The cards were spread across the table and handed out like party invitations to anyone willing to take one.

I raised my hand and was handed a card. His little face stared at me, with eyes that were too serious, too knowledgeable of hardship and pain, to belong to a 6-year-old. I watched as people walked up to the table, picked up a card and changed a child’s life.

Compassion International is an organization that helps children in impoverished and dangerous countries all over the world by getting each a sponsor, who donates a set amount of money each month to the child’s education, health and hygiene and food, if necessary. The cost to sponsor a child is $38 a month. Along with assisting the child physically and educationally, Compassion International focuses on the spiritual needs of each family, providing a safe, Christ-centered environment that frequently shares the gospel to the children and teaches them self-confidence and social skills.

Over 1,400,000 children are being sponsored through Compassion International, with 122,588 mothers and children accepting Christ as their Savior.

My Compassion child’s name is Ryon Das. He lives in Bangladesh, and his favorite things to do are play marbles and go on picnics. He wants to be a doctor when he grows up. I have sponsored him for over a year, and I have learned how blessed I am to be 18 and support a child on my own. I don’t even notice the money being gone. We have so much, and maybe, instead of buying things we don’t need, we can use that money to completely change someone’s life. Maybe by giving these children a new chance, we can impact the next generation and ultimately, impact the world.