Why we chose to become a Safe Family

Well, this post has no pictures, but for good reason. Several months ago we were challenged to open our hearts and home to love on children in our community through a program with Bethany Christian Services called "Safe Families." The purpose is to connect volunteer "safe families" with a family in the community going through some type of crisis. For a period of up to 6 months a family in crisis might place their children with a safe family while they focus on their current situation. Say a single mom needs to have surgery and has no family nearby to take care of her children; she could place them with a safe family who will love and care for them while she undergoes medical treatment and recovery. One of the major goals of this program is to keep children out of the foster care system.

Our hearts were burdened when we heard of the need right here in our community. So in mid-February we accepted our first placement and had a sweet child with us for about 6 weeks. For privacy reasons, we can't share many of the details of our specific situation, but would welcome any opportunity to share more about our experience. We welcomed this child into our home, rearranged a little furniture and entered a new world of life with 3 kids in tow, car rider lines and school fund raisers. It was interesting to see a different dynamic as our children shared and loved and squabbled as if they had always known each other.

Our family, friends and church family rallied with us and supported us and this sweet child. We were showered with love, food, clothes, babysitting and prayers! As soon as our time began it seemed that the sick bug moved in, which is strange to us because we are a relatively healthy bunch. Trying to keep your focus on giving of yourself, keeping up a killer daily commute to school, helping with homework, an extended bedtime routine....it was at times very tough I'll admit. But God was bigger and knew what we needed and we feel God blessed the time we had with this sweet child. We felt confident about the changes that were happening in their family life and pray that God will continue to bless them as they've been reunited. We also very much look forward to continuing our relationship with them.

So, this too has been a big part of why I'm behind on pictures, blogging, and keeping up with some things. Sometimes you just need to push all the extra "stuff" away and focus on what's important.