sowing life into broken spirits.

i have a special story to share with you today

from one of my friends.  mandie joy been such a blessing to 

many.  to me, specifically, she has challenged me, cheerled for 

me, been a confidant & always, always points me to Jesus.

the very best kind of friend.

here's mandie:

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Do you guys remember when Love said this:  

I’ve discovered that this act of mothering is my worship to him right now. 

Oh it’s messy and sloppy sometimes. There is failure, yet forgiveness and 

grace and growing.

Well, those words spoke to a lot of mothers, myself included.

Most people don’t think of me as a mom, but Love is among the few who always 

has. These words resonated deeply with me because I’ve lived them and I know so 

many mothers (of all kinds) who model this approach to motherhood so well. 

Love is one of them. 

There’s a back-door kind of motherhood that doesn’t get talked about 

very often. There are women in the world who do all the things mothers do, but 

know that one day, the hand they’re holding will have to be placed in someone else’s. 

We know our time with each child is precious and limited, but for that moment – 

those days – we’re the mom. 

I stumbled onto foster parenting accidentally, but within a few days of meeting 

my first children it was clear that this journey would capture my heart. Each minute 

with those children felt sacred – the rebuilding of dreams dashed and boundaries 

broken – an opportunity to sow life into broken spirits. I’ve been broken many times in 

my own life, maybe not in the same way as the children, but enough to know how hard it 

is to decide to open up again. Their resilience and willingness to trust me challenged me 

in my own healing. The moments when they rejected my gestures of love sent me running 

to my Heavenly Father, thanking him for continuing to reach out to me.

It’s true what they say. It isn’t easy to love children whole-heartedly when you know 

they could leave at any moment. It’s hard to tell them about unconditional love and

 then stand by helplessly as they’re placed back in a home you wouldn’t have chosen 

for them. It’s hard to learn how to process grief when so few people 

understand what it’s like.

But what I’ve learned (7 years and 15 children later) is that they didn’t ask to

 be in this situation. They’re usually confused and frustrated with adults and desperate 

for someone to look them in the eye and say, 

“I believe in you. I won’t hurt you. I’m with you in this.”

As hard as it is to give my heart and energy to a child without knowing how

 long we have together, my trust is in a God who has proven himself good again 

and again, even in the messiest parts of my life. I can tell them about him – that he 

was the one who committed them to me for a season. He is the one who has 

committed himself to them for a lifetime. That’s where I can rest. That’s where 

I can draw energy for one more day and one more sweet little one.

That’s why I can continue loving. 

Love has graciously allowed me to take her beautiful quote and design it for 

you to print. All of the proceeds from my Etsy shop are used to pay rent so that I 

can work very part time and spend the bulk of my time with the precious children 

God sends my way. Each purchase makes me a little bit giddy with excitement. :) 

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below is one of the colors available for this quote in Mandie Joy's shop.

i'm humbled that it's spoken to some of you and pray that it also

can help my friend's journey as she begins fostering children 

again.  i've seen her mother these children and it is a special

gift that she has to be used to help them feel love, trust and

joy again.  what a precious ministry she has.

you can shop from her store HERE.

HERE is a direct link to the art she made from my quote.

and receive 25% off with the code LOVE25.