In The Words of a Sponsor: Cindy
My Burundian sisters are my family. Through their letters, I learn about their lives, their joys and their struggles. They share with me about how their children are doing in life and in school, and I am privileged to pray for them. I can’t imagine a time that I won’t be caring for my sisters; they are family.
I first became a Sister Connection sponsor in 2004, when Sister Connection began as an outreach for women at my church. Hearing about the plight of Burundi’s widows touched a deep place in my heart. I had just become a single mom, and had suffered through some very traumatic and difficult times. I felt that reaching out to others who were suffering would help to bring healing to my family, and it did. My four children and I became more outwardly focused on the needs and sufferings of others. I let my two daughters chose our first two sisters: Marie Goreth and Therese. We then we set out to learn all we could about the country of Burundi, the culture, and what life was like for our sisters.
Over time, my children and I connected to additional widows, and we now provide for six widowed families through Sister Connection.
One Sunday afternoon in 2005, I happened upon a women's ministry meeting that Denise Patch was leading. They were discussing a 'sister who was homeless' and ways to raise money to build a home for her. At first I thought that they were talking about one of the sisters at our church. I was astonished to learn that it was one of our sisters in Burundi, and that it would only take a few hundred dollars to build a home for her. Thoughts raced through my head...'Only a few hundred dollars could build a home’. I hadn’t even considered the possibility that our Burundian sisters could be homeless. As my thoughts continued to tumble, God started a work on my heart. I leaned forward and said, 'Let’s build them all homes! Surely we can do a fundraiser and get it done!' Denise told me to go for it! I organized a church yard sale and several people got on board. God blessed our efforts, and we raised enough money to build or repair 18 homes!
During the sale we had a table set up for widows needing sponsorship. Several pictures were displayed and during the sale a picture of one of the sisters laid heavy on my heart, Nyangazi Njerina. A few days after the sale I asked if Nyangazi had found a sponsor. Denise told me that she had not, so I decided to sponsor her. Shortly thereafter I paid off one of my debts, so I chose to sponsor another three sisters. One of the three had been waiting for sponsorship from the very beginning and another didn’t have a picture, Butoyi Spes. The Lord had blessed me so much since I began sponsoring my first two sisters, that surely he would provide for these sisters through me as well. And He has!
As a result of the fundraiser, my sister Therese received a home. Her home was in horrible disrepair and falling down around her and the 11 children in her care. An elderly widow in her late 70s, Therese had a beautiful heart and she loved the Lord with every bit of her being. She had great joy in knowing that her children also loved the Lord. You could see the joy of the Lord in her eyes. Before sponsorship, life was very difficult for her; she had begun to wonder if the Lord had forgotten her. Her earthly life was a heavy burden, but she had a big God.
Here is an excerpt from her first letter to me...
| "...I thank God who has saved me from sin, and who has been my comforter and good counselor....it is beyond my thoughts and praises be to God...I was hopeless, wondering if God really remembers me....Now God has answered my prayers through you....Yes! He sees and remembers me!" |
Isn’t it beautiful that she praises God in the midst of her suffering, and her joy is that the orphans she cares for love Jesus? Our sponsorship sings the love of God to these widows and orphans.
Sponsorship has not only changed the lives of my Burundian sisters, it has changed my life and that of my family. Sponsorship has helped heal our own hurts and it has changed our hearts. We have never lacked for anything, and the Lord has poured out his blessings on us. Sponsorship has clearly put my life into perspective, and shown me the glory of God. The greatest blessing for me is to see the love of God through my sisters and to be able to call them family.
