So, my “current family” consists of me, my husband, my
nineteen-year-old son, and two foster children.
The foster children are 2 and 3 years old. (So I guess technically they are foster toddlers.) Here is a mathematical equation that I am
very familiar with:
2 foster toddlers =
full-time job
Here is another:
1 lake house that
needs to be cleaned/painted/furnished = full-time job
How was I planning to do 2 full time jobs at the same time
(without daycare)? Well, that’s a good
question. I’m still working on the
answer. See, the foster toddlers have
lived with us now for almost 14 months.
We had a court date a week ago, and the expectation I had beforehand was
that they would be leaving to reunite with their family after said court date.
We were all expecting a couple of months off for some family
time – a little relaxation time and a lot of time to focus on our House of
Goodwill project.
Well, surprise foster family! DCS (Tennessee foster care system) decided it
will be at least two more months before the reunion of these kids with their
mother.
This did not fit into my plan.
This last year+ has been full of ups and downs, going backwards
and forwards regarding these kids staying, leaving and leaving to live with
who? The life of a foster family (not to
mention the kids) is full of uncertainty, and planning anything feels
impossible.
So now I am trying to reconcile the demands of this project
(that would be nothing but fun without the full-time parent job) with getting
it done somehow with the full-time parent job.
Interestingly, I keep getting hit with the same two themes
lately.
One is the parable of the vine and the branches in John,
chapter 15. In this parable, God is The
Vine, believers are the branches, and we are told to “remain in him.” There is much more to it than this, but this
is the gist of it.
Variations on this have been the theme of our pastor’s
sermons for weeks. It was also the theme
of my father’s blog the other day; I happened to see it just after reading John
15 on my own. Has this ever happened to
you? Every time I turn around, someone
seems to be referencing John chapter 15.
(Check out my father’s blog @ adozenseconds.com.)
The other theme is patience.
Patience is one of the fruits of the spirit that grows on the vine (that
is us). This was the whole focus of the
sermon last week. I just happened to
listen to a Joyce Meyer podcast (on a completely different topic) the next day
that turned into – surprise, surprise – a lesson on patience.
And patience is exactly the fruit I need to be growing right
now.
As I was reminded by Joyce – patience is not merely waiting
for something to change, as everyone waits.
Patience is the cultivation of contentment in the moment, during the
waiting process. It’s being grateful for
the waiting process – and that’s the trick.
Am I ready to relinquish my current foster placement? For many reasons that I won’t go into here, I
am. But God (and DCS) have other plans
for me right now.
So I may not be able to get this project done at the pace I
would like. I will still get it done. And I am grateful for my 19-year-old son who
also happens to be an amazing toddler-sitter.
(And donut chauffeur.)
And while this post may seem to be WAY off topic, I would
argue that maybe it’s the most appropriate post yet published under the title
of “The House of Goodwill.” This season
in our lives is not about my family’s agenda or our timeline, our dreams or our
goals. It’s about trying to do the right
thing, and putting the needs of others first.
Growing fruit is hard.
At least I can look at the water while I work on it.
Amen!
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