God’s Got This: Praying For Kids In Foster Care

Scripture: Isaiah 40:28-31

Pray for your State’s Foster Care Services

There are warriors on the ground who are daily working to stem back the flow of hurt, trauma and loss that face foster children every single day. Those individuals called to serve as social workers, directors, therapy providers, and many others get up everyday knowing the truth – that making a difference in the life of a child who has faced pain isn’t a quick fix. It is a daily slogging uphill, a celebration of huge victories that the world might deem as unworthy of celebration, and a willingness to get up and do it all over again – no matter how hard the last day felt – spiritually, emotionally and even physically.

There are administrators in your state who are making hard decisions – ones that not everyone will understand or even agree with. They are working off the knowledge that they have today, and are hoping their choices now make a positive impact for tomorrow. Some of these people are parents and govern with a parent’s heart. Some of these administrators are not – choosing instead to dedicate their lives and career to other people’s children. Some of these people are Christ-followers, and others have suffered church-hurt that makes trust and belief feel like concepts too foreign to embrace.

No matter how an individual was called into this space  – God can use them. No matter how you feel called into this space – God invites you in to His Story. The God of the universe who is omniscient and who is omnipresent – has invited us – His children – to come to Him as a good Father and to ask and beseech on behalf of children everywhere. He is willing to step in in real ways – for the one – when it may not shift things to the physical eye for the other 99. But He is a gentleman – He will wait for His children to ask Him to move.

Do so right now, saying, “Father up in heaven. Your children here on earth are hurting. There are people called to do difficult work, and they need encouragement to keep fighting a battle that often can feel like they are running a marathon straight uphill. Give them wings to fly, encouragement to claim, and victories that will keep them going. We pray wise counsel and discerning hearts as they make and implement policy that will impact our nation’s’ most vulnerable children. We pray that you will move mightily and make yourself known to these frontline soldiers in real ways today. Guide them, direct their steps and please keep them ever on our minds so that we do our part by interceding for them every day. Amen.”

Scriptures: James 1:5, Jeremiah 29:11

Raise Up Christ- Filled Ministers and ministries

As you continue your week of prayer focused on kids in care, we urge you today to consider the child-placing agencies that help connect children into families who will care for them. Some of these agencies are state-funded and are not affiliated with any stated-religious belief system. Other organizations are faith-minded and mission-based. God is using all of them. Within any agency there are those who have been called by the Holy Spirit to step into this space of foster care. And in this day and age, ministries focused on serving America’s children, have come under fire when they are unapologetically evangelical.

Pray now that those with decision-making power recognize the impact that faith-based agencies make in this space every day. Help policy makers to recognize that ministry-minded organizations have access to families, and that is something every state needs – more families willing to love on children from hard places. Pray that those individuals who serve in organizations that are not faith-based feel the encouragement and presence of the Holy Spirit today, as they too are facing obstacles, heart-ache and bureaucracy as they walk out the journey they were called to walk.

As you consider the political ramifications of those we vote into office, and those who are appointed in your state to make policy that impacts the foster care system, pray that these placing agencies are prepared to impact  children in the ways that will bring about hope and a future for these young ones  who may feel that they have lost both.

Pray also for the ministry and organizational leaders who have access to those in decision-making authority. Pray that they are humble, that they seek guidance and that they are willing to do all within their power to place children in the homes where they can thrive.

Dear Jesus,

We pray now for the ministry and organizational leaders who directly impact children in care by finding safe homes for them to heal. We pray for wisdom as they match children to temporary or permanent families. We pray a leading as they execute state-policies for reconciliation respite or removal. We pray that they are encouraged as many in the general public may not understand the hardships they face daily. Thank You, Lord, for these frontline warriors who are willing to do this holy work. We pray that they have a fresh touch from You. And that if they know You as Father, that they lean into You while working. We pray that if they do not know You yet, that their career will place them in the path of Christ-followers who will point them towards grace, hope, and peace as they work in a space that needs all three.

Direct them and protect them Jesus- Amen.

Scriptures: Psalms 34:18, James 1:27

Prayer for Christ’s Church to Feel the Burden and Respond in Mighty Ways

Churches are filled with families. God uses many different avenues to build a family. Some biological families, some step families, some spiritual adoption in those who need to feel a parent’s love  surrounding them . Within and without the Church, these families are a mixture of happy and hard, folly and friendship, hurt and heroes. In short – families are messy – and claiming faith does not protect you from the brokenness of  this world. In fact, it may be the broken that makes us more useable for the Kingdom while in this world.

Although there has been a tendency for everyone to put on their “Sunday Best” and look a certain part when heading in to worship, we encourage you now to see yourself and your people the way God sees each of us – broken and beautiful. Although the American parental-tendency may lean toward protecting and providing for your own, we urge you to consider the blessings that God has given you as not simply for your comfort and your provision, but as tools to impact the life of a child who does not have parents providing for each creature comfort, extra curricular activity and felt “need.”

Consider how your financial blessings, family margin, and personal journey can positively influence one of God’s kids, knowing that the seeds that are sown may not reap a harvest right away, but that God’s promises to His Church, to His children, to your children and theirs, remain. We’ve already been called to care for the orphan – here is where you can figure out your piece of the puzzle and how that can be an answer to a child’s prayer.

Pray for the American church to stand up as one to create communities that are willing to care for the Modern Orphan in many different ways. From fostering and adopting, to respiting, tutoring, transporting and financially assisting the families who are doing the heavy lifting. Pray that the stigma of a child in care is replaced with the truth that any one of us is one circumstance away from being in a place we never fathomed we would be. Pray for families to step up and be willing to get the training, to find their support community and to not lean into the comfortable but to walk into God’s adventure by welcoming a child from a hard place into their home, with their children, their neighbors, their families. And ask God that for every family who steps out in faith, He would impact 7 times 70 more to do the same.

Dear Jesus –

We are your adopted children. We are none of us righteous and worthy and are all from hard places because we live in a broken world. Help us to embrace the broken while not allowing it to define us. Use the hard stuff we have faced to soften our hearts so that we can extend the grace,  the love, and the acceptance that we have so needed in our own lives, to a child who needs them now. Remove the stigma that some people have placed upon kids in care either knowingly or unknowingly – reminding us that these are NOT bad children, but our vulnerable children to whom something bad has happened. Jesus, help us not lean so hard into comfort and into the protection-mode for our “own children” that we forget to cognizantly choose not to embrace Your kids. Give specific leading, direct encouragement and raise up communities within each church who are willing to help one called-family change the world for another.

Amen!

Scriptures: Galatians 1:4, Proverbs 18:24

Prayers for the Families on the Front Lines

Yesterday we prayed for the church  to step into their calling to care for God’s kids. Several Christ-followers have already done just that. They have embraced and welcomed into their homes a child, or often times many children who have faced unspeakable hardships and loss. They are caring for traumatized children, often alongside their biological kids. 

This is hard and holy work, and we need to find as many ways feasible to support them.

One of the things we have found personally and professionally is the incredible support that one can find when they realize they aren’t walking out an uphill battle alone.

Oftentimes, foster and adoptive parents can feel  isolated from mainstream American families because the obstacles facing them feel way beyond the typical. Foster families are  often up in the middle of the night comforting a traumatized child as their heart and mind attempts to make sense of the things that have happened to them. 

Foster families caring for children of all ages may face the same issues – which aren’t developmental, but are one result of trauma upon a child-sized soul. Some of the issues facing foster and adoptive families face all families, and yet these families on the front lines can and do face much more than most of us can imagine. Some face attachment and trust issues with children that they have long-awaited and long prayed for. Some face surprising special needs diagnosis and the realization that early intervention was not an option for the child they love. Some families, instead of being embraced by their church, school, or neighborhood community, feel alienated by the very ones who should hold their arms up.

As you position yourself to intercede for foster families, consider asking God how you specifically can lighten the load for one family in your circle of influence who is walking out this journey right now. And if you do not know any foster families, ask the Lord to connect you with one so that you can support them. You are being called to play a part in God’s redemption plan for these kids, and that is really exciting!

Dear Heavenly Father – You designed children for families and families for children. Although sin and pain are a reality in this world, as are the effects of these truths – we claim healing and hope, restoration and redemption over each child in care and over every family who is caring for these kids, Your kids, right now. We pray restful sleep for all – children and caregivers. We pray for a guarding of hearts and a resiliency for every child in these homes – bio, adopted, step or foster, no matter how You brought these children together for a season or for forever. We ask that they grow and learn what it is to love deeply, to pray specifically and to trust You even when they do not understand, or perhaps  when life just doesn’t make sense. We pray that You will raise up support systems around each family who is caring for Your kids so that the lie of the enemy that they are alone, does not take root. Uplift them today in this calling and in this space. Amen.

Scripture: Psalms 91:1-4

Prayers for Group Homes in your State

Some of you may not have ever thought about where a foster child may be placed when the state can’t find a safe, and suitable home in which to place them. Where does a hurting child go when no family is willing or able to open their door to this child’s specific hurts and needs? There are group homes that provide a home parent, a safe place to stay, and structure for children in care that have not yet found a permanent living situation.

For some of the harder-to-place kiddos, sibling groups, or kids about to age out of the system, a group home can provide structure, stability and safety when it’s needed most. Although we know that children thrive best in family, some children need the therapeutic environment provided by a group home.

As with all homes, some are stellar and some may be less so, but as part of the body of Christ, we’re all called to do what we can. Perhaps you could sponsor a monthly birthday celebration at a  group home near your home. Maybe you could contact the director to see if any of the children there need tutoring in a subject in which you are accomplished. Perhaps you could reach out to their care providers to invite kids who don’t have a family to visit during Christmas or Easter to come celebrate with your own family.

Mentoring, creating welcome baskets, or coming to do a day of service at their home can speak volumes to a home director and to the kids.  By welcoming them into the community,  you are  recognizing that they are worthy of being blessed. Pray about how you can connect with these homes that are providing a safe home environment for kids who really need it. This is service, but it’s also about safety. A dear mommy-mentor of mine has these wise words to share:  “9-1-1 – Call before you dial!” Call out Psalm 91:1 first claiming the protection God offers all of His children on behalf of the kids in group care in your community, and then ask Him what you can do! He will answer, and it will be good!

Dear Heavenly Father, we recognize that family is the best option for a growing child, but in the absence of a safe family and in the support of a healing heart, we pray Your blessing and provision over the group homes that are standing in the gap for kids in care. We pray that You show up in real ways, through the safety and stability afforded the child in this place, but also the building of trust, of skills and the understanding of their innate worth. Lord, as these children grow and heal in these places, we ask that You Hide them under Your wings, giving them respite to deal with what they have faced, and the tools to not let these hard things define them. Lord, burden the communities around these homes to embrace them, to support them and to embrace and support the children who are healing there. We pray for the house parents to persevere in the face of hardship, and to lean into You in BIG ways. In Your name we pray – Amen.

Scripture: Matthew 11:29-30

Communities of Care

You may have heard this term before, or it may be brand new to you. Social Science and scripture both support the idea that a child can thrive best when he or she is poured into from multiple sources.  The old adage – “it takes a village,” is never more true than when you are considering kids in care. 

There are a myriad of ways that a family can consider “adopting” a foster or adoptive family in real, support-filled ways. In our family, one of the greatest blessings has been the gift of food – already prepared, ready to nourish and ready to eat. When caring for a tribe of children (especially after a recent placement), setting up a meal train or a help list can be a game-changer as the family starts to find a new normal.

Another blessing came in the form of laundry support; adding kids to the nest means adding more mess. We have been blessed to have had friends literally come by to pick up our dirty laundry, returning the next day with freshly folded towels and t-shirts, which saved our family precious  minutes when we could otherwise be bonding.

You know your people – your neighbors, your friends and your congregation. Get to know them even better by asking what could bless them. For some it is transportation to tutors and after school activities; for others it may be a daily call or text to encourage them in this heart-work.

Others may crave a once a week respite in the form of a hike, walk or talk. Be creative and get your family involved. Pray for others in your circle to feel the burden and accept the charge of supporting those families who are doing the heavy lifting of fostering and adopting kids from hard places. Pray that God continues to soften your heart to  take next steps into this space.

Extra practical help may seem beyond your capacity, but many hands make light work. Get your kids’ school, your small group or your children’s Sunday school involved. God promises that his burden is light – and He will send you help to walk this calling out. 

Lord Jesus – we ask You right now to raise up communities of care for each foster and adoptive family. We pray for real community, and safe spaces. We pray that churches are orphan-care friendly, recognizing that kids in care may have needs additional to what a ‘typical ‘ child might need. Make us aware of the need and give us a willingness to meet it in whatever age or stage we find ourselves. Let these care communities be true blessings, looking for and meeting the  needs that the family faces. Help us to remember that we are all called to do something, and then burden us to do whatever You have called us to do. Amen

Scriptures: Romans 8:28, Psalms 23, Job 29:12

Over this past week together we have prayed for families, social workers, kids and churches, all of whom have a spiritual, emotional and physical impact upon the lives of kids in care. As you have prayed, we pray that the Holy Spirit has spoken to you about how you can include the Modern Orphan in your prayer life, into your daily family routines or perhaps even include them in your family. 

None of us know yet what we do not know, but not knowing is not a reason to not act. As you learn more about the needs, the wins and the children in this space, we pray that you are prompted to walk further into the journey by supporting orphan care ministries financially, with prayer, and by volunteering. By encouraging your  pastor to start or further support a foster or adoption ministry at your home church. You can mentor, tutor or befriend kids who are healing from the kinds of hardships you may have walked through on your own. 

God will use your story to intersect theirs, and all of it is for our good and for His Glory.

Ask God to reveal to you where you fit in this space, and then be prepared for Him to move in your heart for His children. Please share the tips and prayers we have walked through this week with others in your circle of influence because you can’t unknow what you now know; and our premise at Ignite Hope is that as we advocate within the church for kids in care domestically and globally, that the education and encouragement we share moves hearts for the Modern Orphan. Thank you for praying alongside us this week.

Dear heavenly Daddy – we pray today that all those working and living in the space of caring for kids from hard places be encouraged. We pray that they have felt our prayers, that our intercession on their behalf has a kingdom-impact and that they are refreshed and restored in all the ways that they need. We pray that You continue to move in the lives of these kids and that the church will answer Your call in James 1:27 to care for the orphan in their distress. We know that this season of hardship will shape them, as our seasons of hardship have shaped us,  but we pray that this molds them into people who are willing to walk into the messy, who are willing to let God redeem and who are willing to use their story to impact the next generation. We pray the removal of stigmas and the embracing of these sweet ones as Your children. We pray that Your church is burdened for Your kids and that a global awakening continues to be made known amongst Your people, and that we heed this holy calling of caring for the Modern Orphan in Big Ways.

Amen and Amen.