❔ How long have you been fostering?
We have been fostering for about a year now.
❔ Why did you begin fostering?
Caring for vulnerable children has been on my heart since I was a teenager. Before we got married, I told my husband that I saw myself having both biological and non-biological children at some point. Over the next several years, God put an unshakable burden on my heart for kids in foster care, despite my deep anxieties about all the unknowns that come with that calling. I knew that my husband wasn’t fully on board with fostering yet, so I had a moment with God where I told Him, “Look, if you really want us to do this, you have to make it abundantly clear. I’m not bringing it up to my husband again, if this is our calling it has to be on his heart as much as it is mine.” A few weeks later, my husband brought foster care up in conversation, and we decided to pursue getting licensed.
❔ What has God taught you during your foster care journey?
God is teaching me to be okay not being in control. The unknowns are hard, but it’s an opportunity to truly trust in God more than my own ability to manage something. It gives me a bit more perspective and empathy towards what kids in care are going through, to some small degree. They have no control over what’s happening to them, and that makes it all the more important for us to advocate for and love them in whatever ways we can, even though it might mean sacrifice and loss for us. They are worth every bit of it.
❔ What hope do you hold onto during the difficult seasons?
I remember that the kids we have the privilege of caring for are God’s children, and He loves them more and better than I ever could, and I have to rest in that knowledge.