So, here is the shirt I was wearing when I told you that a wardrobe choice led to clarity about the conundrum in which I'd been living for a few months.
I LOVE that shirt. Yes, for the message of orphans and also because it's just really, really soft and comfortable. So, while I was wearing this last week at Ainsley's gymnastics class, a dad asked me if I was involved with orphan care. For a split second I thought, oh, this poor man has no idea what door he just opened. ;) But, actually, as I began to speak to him, I realized he is the man who started the orphan care ministry at a nearby mega church. Oh, and that just happened to be the same church that held the conference Mark and I attended a few months ago--the one where Mark told me he thought we should begin fostering. Really, God? Thank You for making these things so clear for me!
After we made those introductions, I remembered speaking to him that night and even remembered some of his stories. He said, in turn, that he thought Mark looked familiar when he would see him at the gymnastics classes. His story had stood out to me because, for as big as that church is, their orphan care ministry is actually quite small (though full of dedicated people.) He told me how blessed we are to have our senior pastors on board with this, as they don't have that kind of support. I just find that so sad. Orphan care is not negotiable in the Bible. Of course it's crystal clear in James 1:27 as most people know, but it's in many passages in other books as well. Throughout the old and new testaments it is all over the place. A lot of Christ followers may not have realized that yet. And we need to teach that all of us have an obligation to care for the orphan and the widow, although I do not believe that means all of us are to adopt necessarily. There are many ways to support. But for pastors leading a church not to get that and feel responsible to teach that to their followers (and that is most "traditional" churches I've been to before) there is no excuse!
Ok, so where was I... :) Oh, yeah. This new friend of mine, Shane, told me that his daughter, who is even in Ainsley's class, is their child by adoption--and (here is where this 3 part story finally comes together!) they got to know her because they were her respite care provider for her foster family. I said, "What? Respite care? Oh, yeah, respite care!" And he explained it to me although my mind was operating on two levels already--both hearing his story and processing what this meant for us. See, I had known of respite providers (which I'll explain in a second) but I had not thought of it for our situation. I think God needed to send me a specific message that I could not miss and He used one of Ainsley's gymnastic classmate's family to do so.
Respite care providers are families who do not take in their own long term foster children but provide short term care for children whose foster families need a break (for whatever reason.) Sometimes it's to travel last minute to a meeting or funeral out of state and they can't take these wards of the state out of Texas without a lot of paperwork and enough time to process it. Sometimes parenting foster children, because of what they may have been through in their lives, is just plain hard and the families need a break--overnight, a long weekend or more. That is where the respite care providers come in. They step up to be a support system not only to the kids, but to the families who are taking on the long-term commitment to fostering.
I realized, that very afternoon, that this was something we could do now. In this season. Even with both working and planning trips to Africa (and where else?!) we could do this. Sometimes we may have to say no, but there are times we could say yes for a day or a weekend. I've also learned (since researching and talking to agencies since this divine appointment) that there are two levels of care. For respite providers of up to 2 weeks, you still go through all the training and are, in fact, licensed to be a full time foster family. Or, you can be a relief provider, which is for care that is 72 hours or less and the training and requirements are much shorter.
Mark and I are going to be starting one of those tracks as soon as we possibly can!
5 comments:
That's wonderful for you and Mark to be spiritually moved. What a blessing you two will be:) Your home has been a secure and loving place for my children and I couldn't be more thankful.
I do find it concerning and very sad that this gentleman, Shane, doesn't feel like he is supported by my senior pastors. Knowing and attending Prestonwood for over 6 years, I am shocked that there is little support for this ministry. I am saddened by Shane feeling like that and am moved enough to bring light to this ministry. I would be very curious to see what would happen if your inspiring blog postings were made known to the senior staff.
Oh, Jill, I think that's a great idea! You never know where God intends to take this story. :) And I don't think it's just that church. Your church has MANY, many good things. It's a function of both the size and, honestly, the traditions of the denomination. Some things are just emphasized over others. And the things that are emphasized are GREAT things--we did learn so much, but I realized after leaving a big church of the same denomination after several years myself, that I felt like I had only had half the story of the Bible shared with me. Shane said they started the ministry, called "Chosen" there, and it took them 2 years to get a meeting with staff and it wasn't senior leadership.
Being on staff myself, I do realize a single church can't be and do everything. But orphan care isn't a random hobby group. One of our co-leaders just moved from a big church in Minnesota about a year ago. 13,000 people. And she wanted to start an orphan ministry and her pastor actually told her they don't have time to support everyone's hobby. I can't even imagine. Although, both Paul and Jim are very humble and came from being senior pastors in large southern churches and say often that they were very slow in getting God's heart on compassion and justice. Glad they have it now and I am just super blessed that I get to be a part of that everyday.
Nancy, I love hearing how God is working in your life. And how that is impacting others.
I cannot even begin to tell you how much I LOVE this! I am so excited for you and will be praying for you at every step of the process!!
Oh my friend!!! So much to say. I'm thrilled watching all of this unfold. I am loving watching God work in your life as you work for Him. This is so exciting. Thanks for sharing.
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