12-year old Andrew was moving from one foster family to another in Nashville. Building relationships for him was challenging. But when he met Joc and the Gill family, that was the beginning of change for him.
Joc and Andrew didn’t immediately become best of friends until they realized they enjoyed the same things: poptarts and video games. When they did, they grew closer and closer together and were virtually inseparable.
But it wasn’t just Joc who loved Andrew being around, Kevin and Dominique, Joc’s parents, also were fond of Andew. Whenever Andrew would visit their house, they would fill up their appetite for sweets and video games all day long.
Adoption is something that every orphan longs for because it provides a sense of stability, according to Molly Parker who works at Youth Villages. But it has become especially difficult because of the pandemic. People were not sure when the pandemic will end so they were not opening their homes to foster care.
A few years ago, Andrew went under the foster care of the Gills. But he had to leave. When asked what Joc felt about it, he jokingly said, “I didn’t care.” But he eventually said, “Oh, man. I’m just playing with you. I missed him.”
So, one day, Molly asked Andrew to take a walk with him at the park. Then Andrew got a surprise that would change his life forever.
“I saw people standing around the park,” he said. Then he saw the Gill family standing there with a sign held up, “Will you be part of our family?”
Without hesitation, Andrew said, “Yeah!”
That was the beginning of a new chapter in Andrew’s life as well as the lives of the Gill family.
James 1:27 reminds us to look after the welfare of orphans and widows. As those who have the ability to help and care, we must by any means extend grace and blessing to them as we received from God our Father.