The relationship you build with your sponsored child through letter writing is crucial in helping meet your child’s needs.
A study we carried out in Peru, Rwanda, Guatemala and Thailand reported that:
- More than 90 percent of children strongly experience joy, love, encouragement and a sense of belonging when they receive letters from their sponsors.
- Many children who receive letters are more likely to pray and are more self-motivated to improve their circumstances.
- Children who receive letters feel more motivated at school and church activities, and they consistently demonstrate greater confidence, including behaviors such as an ability to care, awareness of generosity and sharing, ability to communicate, obedience and helpfulness.
- Virtually all children who receive sponsor letters keep them forever, regularly reading and rereading them, particularly when they are discouraged.
Over and over, graduates from our Child Sponsorship Program point to your letters and prayers as the two things above all others that gave them hope, courage, and the belief that they could overcome their circumstances.
Your letters can inspire your sponsored child to study harder at school, to be more confident in his relationships, and to draw closer to God. But sometimes it's difficult to know what to write when writing.
To help get you started, and writing regularly, we offer 80 letter-writing prompts on current events, food, your spiritual life, your childhood, and several other topics.
The prompts are questions for you to answer about yourself, but many of them can serve as letter-writing ideas and questions you can ask your sponsored child too.
You can also use this GREAT acronym to guide you.
- G — Greetings
- R — Remember something your sponsored child has said and build on it.
- E — Explain something about yourself or your world. This is where our letter-writing prompts come in.
- A — Ask your sponsored child a question. The letter-writing prompts work here too. Just turn them around.
- T — Toodle loo! Say your goodbyes. This is a great place to share a Bible verse and a word of encouragement.
Letter-Writing Prompts About Current Events
- What’s something significant occurring in your town or region right now?
- How are you praying about a significant event in your child’s country or region?
- What does the Bible say in relation to a current event that concerns you?
- How do you overcome anxiety when facing worrisome events?
- What goals have you set for yourself? How much progress have you made?
- What news has recently made you happy?
- How has a recent event impacted your faith?
- How does your life fit into a larger trend or situation in your area?
- What role has your church played in an area event?
- Why do you care about what’s happening around you?
Write a Letter Now >
Special thanks to Rachelle Dawson, Compassion sponsor, full-time mom and part-time freelance writer and editor, for sharing these prompts with us.