"I could never give them back. We'd get too attached." I compassionately proclaimed to her.
And all she said was, "It's not about you."
And there you have it.
I didn't take offense to her comment. Because she was right.
There are hundreds of innocent children in our city alone that do not get to make the decisions where they will live. They have been pulled from their families for safety reasons, but they don't get an opinion as to where to go next. They have no voice.
But I do. And I use it a lot.
Unfortunately, it's too often for my own self-promotion.
What if instead of giving excuses as to why foster care isn't for our family, I started advocating for the child who doesn't have a family?
The bible is clear in it's mandate: To be a voice for the orphan.
Foster children are orphans. Whether for a few days, months, or years, they are without their biological family.
There are some great ways to care us to for them.
1. Through Foster Care, where children are placed with your family for the short or long term until their family is stable enough to get them back or until they are available to be adopted.
2. Through Respite Care, where you receive the foster care training and then take children into your home for short periods of time. (i.e. overnight, the weekend, or a week) Alabama DHR confirmed they are in great need of Respite Care families as well as foster families.
3. Adopt from the foster care system. There are over 300 children currently available for adoption in foster care in the state of Alabama.
Children placed in foster care may not have a voice. But we do.
Even greater, we have the ability to give them the structure and love that they desperately need.
Foster care is not a walk in the park. It can be messy and hard.
But it is also part of the adventure that God calls us to as believers- to care for the orphan.
For our family, long-term foster care while waiting for a referral is not the best mix. However, we are excited about the potential of becoming respite care foster parents!
We'd love for you to join us tomorrow night:
July 20th at Frazer UMC in Room 7202 at 6pm to learn more about Foster Care from our panel of Foster Parents.
Ask questions and hear about their experiences as foster families.
Hope to see you there.
She's so right, and you are so gracious for realizing it. I started out feeling that same way, thinking I could never do it. I also once thought I could only ever adopt a healthy infant. Now I find myself on Reece's Rainbow staring the real need right in the face. The kids who don't have people lined up on a waitlist for them. Oh, how I pray more adoptive parents would let Him lead. It took us a very long time to give Him the reigns, and I still catch myself trying to jerk them back periodically.
ReplyDeleteThere is another way to be a voice, CASA volunteers. And while I understand the program's agenda is less clear in some places, in my state it's a wonderful program, and a wonderful way to help!
ReplyDeletehey! do you know if you have to complete the whole training to provide respite, i'm still unclear on that??
ReplyDelete