Daily Devotional

One December we prayed as a family for an opportunity to minister to someone who really needed us this Christmas. As an emergency foster care family, we were fully aware of how many kids needed foster homes, especially during the Holidays. Our prayer scarcely left our lips when a call came in. “Would your family be willing to take a newborn baby? This is a drug baby--the mother was on meth when the baby was born.”  No hesitation—we responded, “Yes!”

A beautiful newborn baby boy was put in our arms to care for. He was suffering the effects of the drug in his system and really needed us. Our three teenaged daughters were a huge help. It really did take all of us to care for him.

This sweet baby could not sleep and was constantly agitated. His little body shook and he cried often. Eating was so very difficult for him. We would all take turns walking with him, singing to him, speaking loving words to him. It was so sad to see this little one suffering.

We dressed him in adorable Christmas outfits, took lots of pictures, and simply showered him with love. We prayed daily for him and his mother—that they would one day know the love of the Christ of Christmas and Easter. Slowly, his condition improved and we could see his sweet personality develop.

Five months later, we were told that our Christmas Baby was going home to his mother. She had been released from prison and was ready to be a mom. With many tears and heartache, we all said our goodbyes to this sweet baby and handed him back to the social worker. We also gave the social worker a giant popcorn tin that was loaded with all the baby’s special clothes, pictures and even the onesie our daughter decorated with puffy paint with the words, “Jesus loves me” on the front. We wanted the mother to have her baby’s special things for the time she had missed with her baby. We also wanted her to know her baby was in a Christian home, well cared for and loved—by us and, especially, by Jesus.

We rarely hear from our foster kids or their families. However, in this case, the Lord arranged for us to hear indirectly about our Christmas Baby and his mother. A friend attended a baby shower and met a woman who was talking about her son. She explained that her son had been in a foster home the first five months of his life. She went on to explain that the foster family had given her a giant popcorn tin filled with precious things. Seeing how God had taken care of her baby boy, she decided to turn her life over to God. When my friend told us this, we knew God had answered our prayers. We knew God was taking good care of our Christmas Baby. He gave us an even clearer understanding of our role:

James 1:27 – “This is pure and undefiled religion in the sight of our God and Father, (i.e.,   especially at Christmas) to visit (i.e., to care for) orphans (e.g., foster-children) and widows    (e.g., birth parents) in their distress....”