God will speak to us through whispers, but it is often the hit-you-over-the-head “kablammo!” moments that move us in decisions.
Let me explain.
When my wife and I decided to take on the task of helping to find sponsors for these wonderful kids around the world through Compassion we had a slightly different view as to how we would approach this feat.
Anyone who knows my wife knows that she is, well, enthusiastic when she finds something she believes in. Don’t believe me? Scroll down to From Skeptics to Sponsors and Mountains of Beans. I, like most men, wear my enthusiasm a bit more on the inside.
But make no mistake, this is a program that has me enthusiastic.
Frankly, if we didn’t really, really, believe in what the folks in Compassion are trying to do, we wouldn’t have thrown our time into this effort. As we all know, time is often as precious as money these days.
But as differently as we may approach our efforts with Compassion, we agreed to two things: We would follow God’s lead, and we would not use guilt to find sponsors for kids.
Unless God tells us to use guilt. Then all bets are off.
Rather, we want little more than for would-be sponsors, skeptics, and those already who have taken this step to simply listen for the whispers and watch for the “kablammos!”
This is something that I experienced recently, prior to the decision to sponsor our fourth child, Frank, from Tanzania -- the beautiful little boy who reminded us so much of our son, Samuel, who’s the same age.
I’d like to say that there’s never been any hesitation in our decisions to sponsor. As Shan said in an earlier post, it wasn’t something we considered until we were directly asked, if not challenged. I’d like to say that wasn't the case, but I can’t.
And I’m not especially proud of that.
In the days following us first coming across Frank’s profile we both quickly felt that tug. If you haven’t felt that “tug” yet, you will if you consider sponsorship.
But then our “common sense” kicks in, and dogs us with questions like “Are we getting too carried away with this? Can we afford it in this economy?"
All those questions were answered by a man wearing a visor at a drive-through window, as I was rushing home with supper one night for our family of six.
“That will be $32.27,” he said, quickly ducking back into his drive-thru shelter with a bank card that I had handed over with no hesitation.
With no hesitation. For a bag full of miscellaneous meat bits, grease and an inevitable stomach ache later.
And all that for about $3 less than monthly sponsorship for Frank.
And there it was. The “kablammo!” moment that made it clear to me that not only can we afford to do this, we should. And we did.
Don't feel guilty, but do take the time this month to allow yourself to see those kablammo moments – and to hear the whispers as well – which might reveal just how possible sponsorship may be for you.
