That there is a place called 'the children's cottage' in Calgary... & teeny tiny newborn babies go there when there are no foster homes to take them in.
A couple that i knew were foster parents each came into the hall we were at, carrying a bucket carseat holding a tiny babe.
The mom explained to me that one was the child of drug dealers - one of drug users. She said there's a big difference between the 2 boys born just days apart. We didn't have enough time for me to ask all the questions i wanted to ask. But she did tell me that there is a huge need for respite families to love the little ones who are born - every day - to families that can't take care of them.
In a flood of words on the way home, i explained to Neil what she explained to me...
about these little ones - needing arms - love - to be fed & protected.
"Don't get any ideas." he told me firmly.
19 comments:
"Don't get any ideas."
I'm afraid you already have. :)
Not *afraid*... but you know what I mean... :)
Paige, you have no idea how much I toss this around in my mind...it's been going on for months...
when i was growing up, our family was a foster family - we only took in infants & many of them were from substance-abusing parents. it is amazing the difference that LOVE can make to those wee ones! it is something that i dream of doing with our family too . . . but so far, Lyndon is not quite there! someday . . . :)
wishing you peace as you grapple with the idea!
Leah
Awww I love Childrens Cottage. Its been a dream of mine to one day open one here in K-Town. They also take in kids whose parents, mostly single parents, need a break. No questions asked, no charge. The parents get a break and the kids get to play, eat and be kids.
One of my sibling groups used to go there:)
My favourite part of being a foster parent is when I get to pick up those teeny tinyers and bring them home. I love spending time at the hospital bonding with them..sigh!
I didn't know :( Oh I would love to *love* on those babies. I'm afraid I wouldn't be able to let them go though :(
Don't get any ideas? I think that the idea was already given to us in scripture to take care of the orphans! Our Heavenly Father new there would be a need and He saw fit to tell us to fill it! This is where the idea is coming from! It is in my head too!
I met a foster mom 2 years ago I think, and have wanted to do it ever since! I think it is something we will eventually do... just wanted to wait until K's diagnosis was under control... The girl I met did it through Enviros...
Oh this post burned my throat. I'm still a little too heart broken. Still waiting for word on how much of our previous certification transfers over.
Two weeks after Gretta was born we got a call about a newborn baby boy in desperate need of a home...
"i'm afraid I can't right now" *click* sobbing.
Soon. My wounded convicted heart hears the promise of soon.
The hardest part is sometimes the system sends these kids back into the negative environment that they were originally from... not that knowing that should stop someone from looking after a child in need, even briefly. And then there are those that foster for the money and not for the love of children... I've seen that too...
But glad your friends can "stand in the gap" for these little lives. I imagine she meant the drug users child had disabilities due to what he'd ingested in his Mother's womb, whereas the dealer's child would be much healthier...
May you have wisdom to know if you have "too much on your plate" or if this is what God is leading you to do...
Saskatchewan Cousin
there is a very strong tug on my heart for orphans as well...I know I would die each time I had to let them go...but perhaps that is where I need to remember that I'm not the savior...HE is, and I would likely grow in leaps and bounds in my trust in Him to care for the babies once they left our care...caring for the orphans and widows is SO important to our God! It *should* be important to us too...
I have been a foster mom. We were in it with the intent to adopt and had many interesting experiences during our time under the scrutiny of the gov't. That experience makes me a little more nervous than before about having the gov't so involved in our family, yet my hearts still tugs. I met my dd's previous fostermom the other day and she told me that babies in Edm are being put in HOTELS with random Brother*s and Sister*s workers. That to me is so wrong. We do need more families that will take these wee ones in. People who will advocate and have experience to deal with their special needs. I know you would provide a loving wonderful home to these wee souls. I am also being pulled in this direction despite my intense misgivings about gov't involvement. Someone (maybe you and I and our families) needs to love them for the time they need loving arms. Even if our hearts break as they leave for less ideal circumstances. At least we will have loved them and displayed God's love in their lives. I know it will have an impact. I will pray for you and your family as you decide when and how you may do this. Will you pray for us as well? God bless.
Marcia
you know what? I need to backtrack a bit. these children are NOT orphans...they have been taken away from their parents, usually against the parents will. This is not right either. So while my heart is still tender towards children, I am very anti-government intervention...it is the job of the church to take care of one another and no one has the right to take someone's child away from them. This is just a politically correct thing to do and has become very popular lately...and I got caught up in the emotions of it. I do not think it's right for us to interfere with people raising their own children unless they themselves ask for help without feeling threatened etc. It's a really hard topic though...and I'm sure I'll come across as a cold hearted person. But Yahweh gives us all parents for a reason...I don't understand all of His ways, but I'm not going to question them anymore. For all I know it was a the love of a baby that will turn a druggie's life around...
LD - This mom i was talking to did mention that in a lot of these cases, the parents did not want their children back. The government was trying to find a family member etc... to take them in. i totally agree with you about government intervention. We have heard enough about countries where the government has removed children from homes where the parents homeschool - or where they teach their children to love Jesus - this is NOT what we want for Canada. But i think these situations here for the most part aren't so cut & dry. Where there has been sexual abuse, i think there needs to be intervention. Children need to be protected. i agree that the foster system is broken - & the government isn't the best agency to be speaking on behalf of the family. i think this is the reason why so many people are reticent to become involved with the system.
i know that the circumstances surrounding poverty are often as heartwrenching - or frustrating - but it doesn't mean we don't help the poor.
You are right Paige, God gave us specific instructions for helping the poor...but I bet you anything no one would do it His way...
First we are to give them a loan interest free to better their situation and if that doesn't help them enough, then we are to have them in our homes as our servants, then at the end of 7 yrs we are to allow them to go or stay, but if they stay they get their ear pierced as a sign of loyalty to you and they are your servant for life. This is not politically correct at all, but it is what we are to do for the poor...obviously not every poor person we meet but those that are in our lives, these are the guidelines. sigh...what an utterly broken world we live in, eh? The more I read about how we are SUPPOSED to be living the more I crave and long for Messiah to return and make things right again. It feels so hopeless sometime, you know? It's hard to work with a broken system...it makes you wonder how we got so off track...
We've struggled with all of these issues and after prayer and discussion, we decided that we would use the only legal system in place to help the children that God had layed on our hearts. Those who are physically battered and sexually scarred by parents who usually were battered and scarred themselves as sweet little babies. For me, foster care is not just helping babies but helping the wounded people who are struggling so hard to be ok but can't break free from their addictions, sin and pain. We pray and trust that if God has called us into this, He will protect us from the system.
paige, if you spank your children, you may not be eligible, no matter what else.
Yep, no spanking at all.
Yeh - & while i know that wouldn't work for a lot of parents - that would be just fine for me... (that part of it, anyway...) but there are any number of other obstacles :)
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