The statistics on foster care in the United States are staggering. There are approximately 415,000 children in foster care on any given day in the US. In Tennessee that number is slightly less than 8,000 children. We at Ethos believe God desires for us as people and as His church to love and support the children in the foster care system who are experiencing pain, confusion, fear and brokenness that only someone in their position can ever fully understand. But not only the children, the families who so willingly step into the brokenness and pain of this world and love these children the way God loves them.
We have several foster families at Ethos. Maybe God is calling you to become a foster family. You can find more information about first steps here with a local organization called Agape. They have two upcoming informational meetings at their Nashville office: Thursday, November 8th from 6-8pm and January 6th from 2-4pm. If you would like to talk to one of the foster families within Ethos or if you just have questions, you can email .
Or maybe He isn't calling you to personally foster in this season, but you can support other families as they do. One way you can do that is by praying for them. Praying for the children, for their biological families, and for their present foster families. You can provide things for the child and family as they work to fill in all the material gaps of a child who may have showed up at their door with only a small garbage bag worth of possessions or maybe even just the clothes on his/her back. You can offer to help with household chores or "honey-do" lists so the family can spend more time developing relationships with the children. You can check in frequently, listen, and avoid judgement. You can give these children lots of grace as they walk through a very stressful situation that is out of their control and express their pain in different ways. You can babysit the kids while the parents have a date night or run errands. You can provide gift cards for take out, clothes, fun outings, etc. You can pick up groceries and drop them on the porch. You can drop off special treats on hard days. The list of ways you can help is endless. You can do something!
One of the first tangible ways we are asking you to help is by providing a meal to a family from our Cannery gatherings who just welcomed two children into their home in the last few weeks. Help us provide dinner for them so they can spend more time together. Click the link below and select a date to serve this family.