“Pain and suffering have come into your life, but remember pain, sorrow, suffering are but the kiss of Jesus — a sign that you have come so close to Him that He can kiss you.” St. Mother Teresa of Calcutta

Years ago, I read the book ‘Falling Free‘ by Shannan Martin. I had read Shannan’s blog for years and had the privilege of meeting her at a conference once. She is one of those bloggers that you come to call ‘friend’. Not the usual, common friendship, but a friendship born on a screen where what some people feel is oversharing is actually a guidepost for others walking the same road hoping for a glimpse of hope ahead.

I watched as she chose the life that God laid in front of her. She went from comfortable and cozy to radically uncomfortable and found every beautiful thing in the process. I watched as she spoke of ‘drawing the circle wider’ and living in close community with your neighbors, no matter what side of the tracks they were from or if their beliefs lined up exactly with yours.

At the same time, I was walking through an adoption with attachment issues and she became a voice that related to my new family that no longer looked like 1 house, 1 dog, 2 cars, and 2 kids. I was visiting neighborhoods that I would have just driven by months before, with no intention on ever turning in and knowing the people that lived there.

‘Draw your circle wider’ became a tattoo on my heart. What I read in Shannan’s words became an insistent whisper from the Holy Spirit.

Fostering has been no different.

When I arrived home from the hospital with Love-Bug, my mother called and asked if I had eaten. I realized I was starving. Brian and the kids were still in Cottonwood and would return home the next day. A spoonful of creamy peanut butter piled with dark chocolate chips would have to do. I heard a knock on the door and it was Love-Bug’s family, with dinner.

‘Could the birth father come over?’

My heart raced. I had never met him.

‘Draw your circle wider’ echoed in my ears, and I agreed.

Getting to know him over the past few months has been one of the biggest blessings in my life. Oh friends. I’ve watched him encounter love and Christ like nothing I’ve ever seen before.

“I have found the paradox, that if you love until it hurts, there can be no more hurt, only more love.”  St. Mother Teresa of Calcutta