This has been a hard season for several families on our campus. Foster care is a heavy calling; one that requires great commitment and sacrifice every single day. While there are many joys at its core, the journey can be heavy and very messy.
But wow, what an honor to be the one that God calls to be His hands and feet to care for His children. We know when the days and weeks are heavy, we are not alone. The Lord is near and He sees our families. We also know that our community – you, our reader – are also in our corner praying for us every step of the way.
Pray for peace in the transitions. Even when children leave us to go to happy, adoptive homes, it can be hard for everyone to adjust. Juliet has been with us for four years and everyone is finding that it's hard to say goodbye. We asked her how she was feeling about her new home and she said “I’m happy…but also I’m really sad to leave”. And while that is a beautiful testament to her time here at Calvary, we know it’s a lot for an 11 year-old to process even when it’s for the best.
Pray for guidance. Sometimes the hardest part about foster care is feeling alone in your fight for a child’s best interests. State and County policies can be a challenge to navigate when most offices are under-staffed and ill-equipped for some of the needs these foster children have. Several of our foster parents are spending countless hours advocating for Reading Intervention, Parental Rights Termination, IEPs, and more because they are intimately aware of what the child needs but are only finding more closed doors.
Pray for peace in our decisions. Sometimes love cannot conquer all and our families have to make tough choices to protect all the children in their home. If a child becomes malicious or violent due to their own traumas, it can be difficult to navigate when five other children are living under the same roof. Sometimes after exhausting all our resources, tough decisions to move a child into another home have to be made. This is a decision that our foster families do not take lightly even when it’s the best call for all involved.
Pray for healing. Recently we had a teen come to us that is struggling with drug addiction. This battle is not one she is fighting alone as our entire campus has locked arms with her to help her stay clean – however, this is a journey that lasts one day at a time and it’s been a heavy journey for many on our campus.
