, their successes, their struggles. I love seeing the impact through pictures and stories coming back from Ethiopia. I love seeing transformation.

Transformation

This fall, as I was putting together the reports for the sponsors and printing updated pictures, I came across a face I simply didn’t recognize. I looked. I pondered. I looked at my list again. I looked at the photo. Then I saw it! The face of the child had completely changed… simply unrecognizable to me! In his original photo, he was withdrawn, sullen, downcast and carrying heavy burdens. But in this photo… his face was so filled with joy and hope, I didn’t recognize him. Holding a precious pair of new shoes in one hand and a picture of his new American friend in the other… hope abounded. Hope. Precious hope. A simple gift of love. Simple words of encouragement. Unspeakable, unrecognizable hope.

We currently have 26 Bright Spot children in our program representing 11 families. Jen has identified an additional 5 on this trip so far and we are diligently praying as God nudges her and gently points out the gems to be uncovered. This is such a precious opportunity. Are you ready to see a life transformed? To help uncover a precious gem and help him/her to shine as the stars in the sky?

If so, I would cherish the opportunity to share more information with you: shana@embracecompassion.org

Blessings!
Shana

And before you go: here is some information regarding the program from the Embrace Compassion brochure.

Connect. Share. Love.

Connecting with a child personally is a blessing both for the donor and for the child. Often times, education is available for children at little or no cost but they are excluded from school because they do not have shoes, uniforms or basic supplies. We hope to change this by providing these basic necessities and encourage the child to stay in school with the loving connection to their American friend sponsor.

Our ultimate hope is that these children and their communities will come to know Jesus, if they don’t know Him already. He is the only one who can truly make a lasting impact in a community, from the inside out.
Hope. Opportunity.

E., our oldest Bright Spot, has miraculously started in a medical program through a generous scholarship. A young man who had been destined to be a farmer in an area where not enough land could really sustain another generation, now has been given new hope to provide medical care in our very own village. Because we choose to go deep with our children for lasting relationships, we are already working with E. on a 4-year plan to open a clinic that would bring much needed medical care to our very rural community.

Each child is being given the opportunity to thrive, to learn and to be encouraged to give back as they take hold of each opportunity.

For $40 a month, you can begin your sponsorship today.