Another New Chapter: Foster Parenting

We've been in the process of becoming foster parents for several months and yesterday we got our first placement. Here are some of the thoughts that were running through my head yesterday:

Today is the day. We’ve worked toward this and looked forward to it eagerly, even impatiently, and now that it is here we are shocked to find we don’t feel ready. There is excitement and confidence that this is the path God has for us, but also a little anxiety, a little fear. Today is the day we become first time parents.

For us it will be different than it is for most first time parents. We will not be going to the hospital and coming home with a sweet infant who makes adorable sleepy faces and loves to be held, we will be going to another foster home and picking up a school age child, a boy who has lived a lot of life that we know nothing about but by all accounts is doing well at overcoming obstacles from his past.

Most people have been very supportive as we’ve gone through the process to get our foster license and we are blessed to have families that understand and encourage our desire to foster and eventually adopt, but there have definitely been some who don’t get it. There are those who say: “That’s great, but what if you get a kid who has problems?” or “You should try to get littler kids because they won’t be so messed up.” If I’m honest, those kinds of thoughts have definitely gone through my head and tried to take root in my heart.

Here’s the thing that makes the difference: We want to follow the example of Christ. He took us in and cleaned us up from all our sins and loved us. He didn’t look at us and say, “That one looks like trouble, that one is too far gone, I think I will wait to redeem and adopt someone who is more worthy of my love, someone who is easier to deal with.” No! He looked at us and saw that we were lost, unable to help ourselves, and he had compassion. He loved us anyway.

What a privilege we have today, what an honor, to have a chance to love this child with the love of Christ. I pray that we will be faithful to the task that is set before us even though we don’t feel ready, I pray that we will rely on the strength that God provides and that he will give us wisdom to be parents.