Editor’s Note: For privacy reasons, names and certain details have been changed. These stories are shared by former houseparents who have served at various children’s homes to offer insight, encouragement, and prayer for those considering this role. To respect the privacy of the children in these stories, we use artistic depictions rather than real photos.

Grace in the Hard Moments: Jacey’s Story

There are moments as a houseparent when everything you’ve poured into a child—the love, the grace, the effort to blend families—comes full circle in ways you never expected.

Jacey had been in our home for years, but nothing prepared us for the day she faced a serious health concern that required surgery. We found ourselves in the hospital with her, helping her in ways we never had before. Caring for her in those vulnerable moments, doing things for her that we never got to do when she was younger, brought a strange mix of heartbreak and gratitude.

And then, in the middle of it all, it was my birthday.

I wasn’t expecting anything—after all, this wasn’t about me. But as I sat beside Jacey’s hospital bed, her biological family handed me a birthday card.

It was a small gesture, but it meant everything.

It was a reminder that years of choosing grace mattered. That every effort to bridge the gap between our family and hers had built something stronger than division.

Jacey’s journey hasn’t been easy. But in that moment, in that hospital room, I saw something beautiful—a family, blended in its own imperfect way, showing up for one another.

Heavenly Father, we thank You for the moments of grace that remind us why love is always worth the effort. We pray for children like Jacey, who are walking hard roads, that they may always have people beside them. Lord, we ask that You bring new houseparents to fill the empty homes in children’s ministries across the country—parents willing to love through the messy moments, to extend grace, and to create families that last. We pray this in Jesus’ Name. Amen.