When foster care feels overwhelming, how do we hold on to hope? How do we define success? How do we find light when so much feels dark?
Nate and Kristen Crew are my guests on the podcast today. They have been married for almost 15 years and have 7 children – four adopted through foster care and three by birth. Rather than a specific “calling” to foster, they pursued foster care out of a desire to live out the basic commands in Scripture to care for those who are vulnerable. Nate is a pastor at CityLight Church in Virginia and together they love to encourage others through what God has taught them.
In this episode, you’ll hear how Nate and Kristen strive to live out their calling as Christians, the difference that reliance on God has made in their story, why it doesn’t require a “special moment” to start getting involved with foster care, how to hold on to hope when the journey is hard, and more.
Listen in!
TAKEAWAYS FROM TODAY’S CONVERSATION:
1. Respond to the “ordinary” calling.
Not everyone will have a specific call from God that says, “You will serve the orphan and widow in this specific way.” But we all have an ordinary calling to act and serve the most vulnerable among us. If you have been waiting for a sign from God to do something, you don’t need anything more than the biblical call to love our neighbors and care for the orphan. That’s an invitation we all have received.
“Once you say yes to foster care, you can’t turn your eyes away.”
2. Lean on Christ.
Becoming foster parents includes so many rewarding experiences, but there are many challenging circumstances you will have to walk through as well. This is why trauma-informed training is crucial, and this is also why we need to lean on Christ every step of the way. He wants to guide us, support us, and help us grow.
“I have been brought to the end of myself so many times.”
3. Take the journey one day at a time.
It’s easy to become overwhelmed by the brokenness and hardship we see around us. But our role is to faithfully walk out the calling God has given to us and entrust the outcome to Him. This journey is one we take one day at a time as we seek to love and support our community and the children in our care.
“Let’s just be faithful today.”
Meet Our Guests
Nate and Kristen Crew are foster parents, adoptive parents, and biological parents to seven children. Kristen is a former special education teacher and Foster the Family launch team staff member. Today, she uses her experiences to help others along their journey through her writing and speaking. Nate is a pastor at CityLight Church in Virginia and has an M.Div in Apologetics and an M.A. in Church Planting. They have been married for nearly 15 years and foster parents for 9 years. Together, Nate and Kristen love to encourage others through what God has taught them and to travel as a family when possible!
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