We got our very first call! Our case worker called and had a newborn baby that needed a place to stay for a little while. He was fresh out of the oven and we'd need to pick him up from the hospital. I was so excited, but sad. Tim and I aren't interested in getting a baby. We're not prepared for a baby. We're not prepared to take 6 weeks off work with no pay to care for a baby. So I declined. I know there is a family out there just waiting for a baby. And it's not us. We'd prefer the 2-8 year old age range.
It made me really sad that a child had just entered the world and didn't have a safe place to call home. I was sad that some woman carried a baby for 9 months and now wasn't allowed to take it home. This is the part of foster care that I don't like. In order for a kid to come into my home, a bad situation has to happen. It could be drugs, alcohol, abuse, sickness, or maybe even death. My kids will come with baggage. Lots of baggage. I pray for my kids daily, but sometimes I feel selfish for asking that they come soon. I don't think a child should ever endure the type of things my children must go through to get to my home. It really breaks my heart, but this is the route God has planned for me. Each day that the bunk beds in the kid room remain empty is another day that my kids have with their birth family and another day that they physically don't need me yet. Maybe I should just start thanking God for their safety and thanking Him that they don't need me yet. I am thankful that God nows my heart and hears my prayers.
For everything there is a season,
a time for every activity under heaven.
A time to be born and a time to die.
A time to plant and a time to harvest.
A time to kill and a time to heal.
A time to tear down and a time to build up.
A time to cry and a time to laugh.
A time to grieve and a time to dance.
A time to scatter stones and a time to gather stones.
A time to embrace and a time to turn away.
A time to search and a time to quit searching.
A time to keep and a time to throw away.
A time to tear and a time to mend.
A time to be quiet and a time to speak.
A time to love and a time to hate.
A time for war and a time for peace.
God has made everything beautiful for its own time.
~Ecclesiastes 3
Hey, Jess... I know how hard that must have been to decline. But, you are right about someone out there waiting for a little baby. There is a couple, somewhere, that is wanting to have a child from newborn stages on up and they are probably celebrating so much right this second. And there is a child in that 2-8 years range that is going to need you and Tim. Keeping you in my prayers. God works in mysterious ways. :)
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