"I am in awe of how God works in the darkest of times and that he chooses to let me catch glimpses of what amazing things are happening in these teens' lives."

"Lord, how can you use this for good? How are you using us?" This is a prayer that often goes through my head. When you have a caseload of teens, you are bound to be on an emotional rollercoaster. This past fall and winter held a lot of trials for each teen I worked with. I often felt myself wondering if God was still working when it seemed like, in my eyes, everything was going wrong and falling apart. God took my simple and accusatory prayer and showed me His power.

In January, I got to witness the testimony and baptism of two teens in my caseload. A few months later, I had three other teens from different homes wanting to give their lives to Christ and to get baptized. Each of these kids had little to no exposure to the Gospel, but because of the love their foster parents showed them, God revealed himself to each one of them.

Even if these teens move homes, move out, or go back home, I know they will be a light to their family and friends, and I have the hope of seeing them again. Foster Care can be challenging, but at times it is so rewarding and an amazing picture of the Gospel. I am in awe of how God works in the darkest of times and that he chooses to let me catch glimpses of what amazing things are happening in these teens' lives.

One foster child stands out to me; we will call her Joy. Joy was first in a residential facility before being placed in our Professional Foster Care program. She was doing so well and was motivated to work towards graduating early and eventually being able to move on to independent living. Joy's world was rocked when we told her that Professional Foster Care was shutting down unexpectedly. She struggled in the unknown for her future and had lots of questions that we didn't have the answers to. Even though her life felt confusing, and she had fears for what would happen next, she chose to press into Christ.

During that time, she encouraged the teens around her and spoke Truth to herself while pursuing baptism. Joy transitioned to a foster home and had to start over, building new friends in a new community. She started bringing her friends to events and inviting them to church since they had never heard of God before. I will never forget the joy on her face when she realized that God could use her, a recovered addict in the system, someone who has made poor choices, to reach her friends. Joy modeled resilience, trust, and determination. Most of all, she reminded me that God can use anyone, anytime, anywhere, to do His work.