刚收到的来自菲律宾的 Resty 的信
很早以前读到过这样一段话，很有感触：
One hundred years from now, it will not matter what kind of car I drove, what kind of house I lived in, how much money I had in my bank account nor what my clothes looked like. But the world may be a little better because I was important in the life of a child. (excerpt from the poem "Within My Power" by Forest Witcraft)
（中译文）一百年后的今天，我开什么样的车，住什么样的房子，多少钱在我的银行帐户，我的衣服看上去如何，都无关紧要。但是因为我在一个孩子的生命中起了重要的作用，世界也许变好了一点。（摘自维塔卡拉夫特的诗歌“在我能力以内”）
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最近几年Resty都是用英文给我们写信，给他回信主要由两个孩子写。可是这最后一封信，意义重大，轻舟让“一家之主”杰明代表全家回信。杰明忙里偷闲地写了信，很激励人的信，轻舟翻译分享如下：
Dear Resty （亲爱的Resty):
Congratulations! We are so happy that you have graduated from Compassion International’s program. We pray that your parents and sister are also well. We hope that you will remember Compassion sponsorship for the rest of your life and will worship God because of the sponsorship.
祝贺你! 我们很高兴你已经从国际致善协会项目中毕业。我们祈祷你的父母和妹妹都好。我们希望你日后会记得致善协会的帮助，并因此敬拜神。
As you transition into the work world and grow in your job, we hope that you will remember that “to whom much is given much will be required” (Luke 12:48b). Because you have been given healthcare, food, clothing and education in Jesus name, please don’t forget to help others. Compassion International began with South Korean war orphans in 1952 and the Koreans that were sponsored when Korea was so poor were very thankful for being sponsored. They studied hard and became business leaders, missionaries, doctors and other professions.
当你过渡到社会环境中，在工作里成长，我们希望你能记得“因为多给谁，就向谁多取；多托谁，就向谁多要。”(路加福音12:48b)。你因着耶稣的名而获得医疗保健、食物、衣服和教育，请别忘记去帮助别人。国际致善协会最早源自1952年的韩国，当时韩国穷困，战争孤儿因接受赞助而感激，他们努力学习，成为商界领袖、传教士、医生和其他专业人士。
Many of them were so grateful at the opportunity they’d been given that they ended up being sponsors themselves. These Koreans were so generous and hard working that God blessed them with such success that Compassion withdrew from the country of South Korea about 1988. It would be wonderful if the Philippines or other countries could follow that example.
很多人因为感激这样的机会，也成为赞助别人的人。这些韩国人慷慨的精神和努力工作，神赐福给他们，最终致善协会1988年从南韩成功撤出。如果菲律宾或其他国家也布此后尘，将有多么美好。
We hope that you will glorify God with your life by being a blessing to your parents, family and Iriga community. But there’s more to care about that just your parents and family. “For God so loved the world that he gave His only begotten Son that whomsoever believeth in Him shall not perish but have everlasting life” (John 3:16) and many other Bible verses demonstrates that God loves all ethnic groups.
我们希望你能够在生活中祝福你的父母、家庭和以瑞咖社区，以此荣耀神。但还可以超越你的父母和家人去关爱他人。“神爱世人,甚至将他的独生子赐给他们,叫一切信的人在选中他的,不至灭亡,反得永生”(约翰福音3:16)和许多其它圣经经文都表明上帝爱所有的民族。
Please take the opportunity you’ve been given to be a blessing to the nations so as many as are open will praise God for eternity. Please give all the glory to God for your sponsorship and don’t give it to us. What we’ve done as sponsors is our reasonable service and nothing more than you or your parents might have done if you were in our situation.
请借此机会，愿你获得祝福的同时，也成为施福之人，让更多的人能够永恒地赞美神。请将你接受赞助的所有荣耀归给上帝，不要给我们。我们所做的是情理中的帮助，你或你的父母在我们的处境下可能做到的。
We love you and are praying for you that God will bless you and your family as you follow Him.
我们爱你，为你祈祷，愿你跟随神，祂将保佑你和你的家人。
In Christ’s love （基督里的爱），
杰明、轻舟，霏，安
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有趣的是，“最后的信”刚寄出的第二天，我们收到了Resty去年年底从大学寄出的信。他告诉我们他的大学学业进展很好，他参加不少校园体育活动，他大学毕业后想做一名警官，因为"I want to help innocent people against deception, and help the weak against oppression and intimidation."(我想帮助无辜的人不受欺骗，扶助软弱的人反对压迫和胁迫。） 信里还告诉我们他最喜欢的科目是刑事学(criminology）。
Resty是我们通过Compassion International （国际致善协会）赞助了12年的孩子，12年以来，Resty与我们几乎每两三个月通一次信，告诉我们他的家庭情况，学习和生活。杰明和轻舟还在2009年亚洲之行，专门到他的家乡看望Resty和他的家人。感动的经历。。。我在游记中有记述，这儿不再重复。
想着两年后，Resty将从大学毕业，成为警官，有了工作，自给自足的同时，还能祝福帮助他的家人和社区，是很美好的事情。这也是国际致善协会的宗旨：“授人鱼不如授人以渔”，通过赞助孩子教育和医疗，并让孩子参加所在社区的基督教会主日学活动，了解神的大爱。身量，学识，灵性并重地成长，成熟，孩子长大以后找到工作，可以帮助家人和社区，对改善贫困社区的境况，起良性循环的功效。。。感谢上帝给我们机会，能够参与Resty的成长，我们是真正有福之人！
灯下写文，再次为Resty的学习，将来的工作和生活、他日后的人生路献上祷告！
（图）：刚收到的Resty的信的第二页，页尾有著名的菲律宾 Mayon 火山图文介绍
