Open the eyes of my heart, Lord. Open the eyes of my heart. I want to see you.

Gary Dolan, executive pastor at Rivertree Christian Church, can't count the number of times he has heard his congregation members sing the words to that praise song, their hands lifted upward. I want to see you, they cried out.

But yet, there was still darkness. As much as Rivertree tried to fulfill the Great Commission and God's mandate for his church through evangelism and missionary support,  Gary felt something was missing.

"At Rivertree, we were always very evangelistic," says Gary, who oversees missions at Rivertree's three campuses in northeastern Ohio. "But as a church, we weren't doing much for those living on the margins of society — our eyes weren't opened to their needs. Our church is in a fairly affluent area, so we were struggling with what our ministry to the poor should look like. We knew the poor were there — the Bible is very clear about that — but we couldn't see them."

Holy Spirit Ignites Great Commission Quest

Rivertree faced a dilemma that thousands of churches across the nation face every day. How can they fulfill the Great Commission while adhering to God's mandate to serve the poor? How does a church open its eyes to poverty when poverty is out of sight?

While Rivertree's leadership prayed for open eyes, Brent Birchen was praying for the church to have an open heart. For years, Brent, a Compassion child sponsor, had been telling church leaders about the ministry of Compassion. At his urging, they finally took a second look.

"Brent was definitely persistent," says Gary with a laugh, "and at last, it all just clicked. It really was his pushing, along with the Lord's pulling, that led us to Compassion."

Seeing the Great Commission in Action

One of the appealing things about Compassion was its simplicity. "To be honest, we thought it would be an easy fix. We would support Compassion financially, and through that, we would be fulfilling God's call to help the poor." But in 2004, Gary and several other pastors traveled with Compassion to Ecuador. It was, for them, the trip that gave global poverty a name and a face.

As they served meals to malnourished children and prayed with church leaders struggling to provide a safe haven for children, it became clear that a monthly check wasn't enough.

"What we saw in Ecuador only increased our desire to work with Compassion," says Gary. "I think the thing that impressed us the most was Compassion's work through the local church. It's brilliant, and scriptural. To my knowledge, what Compassion does is unique. That's why, of all the organizations we could partner with, we believe Compassion is truly fulfilling the Great Commission in a biblical, long-term way."

Rivertree's passion for fulfilling the Great Commission quickly grew into a full-fledged church partnership with Compassion. Through this partnership hundreds of children were sponsored, and Rivertree decided to support struggling mothers and their infants through a Child Survival Program  in Ecuador.

Since 2004, Rivertree has hosted several mission trips to Ecuador, where 95 percent of the children sponsored by members of their church live. More than 100 sponsors have been able to meet their sponsored children. Gary says taking church members to a developing country renewed their passion for serving at home as well.

"We came back from each of those trips with a renewed energy for missions," he says. "Not only were people excited about sponsoring children and partnering with Compassion … but we were also looking for ways to minister in our own community. I am convinced that many of our local ministries are a direct result of our relationship with Compassion."

The Great Commission: A Bridge Between Worlds

In just three years of partnership, Rivertree members have sponsored more than 750 children through Compassion. Rivertree has also partnered with four Child Survival Programs in South America, and is looking forward to collaborating with Compassion's Global AIDS Outreach in the future.

"We totally believe in the Compassion philosophy and strategy to attack poverty at the level of children, and to attach those children to a local church," says Gary. "It's the best thing for the child, the church, the community and the country."

What began as a "quick fix" has changed the very heart of Rivertree Christian Church. Members who once couldn't find the poor in their community now can't look away.

Learn more about how your church can partner with Compassion International.