July 30, 2025 • 33 mins
Struggling to find the strength to keep going in your foster care journey? This powerful conversation with missionary and adoptive mom Mandie Summers reveals how faith becomes the essential foundation when the system feels broken and the burden feels too heavy.
Mandy never imagined herself as a foster parent until a casual dinner conversation with a social worker friend opened her eyes to the crisis within the foster care system. What began as complete naivety about trauma and fostering evolved into a profound family transformation that ultimately led to adopting two children and continuing to provide foster care.
"Foster care and adoption really found us," Mandie shares, admitting she and her husband were probably "the two most naive people to ever sign up." Her honest account of expecting a simple revolving door of short placements versus the complex reality they encountered resonates with anyone who's discovered the gap between expectations and the fostering experience.
The heart of this episode explores spiritual sustainability – how faith provides the strength to continue when burnout threatens. Mandy's practical spiritual disciplines include daily Scripture listening during walks, worship music during chaotic pre-dinner hours, and leaning into biblical narratives that suddenly take on new meaning through the fostering lens. Her identification with Moses in Numbers 11 ("Did I conceive all these people? Did I give them birth?") offers profound comfort to foster parents carrying trauma they didn't create.
Whether you're considering fostering, currently fostering, or supporting someone who is, this conversation offers hope that God provides exactly what's needed in each season. As Mandie beautifully summarizes: "It is the hardest thing we've done, but so worth it in the richness of life. Offering a Christ-centered home to a child is worth anything."
For more information on Mandie and Jason's missionary journey and how to support them: https://give.cru.org/0578940
Foster Parent Well Facebook Community: https://www.facebook.com/share/g/1VeRn4AaDHThddXx/
I'd love to hear from you! Send me a text!
Connect with me on Instagram: @Fosterparentwell
@nicoletbarlow https://www.instagram.com/nicoletbarlow/
Website: https://nicoletbarlow.com/
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:00):
Hey friend, welcome back to the Foster Parent Well
podcast.
We're doing something specialthis summer because, let's be
real, summer is loud andschedules are wild.
So, in the spirit of keepingthings simple and soul-filling,
we're hitting rewind All summerlong.
I'll be sharing some of myfavorite episodes from the past,
conversations that encouragedme, challenged me and reminded
(00:22):
me that God is still workingeven when life feels messy.
If you're new here, it's theperfect time to jump in, and if
you've been around for a while,think of this like a little
refresher, like your spiritualiced coffee on a hot summer day.
So let's soak in some truth,lean into God's grace and keep
showing up for the hard and holywork that we've been called to.
(00:43):
Let's jump into this Rewindepisode.
Welcome to the Foster ParentWell podcast, where we have real
candid, faith-filledconversations about all things
foster care, adoption and trauma.
(01:04):
I'm your host, nicole T Barlow.
I'm a certified parent trainer,a certified health coach and an
adoptive parent myself.
This is a space where you canfind support so that you can
care for your kids with asteadfast faith, endurance and
joy.
I want you to foster parentwell, so let's jump in.
(01:38):
Welcome to the Foster Wellpodcast.
I'm your host, nicole T Barlow,and we have a really amazing
podcast episode today.
Joining me is my good friend,mandy Summers.
Mandy and her husband, jason,are full-time missionaries with
the Jesus Film Project.
Their mission is to reachunreached nations by delivering
(02:01):
the story of Jesus on film sothat all are able to hear the
story of Jesus in their ownlanguage.
Today, mandy joins me to talkabout spiritual strength and
leaning into our faith as fosterand adoptive parents.
Mandy and her husband areadoptive parents and they are
also a current foster family,and she just has so much wisdom
(02:23):
to share, so I'm excited for youall to hear from her today.
So I'd like to welcome to thepodcast my good friend, mandy
Summers.
Mandy, welcome to the show.
Speaker 2 (02:36):
Thank you, thanks for having me.
Speaker 1 (02:38):
I'm excited about you being here.
So tell us a little bit aboutyou and your family and how you
got into foster care andadoption to begin with, sure.
Speaker 2 (02:50):
So my husband and I, we are full-time missionaries
with an organization called theJesus Film Project, which is
part of Campus Crusade forChrist, and we have been on
staff with them since wegraduated college.
So that's been our career, ourwhole marriage, and we have
(03:11):
currently in the home sixchildren.
You know we are a currentfoster family, so that number
fluctuates from time to time,but right now there's six.
So we have three biologicalkids, two that we've adopted,
and then there is one childthat's placed with us, that's
still in foster care.
Speaker 1 (03:29):
OK, awesome.
How do you get into foster careto begin with?
What drew you to?
Speaker 2 (03:35):
do this?
Yeah, that's a great question.
I think I am realizing thatfoster care and adoption really
found us.
So we kind of have a little bitof a different story.
You know, you always hear thosepeople that say, oh, I was
always interested in foster careor I had wanted to adopt since
I was a little kid.
(03:55):
That just wasn't something thatwe had ever really thought
about or considered.
But when we moved here toGeorgia we were pretty new to
the area and so the first kindof friends that we had made the
couple we went out to dinnerwith them and the wife was a
social worker and honestly,nicole, we were just we had no
idea about that world at all Atthat time.
(04:16):
If you would have asked me howmany kids were in foster care in
Georgia, I probably would havesaid like a couple hundred total
, which I mean, of course weknow there's more than a couple
hundred in most counties inGeorgia.
Speaker 1 (04:27):
So, right.
Speaker 2 (04:29):
But the wife just you know, small talk, what do you
do?
And talking about your job.
And that conversation at dinnerreally changed the whole
trajectory of our lives.
I mean, just once we heardabout the need, about the crisis
, about the system, about thesekids, it just became so real to
us and me and Jason, my husbandand I, we just couldn't shake it
(04:50):
.
We just were thinking about itall the time.
After that one conversation andso really we were probably the
two most naive people to eversign up for foster care.
But we just took the next step.
We really didn't know what thatwas going to lead to.
Speaker 1 (05:09):
Yeah, and so when you first started, right being
super naive about it, you gothrough the classes Like what
did you expect?
Like what did you think youwere getting into?
Speaker 2 (05:22):
Yeah, it's so funny, to be honest, when we were going
through training we had greattrainers, but I think in my mind
I just kind of thought well,they're training to the worst
case scenario.
That's probably not going to beour experience.
I mean, we really just didn't.
I didn't understand anythingabout trauma.
I was the most untraumainformed about trauma.
(05:44):
I was the mostuntrauma-informed foster parent
which you know.
Of course, god has a sense ofhumor and a journey and a story
for us all.
But I really thought it wouldjust be helping out some kids
for a short time.
I thought it would be arevolving door.
We'd get a kid, we'd help themout, keep them safe for a few
(06:05):
months They'd go back home, geta new kid.
That's what I thought thejourney would look like.
Speaker 1 (06:10):
Yeah, and what has your journey actually looked
like?
Speaker 2 (06:16):
Yeah, a little different than that.
So we got approved.
Well, first of all we didn'teven know that there were
Christian or private fosteragencies at all, so we just
thought, de facto, the state wasthe only option.
And as we were looking, we wereactually signed up to take
(06:36):
classes with the state and ourkids my, my bio kids they were
attending a school, at charterschool at the time and they
became friends with some kidsthat had been in foster care and
so talking to their mom justlike at a school function she
was fostering through FaithBridge, so that was really our
first introduction to that.
Speaker 1 (06:57):
So we did the agency that you're with the Christian
agency, that you're with agencythat you're with the Christian
agency, that you're with.
Speaker 2 (07:11):
Correct.
Yeah, so she introduced us tothat.
We signed up to do an encounter, which is like the first step
and just really informational,and then from there we signed up
for the classes and so we gotapproved at the end of 2015.
We had finished our classes andthe home study and then all of
the paperwork.
And then, early 2016, we gotour first placement and he was a
little boy.
He was part of a sibling group,but we didn't know that at the
(07:33):
time when we got the call forhim, the siblings were all
placed in different homes.
So we just got him and aboutsix months later we had gotten a
call.
You know, D-Fak said kind ofsorted out the sibling group
situation and where everybodywas going to be, and we got a
call for his full biologicalsister asking if she could come
stay with us.
(07:54):
And so we fostered them forthree years and then ended up
adopting them.
So it was not that revolvingdoor kids in and out.
Speaker 1 (08:03):
Yeah, y'all have seen reunification happen within the
foster care system.
Speaker 2 (08:08):
Yeah, absolutely we have.
So after we adopted them, youknow, we went from three kids to
five.
To be really honest, my husbandand I were kind of thinking we
would be done and just kind ofokay, now we're going to focus
on these kids and raising ourkiddos.
And it was really our olderbiological kids that were like
we can't just be done, this iswhat we do now.
(08:31):
I remember my older daughtersaying this is just what we do
now.
So we did keep our home openand we had three placements kind
of really quickly.
So we had a set of baby twinsthat were only with us for a
short time and were reunified tograndparents.
And then we had a little girlduring COVID that was with us
(08:53):
for nine months and she wasreunified to her biological
parents and that was just trulya beautiful thing to be a part
of.
Speaker 1 (09:01):
That's awesome.
How do you find the strength tokeep going?
You're saying you guys thoughtyou were done and your
biological kids are saying, no,we're not done.
This is what we do.
How do you find the strength tokeep going and not get burned
out?
Or some people get very jadedin the system and it hinders
(09:25):
their ability to serve well.
So how do you find the strengthto keep going and not get
burned out or jaded?
Speaker 2 (09:35):
Yeah, that's a great question and I can totally see
easily how it would happen.
Sure, so I think a couple ofthings for me personally.
I can only speak for me, but Idon't.
I know that I could notcontinue fostering without my
faith and without very closelywalking with the Lord.
(09:56):
You know, if that weren't ahuge part of our family, it
would be so difficult and I cansay I would be jaded.
So I would fall right in thatcategory.
I think God's used our kids, ourolder kids, really to keep us
going.
The fact that I see foster care, growing them and teaching them
(10:19):
things that they never wouldhave learned or experienced, or
life lessons outside of beingpart of the ministry of foster
care, and then even just littlethings, like even from you,
nicole, I've gotten texts beforerandomly when I'm having a
really hard day.
You know, hey, I'm praying foryou and that's God.
He does that.
But that has really given usthe fuel, jason, even as a
(10:43):
foster dad, that can be kind ofa lonely and isolating place and
he'll have buddies just sayinglike, hey, man, thinking of your
family praying for you guys,those kinds of things are like
just the extra.
Okay, we can keep going, we cankeep doing this.
I think those are the biggest.
Speaker 1 (11:01):
That's special to think about on the guy's side,
because I think a lot of timesas women we are intentional
about seeking out community,because I feel like a lot of
times we're more relational,sometimes we may be more
emotional, so we're seeking thatemotional support from other
(11:23):
people.
But I know with my husband isthat he may not always seek out
community.
You know, in the same way and Ithink a lot of times it's
harder for dads in foster careand adoption to really find that
special community that's goingto lift them up.
Speaker 2 (11:42):
No, I agree completely.
I would like to see change inthat area.
Speaker 1 (11:46):
Yeah, well, and I have seen I mean I have seen
some pop-ups of like differentretreats and stuff for men.
I saw one, I don't know where,it was like a weekend camping
trip out West, but I remembersaying, hey, I think that's, I
think that's so neat that mencan come together and have that
(12:09):
community of support as well.
Absolutely, what are some waysthat you lean into God?
So you said, my faith is theway that I stay in this, that I
stay strong and that I keepgoing.
But what are some practicalways or spiritual disciplines
(12:30):
that you lean into to give youstrength?
Speaker 2 (12:35):
Yeah, it's funny.
Before fostering, I never wouldhave thought the Bible talks
about foster care, but I don'tknow.
When I'm reading through theBible I just keep applying it
over and over again to thefoster care journey.
It's so applicable to our livesin this space.
But over the past year I'vekind of gotten into this rhythm
(12:57):
that's been vital for me, whichis going on a walk or walking on
my walking pad in my house andlistening to scripture on an
audio Bible.
And, to be honest, it startedbecause as a busy mom, I'm short
on time and I wanted to getsome exercise and I wanted to
read the word, and so it waslike kill two birds with one
stone.
But it has become this rhythm.
(13:18):
That's been kind of a lifelinefor me lately and I really I
fight for it.
I fight for that time every dayand that has been, yeah,
leaning into Jesus.
That's been a game changer.
Speaker 1 (13:34):
I have used that same thing as well, except when I
used to listen to my audio book.
I used to have the audio Bible.
I used to have a child thatwould melt down for sometimes
hours right, and I would sit inher room with her and I'd turn
on my audio Bible to where itwould read it to me and I'd
(13:57):
stick it down my shirt so shewasn't like clawing at it or
trying to get it away from me,but I would just listen to it,
read scripture over me as I wassitting in those hard situations
, and it reminded me of truth,it reminded me of who God was
when I'm literally in the midstof hard and it helped me kind of
(14:22):
ground myself in those hardmoments.
It helped me regulate, ithelped me kind of remember what
was important in those moments.
Speaker 2 (14:34):
Yeah, I remember you telling me something similar to
that a long time ago, and I'vekind of used that principle in
the way of worship music.
So, like dinner time, when I'mcooking dinner, you know around
that time everybody's hungry.
You know it's just not a greathour in our house, you know that
leading up to dinner time, andso lately I've been really
(14:56):
having our you know, like Sirior whatever play worship music
and it I wouldn't say it's likea magic button, Sure, but what I
am seeing happening is itregulates, like you just said,
regulates me, it regulates me,calms me, reminds me of truth,
(15:17):
and so a calm mommy can kind ofset the tone for a calm family.
Yes, yes, and like yes in thekitchen.
Speaker 1 (15:23):
I'm just trying to make dinner.
Yes, yes, yes, when I wouldturn on the audio Bible, like in
her room, it had nothing to dowith her, it was all about
regulating me in those momentsso that I could be the best mom
that I could be for her, and soI love that you do that kind of.
(15:44):
During that dinner time hour,we hear parents talk so much
about how that kind of is arough period, especially if kids
have past trauma or foodinsecurities and that sort of
thing Leading up to mealtime canalways make people feel very,
very anxious, and so I love thatidea.
(16:07):
I might implement that as well.
Have there been times where youhave questioned your faith in
this process, or I mean reallyhad to wrestle with God on what
you believed and why youbelieved it, on what you
believed and why you believed it?
Speaker 2 (16:26):
Yeah, most definitely wrestling with God.
I mean I can.
I'm just thinking of specificmemories of being in the shower
and just crying out to God Likedo you see what's happening?
Do you care when things youknow, when the system's broken,
we all know that.
And so when there's injusticehappening or when I perceive
(16:49):
something as being unfair, oryou know a child not being
properly advocated, for there'sdefinitely been times where I'm
like Lord, where are you in this?
And it reminds me.
I've been reading through theOld Testament again and I'm
going through Deuteronomy and itwas so sweet, even just last
(17:12):
week, like it was likeDeuteronomy 8 and 9.
And again, I didn't know.
The Bible talks about fostercare and it doesn't specifically
, but it spoke to me.
You know, through Moses, god isspeaking to the Israelites and
you know Moses is justrecounting everything that God
has brought them through andshowing them time and time again
(17:33):
how he's provided, how histiming is perfect, how he is
sovereign and sufficient, hisgrace is sufficient over every
obstacle they encounter.
And then, you know, so he goesthrough all of this reminding
them, and then at the end he islike don't forget these things.
When it gets hard, it's likehe's saying don't you know,
(17:54):
don't doubt in the dark whatyou've seen in the light.
And it was just like oh, that'sme almost monthly in my foster
care journey Like God will showup, he will prove his timing is
perfect, he will prove that hisgrace is sufficient and that
he's sovereign.
For that time and I'll be like,wow, god, look how you showed
(18:16):
up.
And then the very next, youknow or the next month.
I'm like, yeah, he doesn't evenhear me, he doesn't even know
the situation.
Yes, yes, I'm not as far alongin my reading plan.
He doesn't even hear me.
Speaker 1 (18:25):
He doesn't even know the situation.
Yes, yes, I'm not as far alongin my reading plan.
I have kind of taken my time alittle bit.
So I'm in Exodus and thismorning I'm reading about Moses,
when he's on the mountain andthe Israelites are at the bottom
of the mountain and they justsaid yes, god, we will follow
you wherever We've just seen youdo these miraculous things in
(18:48):
Egypt and to get us out of Egyptand part the Red Sea and all
the things.
Yes, we will be your people.
Now let's make a golden calf,right?
Like you're taking too long andso we're going to push this
along ourselves, right?
Yeah, I think we're all proneto do that.
But it is funny, like when weread the word.
(19:09):
I think sometimes we can saythose Israelites what are they
thinking?
Like you just saw God part theRed Sea, how could you go and do
this?
And then we turn around and dothe exact same thing where we
see these big things.
And I do think in foster carewe see some miraculous things,
(19:30):
we see God move in some reallybig ways.
But then the next day we turnaround and we doubt because you
know what we're seeing or thecircumstances don't look like we
think that they should yeahexactly, exactly.
Speaker 2 (19:48):
I've never identified more with the Israelites than
when I started being a fostermama.
Identifies with the Israelites.
Speaker 1 (19:57):
Yes, a million times over.
And don't you think it createsan intimacy with God that would
be hard to find otherwise, justbecause of your level of
dependence?
Speaker 2 (20:10):
Oh, completely.
You know, just not long ago,maybe a couple weeks ago, I was
in the car and I was complainingto the Lord about our current
situation.
I mean, you know, we're in kindof, we're fostering this child.
We've been fostering her for areally long time and we're still
in a waiting period forpermanency, for an outcome.
I'm complaining to the Lordlike this is really hard and
(20:32):
this is why more people don't dothis.
I had this sense.
It was one of those times itwasn't an audible voice that
said to me this is just as muchfor you as it is for her, as it
is for anyone else, like he's,like you're in this space,
(20:54):
you're in this time and spaceand journey for you.
Like I'm refining you, mandy, Iam teaching you things that you
need to know about me, youthings that you need to know
about me.
And I, just I was like in thatmoment, discipled by the Holy
Spirit and just like an aha ofwhat God is doing in my life.
I wouldn't get in any other waythan it is for me, and it's
(21:18):
hard, but it's so, so good, andthat intimacy that you're
talking about.
Speaker 1 (21:23):
Yeah, I think a lot of times those hard things right
, you don't have control.
By the way, I do think Godhandpicks all the control freaks
and he drops them into fostercare for exactly that reason to
sanctify that out of us.
But I think a lot of thereasons why people don't get
(21:45):
involved in foster care becausethey know it's going to be hard
and all of those things isexactly why people should right,
because it is an act of faith.
It is an act of having to relyon God in a way that you can't
control, in a way that you dohave to trust you have to learn
(22:08):
to trust him in a way that maybeyou don't already.
(22:31):
It can sanctify us, it can makeus look more like Jesus and, at
the same time, really build ourrelationship with God, to build
that trust and that affection, Ithink, for Him.
So what are some of yourfavorite scriptures to?
Speaker 2 (22:39):
go to when you're struggling.
Well, one was, honestly, I mean, I've learned so much from you,
nicole, over the years, and onethat I will go back to is
Numbers 11, right, yeah, yeah,that's my favorite.
Yeah, I mean I will.
I will literally highlight itin my Bible and I will go back
and read that just because ofthe beautiful wordage.
I mean, I think it's sweet ofscripture to say those things If
(23:04):
you're not familiar.
I mean Moses is complaining toGod about the Israelites, poor
Israelites we're throwing themunder the bus today, but you
know he's complaining to Godabout them.
You've given me these peopleand the words that he uses, you
know it translates to you'vegiven me these children that I
didn't even bear, and so it'slike I have felt that, you know,
(23:28):
in our, in our adoptive parentstory, we are in a very real
sense, raising other people'schildren, biological children,
and there are issues from traumathat it is a difficult burden
to bear and we didn't create it.
And yet God has given us thisassignment and it's beautiful
(23:54):
and I love it, but it's hard.
And man Moses is just speakingmy language in that section of
scripture.
Speaker 1 (24:03):
Oh, me too.
So the way that the scripturethat Mandy's talking about, the
way that it kind of came into mylife.
I was in a season where, one ofthe hardest seasons of my life,
I was at rock bottom.
We were having some really,really difficult times and I
(24:29):
just needed something.
And I went to a Bible study anda lady was talking about
Numbers 11, but she was talkingabout it from the perspective of
manna and the Lord providingmanna, and I thought, well, I
need a little manna today.
I'm going to go look up Numbers11.
And it does talk about themanna.
(24:50):
That's why the Israelites arecomplaining.
But I'll read what it says.
So it says Moses said to theLord why have you dealt ill with
your servant and why have I notfound favor in your sight that
you lay burden of all thispeople on me?
Did I conceive all this people?
(25:11):
Did I give them birth?
That you should say to me carrythem in your bosom, as a nurse
carries a nursing child to theland that you swore to give
their fathers.
Where am I to get meat to giveall of these people For they
weep before me and say give usmeat that we may eat?
I'm not able to carry all thispeople alone.
The burden is too heavy for me.
(25:32):
If you will treat me like this,kill me at once If I find favor
in your sight that I might notsee my wretchedness.
And I thought, lord, this hasbeen my cry right, and part of
my struggle in that season is Ididn't feel close to God.
I kind of felt forgotten andalone and I felt like I had
(26:01):
displeased him in my struggle,the fact that I was struggling
to carry all that we werecarrying in that season, and I
felt like he had kind of turnedhis back on me honestly.
And so, reading that scripture,I was like this is what this has
been my cry, lord, that I can'tcarry all of this weight alone.
(26:25):
I can't.
I don't know how to do this,I'm not good at this.
And at the end, you know, mosesis like kill me now and and all
of this stuff.
But the reason that he saysthat is he says that I might not
see my own wretchedness.
He starts to see his ownstruggle and the darkness in his
(26:47):
heart as he's put in difficultsituations, as he's carrying a
heavy load.
And that was exactly my issueis.
I was starting to see thedarkness in my heart that I
wasn't this great, great personthat was able to do all of these
wonderful things with ease,like Cinderella.
(27:09):
Floating around just keepingthe house tidy and making sure
everybody had everything thatthey needed was really, really
hard, but it gave me such hopebecause I'm like Moses was a
friend of God.
He was not forgotten by God.
In fact, he was closer to Godthan most.
Speaker 2 (27:29):
Yeah, I mean he's a hero of the faith, right, but
he's yucky and he's messy.
Speaker 1 (27:34):
Yes, Well, and I think that he actually saw the
yucky and the messy more clearlythan a lot of the Israelites
did because of his closenesswith God, and it gave me such
hope and such just kind of likeokay, okay, God, you one, I'm
(27:54):
not meant to carry all of thisalone.
I don't have to carry it alone.
You didn't mean that for me,but also you're not far from me.
You're not turning your back onme because I'm struggling.
Speaker 2 (28:06):
Well and that's exactly another thing that I
pulled out of that scripture waswe're not meant to do this
alone.
And so what does God provide?
Like he hears Moses, he seeshim where he's at, and then he
provides.
Like the 70 elders he's like OK, I'll give you some help.
And God has done that for us inthe form of community.
God has said OK, I will bringyou community to carry some of
(28:30):
this burden alongside of youguys and ease the load a little
bit.
And so you know professionalsthat have come into our lives,
therapists, educators, you knowthat are part of our community,
of course, people at church, andI could name so many.
But God has provided that,which was another thing that
(28:51):
that scripture really spoke tome.
Speaker 1 (28:54):
Yeah, that was, that was really good.
That was really good.
And I think that it kind ofpoked me a little bit to make
sure that I wasn't hiding awayin our struggles, that I was
allowing other people to comeinto our story and help us with
(29:18):
different things church,community, friends, you know,
not being ashamed of ourstruggle, but really being
walking in humility and justsaying, hey, this is really hard
and we need some help.
Speaker 2 (29:32):
Yeah, yeah, yeah.
That's so hard to do, but soworth it.
We can carry it along?
Speaker 1 (29:37):
Yeah, definitely.
Well, if you could give fosterparents or adoptive parents one
encouragement in their faith,what would that be?
Speaker 2 (29:49):
Well, I would say that it is absolutely worth it,
that it is the hardest thingthat we've done and we moved our
family with small kids overseasand that was really hard.
But fostering and adopting isthe hardest thing that I've
personally done, but that it'sso worth it in the richness of
(30:09):
life.
The things that I see, as Imentioned earlier, that it's
producing in my children,honestly, the things that I see
that it's producing in ourcommunity, in our neighborhood,
with other people who might have, you know, stereotypes of
foster children or, and thenthey meet our children and then
they kind of see oh, they'rekids, you know what I see.
(30:33):
This journey, this ministryproducing in people, is worth
the hard and I would absolutelydo it again.
And I think, being obedient toGod's call, he will provide
exactly what you need and I am atestament of that Every single
(30:53):
time that there's been just adire need and we cry out to the
Lord like Lord, this is a hurdlethat I don't know how to get
over and he's provided exactlywhat we needed, whatever that
may be in the season.
And so I would just offer thatI would be honest with new or
prospective foster and adoptiveparents that it is really hard.
(31:14):
It can be really difficult, butthat it is so worth it and the
impact worth it for mepersonally in my faith journey.
But then the impact that youget to have in a child's life
and offering a Christ-centeredhome to a child is worth
(31:36):
anything.
There's nothing in life that'snot worth that a child is worth
anything.
Speaker 1 (31:41):
There's nothing in life that's not worth that.
I love that.
Well, mandy, thank you forbeing with us today.
I have really enjoyed our timetogether and I know that you
have provided so much value andencouragement for foster and
adoptive families.
So thank you.
Thanks for having me.
Anytime, if you are interestedin learning more about the Jesus
Film Project or how you cansupport Mandy and her husband,
(32:04):
jason, on their missionaryjourney, I will leave a link in
the show notes to connect withthem.
I will also leave a link forour Foster Parent Well Facebook
community.
I would love to have you joinus over there so that we can
continue to encourage oneanother as we seek to foster
parent.
Well, now let me close us in aword of prayer.
(32:25):
Lord Jesus, we humbly sit atyour feet and ask for strength
for today.
Help us cast off worry fortomorrow and to trust that your
grace is sufficient for each andevery day.
Give us community, lord, tosurround us and lift us up when
we get weary, and sanctify us intruth.
(32:48):
Help us to be better parentsand better representatives of
you.
We love you.
We trust you In Jesus' name,amen.
Hey friend, welcome back to the Foster Parent Well
podcast.
We're doing something specialthis summer because, let's be
real, summer is loud andschedules are wild.
So, in the spirit of keepingthings simple and soul-filling,
we're hitting rewind All summerlong.
I'll be sharing some of myfavorite episodes from the past,
conversations that encouragedme, challenged me and reminded
(00:22):
me that God is still workingeven when life feels messy.
If you're new here, it's theperfect time to jump in, and if
you've been around for a while,think of this like a little
refresher, like your spiritualiced coffee on a hot summer day.
So let's soak in some truth,lean into God's grace and keep
showing up for the hard and holywork that we've been called to.
(00:43):
Let's jump into this Rewindepisode.
Welcome to the Foster ParentWell podcast, where we have real
candid, faith-filledconversations about all things
foster care, adoption and trauma.
(01:04):
I'm your host, nicole T Barlow.
I'm a certified parent trainer,a certified health coach and an
adoptive parent myself.
This is a space where you canfind support so that you can
care for your kids with asteadfast faith, endurance and
joy.
I want you to foster parentwell, so let's jump in.
(01:38):
Welcome to the Foster Wellpodcast.
I'm your host, nicole T Barlow,and we have a really amazing
podcast episode today.
Joining me is my good friend,mandy Summers.
Mandy and her husband, jason,are full-time missionaries with
the Jesus Film Project.
Their mission is to reachunreached nations by delivering
(02:01):
the story of Jesus on film sothat all are able to hear the
story of Jesus in their ownlanguage.
Today, mandy joins me to talkabout spiritual strength and
leaning into our faith as fosterand adoptive parents.
Mandy and her husband areadoptive parents and they are
also a current foster family,and she just has so much wisdom
(02:23):
to share, so I'm excited for youall to hear from her today.
So I'd like to welcome to thepodcast my good friend, mandy
Summers.
Mandy, welcome to the show.
Speaker 2 (02:36):
Thank you, thanks for having me.
Speaker 1 (02:38):
I'm excited about you being here.
So tell us a little bit aboutyou and your family and how you
got into foster care andadoption to begin with, sure.
Speaker 2 (02:50):
So my husband and I, we are full-time missionaries
with an organization called theJesus Film Project, which is
part of Campus Crusade forChrist, and we have been on
staff with them since wegraduated college.
So that's been our career, ourwhole marriage, and we have
(03:11):
currently in the home sixchildren.
You know we are a currentfoster family, so that number
fluctuates from time to time,but right now there's six.
So we have three biologicalkids, two that we've adopted,
and then there is one childthat's placed with us, that's
still in foster care.
Speaker 1 (03:29):
OK, awesome.
How do you get into foster careto begin with?
What drew you to?
Speaker 2 (03:35):
do this?
Yeah, that's a great question.
I think I am realizing thatfoster care and adoption really
found us.
So we kind of have a little bitof a different story.
You know, you always hear thosepeople that say, oh, I was
always interested in foster careor I had wanted to adopt since
I was a little kid.
(03:55):
That just wasn't something thatwe had ever really thought
about or considered.
But when we moved here toGeorgia we were pretty new to
the area and so the first kindof friends that we had made the
couple we went out to dinnerwith them and the wife was a
social worker and honestly,nicole, we were just we had no
idea about that world at all Atthat time.
(04:16):
If you would have asked me howmany kids were in foster care in
Georgia, I probably would havesaid like a couple hundred total
, which I mean, of course weknow there's more than a couple
hundred in most counties inGeorgia.
Speaker 1 (04:27):
So, right.
Speaker 2 (04:29):
But the wife just you know, small talk, what do you
do?
And talking about your job.
And that conversation at dinnerreally changed the whole
trajectory of our lives.
I mean, just once we heardabout the need, about the crisis
, about the system, about thesekids, it just became so real to
us and me and Jason, my husbandand I, we just couldn't shake it
(04:50):
.
We just were thinking about itall the time.
After that one conversation andso really we were probably the
two most naive people to eversign up for foster care.
But we just took the next step.
We really didn't know what thatwas going to lead to.
Speaker 1 (05:09):
Yeah, and so when you first started, right being
super naive about it, you gothrough the classes Like what
did you expect?
Like what did you think youwere getting into?
Speaker 2 (05:22):
Yeah, it's so funny, to be honest, when we were going
through training we had greattrainers, but I think in my mind
I just kind of thought well,they're training to the worst
case scenario.
That's probably not going to beour experience.
I mean, we really just didn't.
I didn't understand anythingabout trauma.
I was the most untraumainformed about trauma.
(05:44):
I was the mostuntrauma-informed foster parent
which you know.
Of course, god has a sense ofhumor and a journey and a story
for us all.
But I really thought it wouldjust be helping out some kids
for a short time.
I thought it would be arevolving door.
We'd get a kid, we'd help themout, keep them safe for a few
(06:05):
months They'd go back home, geta new kid.
That's what I thought thejourney would look like.
Speaker 1 (06:10):
Yeah, and what has your journey actually looked
like?
Speaker 2 (06:16):
Yeah, a little different than that.
So we got approved.
Well, first of all we didn'teven know that there were
Christian or private fosteragencies at all, so we just
thought, de facto, the state wasthe only option.
And as we were looking, we wereactually signed up to take
(06:36):
classes with the state and ourkids my, my bio kids they were
attending a school, at charterschool at the time and they
became friends with some kidsthat had been in foster care and
so talking to their mom justlike at a school function she
was fostering through FaithBridge, so that was really our
first introduction to that.
Speaker 1 (06:57):
So we did the agency that you're with the Christian
agency, that you're with agencythat you're with the Christian
agency, that you're with.
Speaker 2 (07:11):
Correct.
Yeah, so she introduced us tothat.
We signed up to do an encounter, which is like the first step
and just really informational,and then from there we signed up
for the classes and so we gotapproved at the end of 2015.
We had finished our classes andthe home study and then all of
the paperwork.
And then, early 2016, we gotour first placement and he was a
little boy.
He was part of a sibling group,but we didn't know that at the
(07:33):
time when we got the call forhim, the siblings were all
placed in different homes.
So we just got him and aboutsix months later we had gotten a
call.
You know, D-Fak said kind ofsorted out the sibling group
situation and where everybodywas going to be, and we got a
call for his full biologicalsister asking if she could come
stay with us.
(07:54):
And so we fostered them forthree years and then ended up
adopting them.
So it was not that revolvingdoor kids in and out.
Speaker 1 (08:03):
Yeah, y'all have seen reunification happen within the
foster care system.
Speaker 2 (08:08):
Yeah, absolutely we have.
So after we adopted them, youknow, we went from three kids to
five.
To be really honest, my husbandand I were kind of thinking we
would be done and just kind ofokay, now we're going to focus
on these kids and raising ourkiddos.
And it was really our olderbiological kids that were like
we can't just be done, this iswhat we do now.
(08:31):
I remember my older daughtersaying this is just what we do
now.
So we did keep our home openand we had three placements kind
of really quickly.
So we had a set of baby twinsthat were only with us for a
short time and were reunified tograndparents.
And then we had a little girlduring COVID that was with us
(08:53):
for nine months and she wasreunified to her biological
parents and that was just trulya beautiful thing to be a part
of.
Speaker 1 (09:01):
That's awesome.
How do you find the strength tokeep going?
You're saying you guys thoughtyou were done and your
biological kids are saying, no,we're not done.
This is what we do.
How do you find the strength tokeep going and not get burned
out?
Or some people get very jadedin the system and it hinders
(09:25):
their ability to serve well.
So how do you find the strengthto keep going and not get
burned out or jaded?
Speaker 2 (09:35):
Yeah, that's a great question and I can totally see
easily how it would happen.
Sure, so I think a couple ofthings for me personally.
I can only speak for me, but Idon't.
I know that I could notcontinue fostering without my
faith and without very closelywalking with the Lord.
(09:56):
You know, if that weren't ahuge part of our family, it
would be so difficult and I cansay I would be jaded.
So I would fall right in thatcategory.
I think God's used our kids, ourolder kids, really to keep us
going.
The fact that I see foster care, growing them and teaching them
(10:19):
things that they never wouldhave learned or experienced, or
life lessons outside of beingpart of the ministry of foster
care, and then even just littlethings, like even from you,
nicole, I've gotten texts beforerandomly when I'm having a
really hard day.
You know, hey, I'm praying foryou and that's God.
He does that.
But that has really given usthe fuel, jason, even as a
(10:43):
foster dad, that can be kind ofa lonely and isolating place and
he'll have buddies just sayinglike, hey, man, thinking of your
family praying for you guys,those kinds of things are like
just the extra.
Okay, we can keep going, we cankeep doing this.
I think those are the biggest.
Speaker 1 (11:01):
That's special to think about on the guy's side,
because I think a lot of timesas women we are intentional
about seeking out community,because I feel like a lot of
times we're more relational,sometimes we may be more
emotional, so we're seeking thatemotional support from other
(11:23):
people.
But I know with my husband isthat he may not always seek out
community.
You know, in the same way and Ithink a lot of times it's
harder for dads in foster careand adoption to really find that
special community that's goingto lift them up.
Speaker 2 (11:42):
No, I agree completely.
I would like to see change inthat area.
Speaker 1 (11:46):
Yeah, well, and I have seen I mean I have seen
some pop-ups of like differentretreats and stuff for men.
I saw one, I don't know where,it was like a weekend camping
trip out West, but I remembersaying, hey, I think that's, I
think that's so neat that mencan come together and have that
(12:09):
community of support as well.
Absolutely, what are some waysthat you lean into God?
So you said, my faith is theway that I stay in this, that I
stay strong and that I keepgoing.
But what are some practicalways or spiritual disciplines
(12:30):
that you lean into to give youstrength?
Speaker 2 (12:35):
Yeah, it's funny.
Before fostering, I never wouldhave thought the Bible talks
about foster care, but I don'tknow.
When I'm reading through theBible I just keep applying it
over and over again to thefoster care journey.
It's so applicable to our livesin this space.
But over the past year I'vekind of gotten into this rhythm
(12:57):
that's been vital for me, whichis going on a walk or walking on
my walking pad in my house andlistening to scripture on an
audio Bible.
And, to be honest, it startedbecause as a busy mom, I'm short
on time and I wanted to getsome exercise and I wanted to
read the word, and so it waslike kill two birds with one
stone.
But it has become this rhythm.
(13:18):
That's been kind of a lifelinefor me lately and I really I
fight for it.
I fight for that time every dayand that has been, yeah,
leaning into Jesus.
That's been a game changer.
Speaker 1 (13:34):
I have used that same thing as well, except when I
used to listen to my audio book.
I used to have the audio Bible.
I used to have a child thatwould melt down for sometimes
hours right, and I would sit inher room with her and I'd turn
on my audio Bible to where itwould read it to me and I'd
(13:57):
stick it down my shirt so shewasn't like clawing at it or
trying to get it away from me,but I would just listen to it,
read scripture over me as I wassitting in those hard situations
, and it reminded me of truth,it reminded me of who God was
when I'm literally in the midstof hard and it helped me kind of
(14:22):
ground myself in those hardmoments.
It helped me regulate, ithelped me kind of remember what
was important in those moments.
Speaker 2 (14:34):
Yeah, I remember you telling me something similar to
that a long time ago, and I'vekind of used that principle in
the way of worship music.
So, like dinner time, when I'mcooking dinner, you know around
that time everybody's hungry.
You know it's just not a greathour in our house, you know that
leading up to dinner time, andso lately I've been really
(14:56):
having our you know, like Sirior whatever play worship music
and it I wouldn't say it's likea magic button, Sure, but what I
am seeing happening is itregulates, like you just said,
regulates me, it regulates me,calms me, reminds me of truth,
(15:17):
and so a calm mommy can kind ofset the tone for a calm family.
Yes, yes, and like yes in thekitchen.
Speaker 1 (15:23):
I'm just trying to make dinner.
Yes, yes, yes, when I wouldturn on the audio Bible, like in
her room, it had nothing to dowith her, it was all about
regulating me in those momentsso that I could be the best mom
that I could be for her, and soI love that you do that kind of.
(15:44):
During that dinner time hour,we hear parents talk so much
about how that kind of is arough period, especially if kids
have past trauma or foodinsecurities and that sort of
thing Leading up to mealtime canalways make people feel very,
very anxious, and so I love thatidea.
(16:07):
I might implement that as well.
Have there been times where youhave questioned your faith in
this process, or I mean reallyhad to wrestle with God on what
you believed and why youbelieved it, on what you
believed and why you believed it?
Speaker 2 (16:26):
Yeah, most definitely wrestling with God.
I mean I can.
I'm just thinking of specificmemories of being in the shower
and just crying out to God Likedo you see what's happening?
Do you care when things youknow, when the system's broken,
we all know that.
And so when there's injusticehappening or when I perceive
(16:49):
something as being unfair, oryou know a child not being
properly advocated, for there'sdefinitely been times where I'm
like Lord, where are you in this?
And it reminds me.
I've been reading through theOld Testament again and I'm
going through Deuteronomy and itwas so sweet, even just last
(17:12):
week, like it was likeDeuteronomy 8 and 9.
And again, I didn't know.
The Bible talks about fostercare and it doesn't specifically
, but it spoke to me.
You know, through Moses, god isspeaking to the Israelites and
you know Moses is justrecounting everything that God
has brought them through andshowing them time and time again
(17:33):
how he's provided, how histiming is perfect, how he is
sovereign and sufficient, hisgrace is sufficient over every
obstacle they encounter.
And then, you know, so he goesthrough all of this reminding
them, and then at the end he islike don't forget these things.
When it gets hard, it's likehe's saying don't you know,
(17:54):
don't doubt in the dark whatyou've seen in the light.
And it was just like oh, that'sme almost monthly in my foster
care journey Like God will showup, he will prove his timing is
perfect, he will prove that hisgrace is sufficient and that
he's sovereign.
For that time and I'll be like,wow, god, look how you showed
(18:16):
up.
And then the very next, youknow or the next month.
I'm like, yeah, he doesn't evenhear me, he doesn't even know
the situation.
Yes, yes, I'm not as far alongin my reading plan.
He doesn't even hear me.
Speaker 1 (18:25):
He doesn't even know the situation.
Yes, yes, I'm not as far alongin my reading plan.
I have kind of taken my time alittle bit.
So I'm in Exodus and thismorning I'm reading about Moses,
when he's on the mountain andthe Israelites are at the bottom
of the mountain and they justsaid yes, god, we will follow
you wherever We've just seen youdo these miraculous things in
(18:48):
Egypt and to get us out of Egyptand part the Red Sea and all
the things.
Yes, we will be your people.
Now let's make a golden calf,right?
Like you're taking too long andso we're going to push this
along ourselves, right?
Yeah, I think we're all proneto do that.
But it is funny, like when weread the word.
(19:09):
I think sometimes we can saythose Israelites what are they
thinking?
Like you just saw God part theRed Sea, how could you go and do
this?
And then we turn around and dothe exact same thing where we
see these big things.
And I do think in foster carewe see some miraculous things,
(19:30):
we see God move in some reallybig ways.
But then the next day we turnaround and we doubt because you
know what we're seeing or thecircumstances don't look like we
think that they should yeahexactly, exactly.
Speaker 2 (19:48):
I've never identified more with the Israelites than
when I started being a fostermama.
Identifies with the Israelites.
Speaker 1 (19:57):
Yes, a million times over.
And don't you think it createsan intimacy with God that would
be hard to find otherwise, justbecause of your level of
dependence?
Speaker 2 (20:10):
Oh, completely.
You know, just not long ago,maybe a couple weeks ago, I was
in the car and I was complainingto the Lord about our current
situation.
I mean, you know, we're in kindof, we're fostering this child.
We've been fostering her for areally long time and we're still
in a waiting period forpermanency, for an outcome.
I'm complaining to the Lordlike this is really hard and
(20:32):
this is why more people don't dothis.
I had this sense.
It was one of those times itwasn't an audible voice that
said to me this is just as muchfor you as it is for her, as it
is for anyone else, like he's,like you're in this space,
(20:54):
you're in this time and spaceand journey for you.
Like I'm refining you, mandy, Iam teaching you things that you
need to know about me, youthings that you need to know
about me.
And I, just I was like in thatmoment, discipled by the Holy
Spirit and just like an aha ofwhat God is doing in my life.
I wouldn't get in any other waythan it is for me, and it's
(21:18):
hard, but it's so, so good, andthat intimacy that you're
talking about.
Speaker 1 (21:23):
Yeah, I think a lot of times those hard things right
, you don't have control.
By the way, I do think Godhandpicks all the control freaks
and he drops them into fostercare for exactly that reason to
sanctify that out of us.
But I think a lot of thereasons why people don't get
(21:45):
involved in foster care becausethey know it's going to be hard
and all of those things isexactly why people should right,
because it is an act of faith.
It is an act of having to relyon God in a way that you can't
control, in a way that you dohave to trust you have to learn
(22:08):
to trust him in a way that maybeyou don't already.
(22:31):
It can sanctify us, it can makeus look more like Jesus and, at
the same time, really build ourrelationship with God, to build
that trust and that affection, Ithink, for Him.
So what are some of yourfavorite scriptures to?
Speaker 2 (22:39):
go to when you're struggling.
Well, one was, honestly, I mean, I've learned so much from you,
nicole, over the years, and onethat I will go back to is
Numbers 11, right, yeah, yeah,that's my favorite.
Yeah, I mean I will.
I will literally highlight itin my Bible and I will go back
and read that just because ofthe beautiful wordage.
I mean, I think it's sweet ofscripture to say those things If
(23:04):
you're not familiar.
I mean Moses is complaining toGod about the Israelites, poor
Israelites we're throwing themunder the bus today, but you
know he's complaining to Godabout them.
You've given me these peopleand the words that he uses, you
know it translates to you'vegiven me these children that I
didn't even bear, and so it'slike I have felt that, you know,
(23:28):
in our, in our adoptive parentstory, we are in a very real
sense, raising other people'schildren, biological children,
and there are issues from traumathat it is a difficult burden
to bear and we didn't create it.
And yet God has given us thisassignment and it's beautiful
(23:54):
and I love it, but it's hard.
And man Moses is just speakingmy language in that section of
scripture.
Speaker 1 (24:03):
Oh, me too.
So the way that the scripturethat Mandy's talking about, the
way that it kind of came into mylife.
I was in a season where, one ofthe hardest seasons of my life,
I was at rock bottom.
We were having some really,really difficult times and I
(24:29):
just needed something.
And I went to a Bible study anda lady was talking about
Numbers 11, but she was talkingabout it from the perspective of
manna and the Lord providingmanna, and I thought, well, I
need a little manna today.
I'm going to go look up Numbers11.
And it does talk about themanna.
(24:50):
That's why the Israelites arecomplaining.
But I'll read what it says.
So it says Moses said to theLord why have you dealt ill with
your servant and why have I notfound favor in your sight that
you lay burden of all thispeople on me?
Did I conceive all this people?
(25:11):
Did I give them birth?
That you should say to me carrythem in your bosom, as a nurse
carries a nursing child to theland that you swore to give
their fathers.
Where am I to get meat to giveall of these people For they
weep before me and say give usmeat that we may eat?
I'm not able to carry all thispeople alone.
The burden is too heavy for me.
(25:32):
If you will treat me like this,kill me at once If I find favor
in your sight that I might notsee my wretchedness.
And I thought, lord, this hasbeen my cry right, and part of
my struggle in that season is Ididn't feel close to God.
I kind of felt forgotten andalone and I felt like I had
(26:01):
displeased him in my struggle,the fact that I was struggling
to carry all that we werecarrying in that season, and I
felt like he had kind of turnedhis back on me honestly.
And so, reading that scripture,I was like this is what this has
been my cry, lord, that I can'tcarry all of this weight alone.
(26:25):
I can't.
I don't know how to do this,I'm not good at this.
And at the end, you know, mosesis like kill me now and and all
of this stuff.
But the reason that he saysthat is he says that I might not
see my own wretchedness.
He starts to see his ownstruggle and the darkness in his
(26:47):
heart as he's put in difficultsituations, as he's carrying a
heavy load.
And that was exactly my issueis.
I was starting to see thedarkness in my heart that I
wasn't this great, great personthat was able to do all of these
wonderful things with ease,like Cinderella.
(27:09):
Floating around just keepingthe house tidy and making sure
everybody had everything thatthey needed was really, really
hard, but it gave me such hopebecause I'm like Moses was a
friend of God.
He was not forgotten by God.
In fact, he was closer to Godthan most.
Speaker 2 (27:29):
Yeah, I mean he's a hero of the faith, right, but
he's yucky and he's messy.
Speaker 1 (27:34):
Yes, Well, and I think that he actually saw the
yucky and the messy more clearlythan a lot of the Israelites
did because of his closenesswith God, and it gave me such
hope and such just kind of likeokay, okay, God, you one, I'm
(27:54):
not meant to carry all of thisalone.
I don't have to carry it alone.
You didn't mean that for me,but also you're not far from me.
You're not turning your back onme because I'm struggling.
Speaker 2 (28:06):
Well and that's exactly another thing that I
pulled out of that scripture waswe're not meant to do this
alone.
And so what does God provide?
Like he hears Moses, he seeshim where he's at, and then he
provides.
Like the 70 elders he's like OK, I'll give you some help.
And God has done that for us inthe form of community.
God has said OK, I will bringyou community to carry some of
(28:30):
this burden alongside of youguys and ease the load a little
bit.
And so you know professionalsthat have come into our lives,
therapists, educators, you knowthat are part of our community,
of course, people at church, andI could name so many.
But God has provided that,which was another thing that
(28:51):
that scripture really spoke tome.
Speaker 1 (28:54):
Yeah, that was, that was really good.
That was really good.
And I think that it kind ofpoked me a little bit to make
sure that I wasn't hiding awayin our struggles, that I was
allowing other people to comeinto our story and help us with
(29:18):
different things church,community, friends, you know,
not being ashamed of ourstruggle, but really being
walking in humility and justsaying, hey, this is really hard
and we need some help.
Speaker 2 (29:32):
Yeah, yeah, yeah.
That's so hard to do, but soworth it.
We can carry it along?
Speaker 1 (29:37):
Yeah, definitely.
Well, if you could give fosterparents or adoptive parents one
encouragement in their faith,what would that be?
Speaker 2 (29:49):
Well, I would say that it is absolutely worth it,
that it is the hardest thingthat we've done and we moved our
family with small kids overseasand that was really hard.
But fostering and adopting isthe hardest thing that I've
personally done, but that it'sso worth it in the richness of
(30:09):
life.
The things that I see, as Imentioned earlier, that it's
producing in my children,honestly, the things that I see
that it's producing in ourcommunity, in our neighborhood,
with other people who might have, you know, stereotypes of
foster children or, and thenthey meet our children and then
they kind of see oh, they'rekids, you know what I see.
(30:33):
This journey, this ministryproducing in people, is worth
the hard and I would absolutelydo it again.
And I think, being obedient toGod's call, he will provide
exactly what you need and I am atestament of that Every single
(30:53):
time that there's been just adire need and we cry out to the
Lord like Lord, this is a hurdlethat I don't know how to get
over and he's provided exactlywhat we needed, whatever that
may be in the season.
And so I would just offer thatI would be honest with new or
prospective foster and adoptiveparents that it is really hard.
(31:14):
It can be really difficult, butthat it is so worth it and the
impact worth it for mepersonally in my faith journey.
But then the impact that youget to have in a child's life
and offering a Christ-centeredhome to a child is worth
(31:36):
anything.
There's nothing in life that'snot worth that a child is worth
anything.
Speaker 1 (31:41):
There's nothing in life that's not worth that.
I love that.
Well, mandy, thank you forbeing with us today.
I have really enjoyed our timetogether and I know that you
have provided so much value andencouragement for foster and
adoptive families.
So thank you.
Thanks for having me.
Anytime, if you are interestedin learning more about the Jesus
Film Project or how you cansupport Mandy and her husband,
(32:04):
jason, on their missionaryjourney, I will leave a link in
the show notes to connect withthem.
I will also leave a link forour Foster Parent Well Facebook
community.
I would love to have you joinus over there so that we can
continue to encourage oneanother as we seek to foster
parent.
Well, now let me close us in aword of prayer.
(32:25):
Lord Jesus, we humbly sit atyour feet and ask for strength
for today.
Help us cast off worry fortomorrow and to trust that your
grace is sufficient for each andevery day.
Give us community, lord, tosurround us and lift us up when
we get weary, and sanctify us intruth.
(32:48):
Help us to be better parentsand better representatives of
you.
We love you.
We trust you In Jesus' name,amen.
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