Compassion That Compels: prayer warriors for women

“Be strong and courageous.”

Those words from the ninth verse from chapter one in the book of Joshua in the Bible are inscribed on the front of each of the hot pink and lime green bags given to women battling cancer.

“It is a hand-of-God thing,” is the way one Enterprise woman describes her journey of involvement with the Compassion That Compels ministry.

Diane Walters of Enterprise got involved in the unique ministry through a friend in 2014. Given the opportunity to meet Compassion That Compels founder Kristianne Stewart at an event in Dothan, Walters said she signed up to be become a volunteer on the spot.

Today Walters is a board of directors member for the ministry started by Stewart, a Louisiana woman inspired by her own family’s brush with cancer. “I’ll never forget the day my sister-in-law pressed a letter into my hand as she was being wheeled into surgery,” Stewart said. “That’s when cancer collided with my Christianity and it compelled me into action.

“It was that moment where God takes the singular experience in your life and God uses it for something greater in your life,” Stewart said. “A hospital can be a scary place and that’s where I starting putting together Compassion Bags.”

Compassion Bags are filled with items that are both comforting and practical. A soft blanket, a spiritual journal and pen, a beverage mug and a devotional are among the items inside. “The Bible scripture attached to each item reminds a cancer overcomer that she is first an overcomer in Christ,” Walters said. “It’s so powerful to pray with a woman who is beginning the battle of her life, to give her some hope and encouragement.

“We want for them to know they are never alone in this fight,” Walters said. “To me, the most precious gift you can give someone is your prayers.

“Our mission and ministry is to be a spiritual and emotional support to women diagnosed with cancer,” Walters said. “Ties of God’s love binds us together in a world turned upside down by a cancer diagnosis.

“Our mission is to provide hope to women battling cancer—one Compassion Bag at a time and to remind a woman in the fight of her life that she is brave, beautiful and never alone,” Walters said. “Each individual item in the Compassion Bag has been prayed for and over. Our Compassion Bags are a simple but tangible gift of useful items as they go through chemotherapy to remind them they are first an overcomer in Christ and that they are brave, beautiful and never alone.

“As the bag is complete, we all pray over the bags and pray for whoever receives this bag,” Walters said. “God’s ties of love are interwoven between us and the hearts we touch with His compassion. We love because He first loved us.

“We pray with these women and hold their hand and pray for their health and that they have faith and hope and courage,” Walters said. “These are brave, brave women and sometimes they don’t feel that way. As they go through chemotherapy, we want to remind them they are first an overcomer in Christ and that they are brave, beautiful and never alone.

“We keep up with these ladies, after we have given them a bag,” Walters said. “It’s wonderful to see that one lady will receive a bag and then she will sponsor a bag for someone.

A Compassion Bag costs $120 to fill. “People can help by participating in local fundraisers such as one upcoming Oct. 30 at Rituals Day Spa in Enterprise,” Walters said.

That event will not be the first fundraiser Rituals has done for Compassion That Compels. “Diane had shared with us about this wonderful ministry,” Redd said. “It is such a wonderful outreach.

“Through Compassion That Compels, we’ve also reached out to clients who have moved to other states when we found out they had cancer,” Redd said, adding that for the fundraiser the staff will provide select spa services by donating their time, through appointments, and all proceeds will benefit Compassion That Compels.

“We are an army of prayer warriors who pray for those battling cancer and their families,” Walters said. “It’s a ministry that I am really devoted to and proud to be a part of.”