Timothy would send him hand drawings and told the President how much he liked art, so he sent over color pencils, sketch pads, and paint, i waited for my staff to go to the Philippines and send it with them. They would then bring it to the church Timothy was a part of, so he could collect his gifts.

Wess Stafford

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Every child you encounter is a divine appointment.

Wess Stafford

encounters compassion children

Children are more than we think they are; they can do more than we think they can do. All they need is a vote of confidence from grownups, whom they will ultimately replace anyway. Their dream today will become the realities of tomorrow.

Wess Stafford

dream children thinking

Joy is a decision, a really brave one, about how you are going to respond to life.

Wess Stafford

decision brave joy

I have become convinced that if God stands a child before you, for even just a minute, it is a divine appointment.

Wess Stafford

minutes divine children

Watch carefully the children around you. In precious moments you will catch a glimpse of your Savior’s face. Listen intently and you will hear his voice. Walk gently among them; his footprints are all around you. Embrace them, for you are embracing him. Respect them, because they are sometimes God’s agents – exactly the kind of instruments he needs. At such times, only a child will do.

Wess Stafford

agents voice children

One changed child eventually changes a family. A changed family will influence change in its church. Enough changed churches will transform a community. Changed communities change regions. Changed regions will in time change an entire nation.

Wess Stafford

community church children

I spend half my time comforting the afflicated, and the other half afflicting the comfortable.

Wess Stafford

my-time half comforting

So why is a third of our world battling obesity and spending huge sums to burn off excess calories, while the other two-thirds yearn to get more of them?

Wess Stafford

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It all begins, I maintain, with that powerful and underutilized thing called love. God's love for the individual is displayed by those people who reflect his love in their words and deeds. It ultimately gets understood and accepted by the child in poverty, and through that individual's love for others, the world gets changed.

Wess Stafford

powerful children people

I’m convinced that one of the most powerful forces on earth is the prayer of a child.

Wess Stafford

powerful prayer children

If we nurture the dreams of children, the world will be blessed. If we destroy them, the world is doomed!

Wess Stafford

blessed dream children

If God places a child before you, and you are too busy to wield either a positive or negative influence...you just did the later! You communicated that the child doesn't matter and isn't important.

Wess Stafford

important children negative

But when adults speak up for the vulnerable and the weak, working and demanding that safety and respect prevail, God's little lambs are protected and nourished. They know they are not abandoned; they are loved. And the world becomes a little more like heaven as a result.

Wess Stafford

safety adults heaven

...while God has done his part in creating a world capable of providing what we need, we have not done our part in the stewardship of it, in seeing that it gets to the end of the line, to the poorest and neediest--the children.

Wess Stafford

creating children needs

Nurturing a child’s sense of personal worth and therefore hope and dreams for a wonderful future is perhaps the most important responsibility of every grownup in a child’s life.

Wess Stafford

responsibility dream children

Just know this: What you will do among children is as close to the heart of God and central to his kingdom as anything we could mention.

Wess Stafford

kingdoms heart children

I have become convinced that the more wealth a country accumulates, the more isolated and lonely its people become. The loneliest are usually the children and the elderly. Children learn what they live, and isolation in the ‘village’ is one of the most destructive messages we daily write on the tablets of their hearts.

Wess Stafford

lonely country children

To be compassionate in this hurting world means it will cost you something.

Wess Stafford

cost hurt mean

What’s your cause? Does it move you to tears? What is it that moves you passionately?

Wess Stafford

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There is nothing to be intimidated about - it's just another long run where a few more people show up and they happen to wear numbers.

Wess Stafford

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