Send Hope

Write to: Children in Colombia

“I felt that I had no freedom where I lived,” shares 15-year-old Valentina from Cauca in Colombia. “I used to say, ‘My God, I want to get out of here. I don’t even know where I want to go, but I want to leave.’”

The reason for this is persecution. At school, Valentina was pressurised into performing indigenous rites, while in society, she was acutely vulnerable to recruitment into guerrilla groups who often target prominent Christians (her father is a church leader).

Because of these dangers, her parents sent her to the Children’s Centre run by Open Doors local partners. “Thank God there was an open door at the Children’s Centre,” share her parents, while Valentina adds: “I don’t know if my life would exist if I still lived in Cauca, or if I’d be lost.”

As well as providing a safe haven for Valentina, the Children’s Centre is also helping Valentina develop in her studies and grow in her faith. “I know that, in the middle of persecution, God is faithful and merciful,” she says. “He is the best because He takes care of us. It’s Jesus who unites us and means we can enjoy peace and hope.”

Read beautiful Christmas letters written to you from young people at the Children’s Centre in Colombia
This Christmas, Valentina will return to spend it with her family. “For me, the best Christmas is when I’m with my family,” she says. But she won’t be able to stay beyond Christmas, because it’s too dangerous.

You can write to Valentina to encourage her in her faith, and other Christians in children who are also vulnerable to persecution for their faith, be that from indigenous groups or criminal gangs. They’d love to hear from you!

There are two ways you can write to Christian children in Colombia:

Get your church to write one large card

Our Christmas resources includes a large fold-out card for your church to write to children at the Children’s Centre. Find out more and order the card here.

Write an individual letter

You can also write to specific children at the Children’s Centre and elsewhere in Colombia…

• Valentina
• Keiner (15), Sneiker (13) and Rubén (9), whose father was shot dead earlier this year, having served as pastor in an area rife with criminal activity. You can also write to their mother, Yaneth
• Daniela (14) and Sebastián (7), whose father was shot dead for speaking out against criminal activities and helping prevent young people from recruitment to gangs
• Specific individuals at the Colombia Children’s Centre (visit here for a list of names)
• Children living in the following regions: Nariño, Tumaco, Arauca, Chocó, Catatumbo, Buenaventura, Córdoba and Cauca (for these, introduce the letter by saying, Dear child from )

Please note: Please write in simple English or in Spanish. You can find a list of Spanish phrases here.

Guidelines

• Greeting cards, postcards and children’s artwork are best
• Be encouraging and include one or two Bible verses. For security reasons, please do not use verses that refer to Israel, armies, or war
• Show sensitivity. Please do not dwell on the recipient’s plight, or share about the blessings of life in your country.

For security

• Do not mention Open Doors
• Do not mention other religions
• Do not refer to Israel, even when using Scripture
• Do not criticise religions, religious extremists, governments, judicial systems or political leaders
• Do not send money or make proposals to help
• You can disclose your name and the country you live in, but do not provide your full name or full address.

Send to us!

This campaign is postal and digital. Please send your physical drawings, cards or letters to us at the below address, and your digital encouragements to messagestocolombia@opendoorsuk.org

PO Box 6
Witney
Oxon
OX29 6WG

And we’ll do the rest!

Please note this campaign ends 31 December 2022

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