Key Question: Justice is God’s idea, not ours. How can we join God in His work that has been underway since the beginning of time? Welcome to the very first episode of Just Neighbors! This is a podcast for every believer who has been transformed by the Gospel and desires to act justly, love mercy, and walk humbly with God and their neighbors in need. Join hosts Jami Kaeb and Ryan MacDonald as they talk with leaders, pastors, and practitioners about how to live a life of biblical justice and compassion. We have a special guest for this episode of the podcast to help cha ..read more

You will often hear us say, “You don’t have to foster to care.” One of the most important aspects of foster parenting (without burning out) is having a supportive community of people around you. I have the honor today of talking with someone in this critical support role. Maddie Box  is 26 years old and works as a pediatric speech-language pathologist, and she has organically found herself in the role of a support person to multiple foster parents. In this episode, you’ll hear how this role is far more critical than many people realize, some of the simple ways fo ..read more

Our newest podcast “Just Neighbors” is launching May 15th! Just Neighbors is a podcast for every believer who has been transformed by the Gospel and desires to act justly, love mercy, and walk humbly with God and their neighbors in need. Join hosts Jami Kaeb and Ryan MacDonald as they talk with leaders, pastors, and practitioners about how to live a life of biblical justice and compassion. In our trailer, we’re walking through our vision for the podcast along with what you can expect. Be sure to hit the “Follow” or “Subscribe” button so you walk this journey along with ..read more

I want to share a story that went out to our donors in a partnership email recently. The story was too good to keep it to ourselves. It’s a story about something seemingly ordinary and simple: bath towels. But when you look a little deeper, it conveys so much more. A simple act from one of our TFI Advocates led to agency workers feeling seen, supported, and loved by Jesus. This is what the work we do is all about! Check out this video for the full story: It Began With a Need Being Noticed On this particular day, our TFI Advocate noticed that this agency had a shower that children could us ..read more

Decisions made in court hold a lot of weight for the futures of children and families. Due to the impact that decision could potentially have, the role Court Appointed Special Advocates (CASA) was introduced to ensure all information was being considered. The role of a CASA before began in 1977. Today, 939 state CASA/GAL organizations operate in 49 states, which serve 242,000 children annually. Travis and Stephanie Johnson are two of the dedicated volunteers who serve the foster care community in their role as CASAs. In this episode, you’ll hear more about what it mea ..read more

Nobody starts working in the foster care system because they think it’s going to be easy. The truth is, despite how deeply fulfilling a career in this field can be—it can also feel stressful and discouraging at times. For both new and experienced workers, it’s easy to feel defeated and wonder if the work you’re doing is enough.  If there’s anyone who can help us understand this better, it’s Carmen Nance—a woman with 30 years of experience serving the foster care community as part of the State of Georgia/Cobb County Department of Family and Children Services. In t ..read more

“As Jesus went, the people pressed around him. And there was a woman who had had a discharge of blood for twelve years, and though she had spent all her living on physicians, she could not be healed by anyone.” – Luke 8:42-43 12 years. That’s how long the blood had been coming. She was never free of it. 12 years of searching for a cure, spending everything she had in the hope for answers. Isolated. Hopeless. Labeled as unclean.  She was unseen, unwanted, and alone, a woman with a story and a deep need. In the midst of the crowd, she struggled to get close to the man who they said wa ..read more

If a child experiencing foster care spent 18 years in the same home, you might assume that they developed a strong sense of belonging within the family. But this is not always the case. When Tash Haynes was born, her biological mother was unable to raise a child due to a mental disability. Fortunately, Tash was taken in by a family—but after growing up in their house until she aged out of the foster care system, Tash felt that although her basic needs had been met, her emotional needs had not. Today, Tash is a renowned content creator, a community builder, and a ..read more

The lives of today’s guests are deeply intertwined. Jennifer Bracken’s childhood was rocky. After a difficult home life and several tumultuous years spent in the foster care system, she became a mother to four children and her struggles with addiction led to her family experiencing the foster care system in various ways. Jillana Goble is a speaker, author, and advocate who fostered and adopted Jennifer’s third child before fostering and reuniting Jennifer’s fourth child. Over the past 15 years, Jillana and Jennifer have taken steps to build a positive relationship. To ..read more

National Foster Care Month is right around the corner in May. Does your church have a plan for engaging in the conversation? The needs of those in the foster care community are important year-round, of course. But the month of May is a key opportunity to raise awareness throughout your church for how your congregation can become involved in meeting real needs present in your local community. But the reality is that it can feel overwhelming to figure out how to best participate in a month like this. How do you meaningfully engage people in a way that raises awareness, captures their hearts ..read more