Our Road in Foster Care
Written by Sydnie Thomas
Last year there were over 11,000 children in North Carolina in Foster Care and there were less than 6,000 licensed foster homes.
4% to 10% of these children in the US are in group homes because there is not an individual home that can take them.
9% of children age out of foster care.
53% to 80% are separated from their siblings.
In 2025 there were over 330,000 children in foster care. There are over 350,000 churches in the US. If every church had one family foster, then every child would have a home.
After years of discussion, meeting with other foster parents, and deep prayer, my husband Caleb and I decided to foster at the beginning of 2025.
We didn’t decide to become foster parents because we couldn’t have biological children (that is something we don’t know yet). Honestly, we decided to foster because we couldn’t find a good enough reason for us not to. Rest assured, we thought through the reasons…
“It will be too hard, we’ll get too attached, it’s too sad, it’s too scary, we’re already too busy, the kids will be too difficult”. These are all thoughts we encountered. What we found though, was that when we countered these fears with scripture, God’s word transcended each one.
It will be too hard - “Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged, for the LORD your God will be with you wherever you go.” Joshua 1:9 (NIV)
We’ll get too attached - “There is no fear in love, but perfect love casts out fear. For fear has to do with punishment, and whoever fears has not been perfected in love.” 1 John 4:18 (ESV)
It’s too sad - “I consider that our present sufferings are not worth comparing with the glory that will be revealed in us.” Romans 8:18 (NIV)
It’s too scary - “Don’t be afraid, for I am with you. Don’t be discouraged, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you. I will hold you up with my victorious right hand.” Isaiah 41:10 (NLT)
We’re already too busy - “Seek the Kingdom of God above all else, and live righteously, and he will give you everything you need.” Matthew 6:33 (NLT)
The kids will be too difficult - “I can do all this through him who gives me strength.” Philippians 4:13 (NIV)
With each thought we had that told us why we shouldn’t foster, we saw God’s word telling us why we should. However, this is not an easy road that we are on.
Our first placement, which many of you may remember, were removed from our home and placed in kinship (they are still in the foster system, just live with a distant relative). Our hearts were, and still are, completely shattered. Giving our children to others to love and walking away was by far the hardest thing we have ever done, but we would do it every day if it means providing a safe, loving and God fearing home for our kids in the meantime.
Knowing the ins and outs of why our kids are no longer with their bio parents is heartbreaking. We have cried many tears grieving the life they don’t have but we will take their burden any day for the chance of them knowing Jesus.
Because of what we found in scripture, we see that God has equipped and called his church for the mission of foster care. James 1:27 says “Pure and genuine religion in the sight of God the Father means caring for orphans and widows in their distress and refusing to let the world corrupt you” (NLT). When Caleb and I became foster parents, we understood that this decision would require sacrifice on our end. We understood that it would be hard and that it would come with pain (of which we bear only a fraction compared to a child’s birth family). By God’s grace and through his strength, we take on the challenge of fostering. A challenge we’re not meant to take on by relying on our own power, but by abiding in his ultimate protection.
I believe that even in our church where we have multiple families who have or are currently fostering, we have many more families that can foster and need to challenge their own hearts to see if they are willing to enter into the messiness of the Gospel. I want to encourage you to think through if you could be a fostering home, if you could step into the messiness, or if you could step into supporting those who do foster (through giving meals, providing clothes or formula, babysitting for a date night, etc). I challenge you to take the time to pray, to fast, to talk with others. Step out of your comfort zone and step into the Gospel by fostering.
Please prayerfully consider if you could be a foster family.
If you’d like to learn more, please come to Waypoint’s Informational Foster Care Brunch on Saturday, September 5th.
Statistics from https://cafo.org/foster-care-statistics/
