More Than a Bunch of Teddy Bears

In this picture you might see a crazy women who has a goodwill addiction or if you think like my kids, a pile of ammo for a stuffed animal fight or maybe you see what I see, HOPE.  I see the kids who will at some point come into our home and need care, love and lots of grace.  You see Chris and I are 2 weeks into a 10 week training course to become foster parents in our county.  These bears are part of my "nesting".  I won't have a child growing in my belly and we won't be doing adoption paperwork, but our family will be growing.  We will welcome kids into our home that are hurting, neglected, confused, angry, and maybe without hope.

I am very thankful for the training we are receiving and from the conference we attended in DC by Show Hope called The Empowered to Connect Conference.  Little by little we are growing our tool belt of knowledge and resources to care for kids from hard places.  My moms group at church will be using the Bible study that goes along with the book The Connected Child by Karen Purvis.  What I'm trying to say is that we are not alone.  We have others who stand shoulder to shoulder with us in this, praying, babysitting, listening and learning.  Granted this has already felt daunting.  The information is overwhelming and the task just a bit scary, but...

"The helpless entrusts himself to You; You are a helper of the fatherless.  

Lord, You have heard the desire of the humble; You will strengthen their hearts. 

 You will listen carefully 

doing justice for the fatherless and the oppressed 

so that men of the earth may terrify them no more." 

 Psalm 10:14b,17-18

Maybe it's just a bear.  Or maybe it says, "this is mine, someone cares for me and I will always have a room to put it in" even if that home is mine or that someone is me I can always find more bears for each of the children that God brings my way.

Please pray for us and our family as we prepare to open our home to more children in 2015.

With love,