When Ryan shared on Sunday that he and Theresa are considering fostering babies under the age of 1 years old from the hours of 5pm to 9am to provide temporary care, I thought two things:
- They must have had amnesia and forget what it was like to take care of a baby from the hours of 5pm to 9am.
- This must be God.
I have an infant under the age of 1 years old and she is at her peak fussiness after 5pm. They are typically cranky and want to sleep but don’t know how yet or at least that has been my experience. So, when Ryan and Theresa say that they are willing to be foster parents for infants and provide temporary care from the hours of 5pm to 9am, you can imagine my initial reaction.
However, there was something that Ryan mentioned in His message that helped make sense of his path to Kingdom Care and it was this: “Come as you are but don’t expect to stay as you are.”
Ryan was referring to coming to church on Sundays and having the expectation that we should not leave the same as we came. This process of coming as we are and not leaving the same happens when we have an encounter with the living God.
Whether you experience a touch from God in worship or get impacted by the Holy Spirit through the sharing of a testimony or message or even receiving a touch of God’s love from an interaction with someone in the family; you may never leave a Sunday the same.
Ryan and Theresa’s form of Kingdom care reminds me of what happens when we encounter the love of the Father.
The scripture in Matthew 22:36-40 reminds us that we are to love God first and then love our neighbor as ourselves.
“Teacher, which is the greatest commandment in the Law?” Jesus replied: “Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments.”
It is when we love God first; with all our heart, soul and mind; that He begins to pour out His love for us into us. This love is contagious. This love causes us to love. It is the fuel necessary to love our neighbors as ourselves. But more importantly, it is the natural response to experiencing the love of God.
So when an opportunity to provide temporary care for infants under the age of 1 from the hours of 5pm to 9am presents itself to Ryan and Theresa, it makes total sense as they would respond with a yes out of an overflow of the love of the Father.
Here’s what’s deep about what they are doing:
In Psychotherapy, we often treat relational issues/challenges. One of the theories we draw on is called the Attachment theory. It revolves around the idea that early emotional bonds with caregivers shape lifelong relational patterns.
The theory suggests that infants that are born having consistent and responsive care from their caregivers form a secure attachment that allows them to explore the world around them, whereas infants who experience inconsistent and unresponsive care can lead to insecure attachments like anxious, avoidant, and disorganized ones that may affect an adult’s emotional regulation and interpersonal relationships.
So when Ryan and Theresa step up and into the role of a caregiver for these infants, they have the ability and opportunity to provide consistent and responsive care for these infants, which can cultivate a secure attachment that can form a foundation of safety and security that will last a lifetime.
My prayer for us all is that we would come to Church on Sunday’s as we are: Good, bad, ugly, beautiful and all. And expect to leave with a touch of love from the Father. May the Lord continue to prune and refine us every week so that we may be more and more life Jesus. May the Lord remove what does not belong and replace it with His love. In Jesus’ name we pray, Amen!