Can we ever really trust charities?

June 12, 2014
by Rodney Olsen
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I’ve heard some terrible stories of money given to help those in need being diverted and misused. I’ve heard of people traveling overseas to see projects they’ve funded only to find that those projects don’t really exist.

Thankfully, most organisations that are set up to make a real difference in this world are honest and are doing good work, but the question remains, how do we know who we can really trust? Do we simply give up and refuse to donate or is there a better way?

Charity Navigator

Charity Navigator is an independent charity evaluator which works to inform those of us who want to help others but need to know if the money we give is actually doing what it should be doing. They check the financial health, accountability and transparency of 7,500 charities. Those put under the microscope range from faith based and secular agencies working in developing countries to organisations working within the U.S. for causes like fighting cancer through to a foundation giving grants to shooting sports. They’ve just released their 13th annual research findings.

As someone who works for Compassion, I’m more than happy to be able to point people to independent evaluations of our work. I know that what we do is making a huge difference because I’ve seen it first hand, but being able to say to people, “Don’t just take my word for it” is extremely important. It’s good to see that Compassion has once again found itself at the top of the ratings.

For the 13th consecutive year, Compassion International has earned the highest rating for U.S. charities from Charity Navigator—the nation’s largest charity evaluator. The 4-out-of-4 stars rating places Compassion International in the top one-percent of non-profits reviewed by Charity Navigator. – PR Web

Wow. Once again Compassion is in the top 1% of the 7,500 charities that were reviewed. As you can imagine, that gives me extreme confidence when I talk to friends, supporters, pastors and churches about how Compassion truly is releasing children from poverty in Jesus’ name. Charity Navigator’s Vice President Sandra Miniutti explains a little of what that actually means for those looking for an effective way of helping those in need of our help.

“Receiving a consistently ‘exceptional’ designation from Charity Navigator indicates that Compassion International out performs most other charities in America,” said Charity Navigator Vice President Sandra Miniutti.“Less than a dozen of the 7,500 charities we rate have received 13 consecutive 4-star evaluations and Compassion International is the only international charity to receive this distinction. Compassion International’s staff, board and supporters should be proud of its ability to consistently execute its mission in a fiscally responsible and ethical way.” – PR Web

I work for Compassion because I am convinced that there is no more effective organisation serving the world’s poor. I have seen no other method of working with those in poverty that even comes close to the way that Compassion is working.

That’s not the marketing spin of someone who works for the organisation, it’s the heartfelt conviction of someone who has seen the light streaming in to some very dark corners of this world and wants to be part of seeing more light and hope filling the lives of those around the world who are the poorest of the poor.

“Financial integrity is of vital importance to Compassion International,” said Santiago “Jimmy” Mellado, president and CEO of Compassion International. “Our entire ministry model is built around trust. The families of the children we serve trust that we will care for and minister to them; our sponsors and donors trust we will spend their dollars wisely in pursuit of that ministry. We trust our global network of local churches to deliver Compassion’s holistic child development program, and we have complete trust in God to bless and multiply our efforts as we advocate for some of the poorest children in the world.” – PR Web

If you are keen to see the end of extreme poverty, can I encourage you to do the research and find an organisation you can trust to do the job they promise to do. For me, the results are in and they point directly to Compassion. If you want to find out more about what Compassion does, just head to the website.



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Don’t Waste Your Life

March 28, 2014
by Rodney Olsen
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shells

I read John Piper’s book Don’t Waste Your Life some time back and was struck by the following illustration of what he considered to be a wasted life.

“I will tell you what a tragedy is. I will show you how to waste your life. Consider a story from the February 1998 edition of Reader’s Digest, which tells about a couple who “took early retirement from their jobs in the Northeast five years ago when he was 59 and she was 51. Now they live in Punta Gorda, Florida, where they cruise on their 30 foot trawler, play softball and collect shells.”

At first, when I read it I thought it might be a joke. A spoof on the American Dream. But it wasn’t. Tragically, this was the dream: Come to the end of your life—your one and only precious, God-given life—and let the last great work of your life, before you give an account to your Creator, be this: playing softball and collecting shells.

Picture them before Christ at the great day of judgment: ‘Look, Lord. See my shells.’ That is a tragedy. And people today are spending billions of dollars to persuade you to embrace that tragic dream. Over against that, I put my protest: Don’t buy it. Don’t waste your life.”

When I finally ‘retire’ I want to continue to contribute to building a kingdom that will last forever. That’s just what Bob and Christine are doing. Take five minutes to watch the video and let them inspire you.

You might not be able to commit all your time and resources in the way that Bob and Christine are doing but maybe you could consider sponsoring a child through Compassion.

You may even decide that you’d like to do a little more and help organise a Compassion Sunday for your church.

Whatever you do, don’t waste your life.



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Melissa has a dream

February 1, 2014
by Rodney Olsen
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Do you know what it’s like to have no dreams or hopes for tomorrow? Most of us go through difficult times when it feels like our dreams have been lost but can you imagine what it would be like to have never have had dreams?

One of the most devastating effects of poverty is the lack of hope for the future.

When people are locked into poverty they don’t see a place for higher education because they know that all life will hold for them is hard manual work, very low wages and day by day survival. The idea that life can be different or better never occurs to people in that kind of poverty because they’ve seen the same pattern over and over through their family history.

When Compassion starts working with poor communities through the local church, things start to change.

One of the benefits that Compassion brings is the ability to dream big dreams.

Children that are sponsored through Compassion fill out something called “My Dream for Tomorrow” once a year from the time they turn 12. They write down what they want to do with their lives. They are encouraged to think beyond what has happened in the past and look ahead to a very different future.

The good news is that it’s not about a vain hope. Compassion’s local church partners don’t just ask children to dream, they help them to plan towards achieving dreams and then look at how they can continue to equip children to reach their dreams.

Today I met Melissa and she has a dream.

From the age of 12 Melissa has dreamed of being a teacher. She’s now 18 and is working as a secretary for the Compassion program in her local church, the same program that she attended from when she was very young, the same place she learned how to dream. They church is in the highlands in Java, surrounded by thick forest. It’s a beautiful setting but poverty is still a very real part of the community.

Melissa told us today that her dream is still alive. She wants to get some more experience working with the children at the church and then, at some future stage, go to university to fulfil her dream. That’s powerful.

Compassion is currently working with around 1.4 million children worldwide. That means that there are hundreds of thousands of dreams waiting to be fulfilled. Where there was hopelessness there is now hope. There are now many, many children looking ahead to tomorrow instead of just trying to survive another day. If you’re already sponsoring a child through Compassion, that’s a big part of what your sponsorship is doing.

Do you realise that you can give a child the gift of a dream? Please give a child hope for the future by sponsoring a child through Compassion, and release them from poverty in Jesus name.

(In case you haven’t seen my last two posts, I am currently in Indonesia seeing the amazing work being done by local churches in partnership with Compassion.)



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It Works

February 1, 2014
by Rodney Olsen
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Indonesia truly is a beautiful country. Well, I can’t really say it’s all beautiful because I’ve only seen a small segment of this diverse and densely populated area, but what I’ve seen is remarkable.

Being comprised of thousands of islands and having a population heading towards a quarter of a billion, I’m sure it would take years to get a true taste of what Indonesia can offer.

Indonesia, officially the Republic of Indonesia, is a sovereign state in Southeast Asia and Oceania. Indonesia is an archipelago comprising approximately 17,508 islands. – Wikipedia

Yesterday our group travelled for several hours on flood damaged roads, through urban areas and leafy forests, to visit a rural area where there is a small church with a very big heart.

The church partners with Compassion to serve the local community, seeking out the poorest of those within its reach to provide practical help. They do this through Compassion’s Child Survival Program, helping mums and their babies, and through the Child Sponsorship Development Program. Both of these programs are truly releasing children from poverty in Jesus’ name.

Where do you turn when you are a single woman whose parents have passed away and you discover that you are pregnant as the result of being raped?

We met such a woman yesterday. She makes just 30 cents a day by making false eyelashes for a local business. She told us yesterday about the hope that she has found by being part of the Child Survival Program.

Her son is now two years of age, and while she still faces many struggles, she knows she can depend on the help of her local church whenever there is a need. The church’s partnership with Compassion means that if there is a health issue, like there was a couple of months ago when her baby was weak from diarrhea, there is medical help available. Most of us wouldn’t consider diarrhea to be a major problem, but in many parts of the world it is a major cause of death among young children.

One of the great things about the Child Survival Program is that the mums who take part not only learn about better nutrition and childcare for themselves, they are spreading the message to dozens of others in their area, so the reach of Compassion’s work just keeps on multiplying.

There’s so much more I could say about this one small church and how their partnership with Compassion is making a major difference in their community. Their 76 year old pastor still travels by motorbike, with his wife, to preach at five churches every Sunday. The love he has for his people and the community they serve is clearly evident.

This is just an incredibly small snapshot of all we saw and the stories we heard yesterday. I wonder what today will bring. I can assure you that when you partner with Compassion, your giving is making a real difference in the lives of real people.

Why not consider sponsoring a child through Compassion today, and you too can help to release a child from poverty in Jesus’ name.



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The Hardest and Easiest of Times

December 22, 2013
by Rodney Olsen
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compassion

Wednesday the 27th of November, 2013. It was the beginning of something new. It was the beginning of a difficult journey that has been one of the easiest upon which I’ve ever embarked.

I’ve worked in radio for a long time. Over 25 years in all. My most recent time in radio lasted nine and a half years so when I started telling people that I was leaving radio to work for Compassion Australia I had quite a variety of responses. Many talked about it being a huge change and about how courageous it was.

Big change? Courageous? I suppose they were thinking about how big a step it is for a 50 year old man to be changing careers. I have to admit that until friends started drawing my attention to it I hadn’t really considered it to be such a major change. I always knew there’d be a steep learning curve and that I would have to master a range of new skills but it all just seemed so natural and logical to me.

My passion to help those in poverty has been growing over many years so the opportunity to be more closely involved with an organisation that is recognised as being a world leader in poverty relief was an easy step to take. It just makes perfect sense.

Compassion works to release children from poverty in Jesus’ name. The photo above is one I took while visiting some of the children Compassion was releasing from poverty in Dominican Republic back in 2008.

Over the last few weeks my brain has been spinning with everything I’ve been learning. My new job is indeed very different to my last job but as someone who has simply wanted to be where I believe God wants me, it’s just another step on the pathway.

So … in some ways this change has been the hardest of times, and there is still plenty of learning and adjustments to come, but it’s also been one of the most natural and easy things I’ve ever done.



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