Many of you, by now have had the pleasure of meeting our new foster daughter, 3-year-old Zoe.

Zoe and her 7-year-old brother, Noah, were found in an abandoned house in a north Sonoma County community, hungry, dirty, tired and alone. The policemen that picked them up, spent the entire day with them—taking them to the hospital to get them cleaned up and checked out, and then transporting them to the Valley of the Moon Children’s Center to find an available foster home with room to take both children.

However, there was a glitch. All of the foster facilities licensed to take two children were full. The next plan was to have Noah stay at the Valley of the Moon and put Zoe, who is too young for the facility, to be placed in an emergency care foster facility.

But a problem arose there also. There were no emergency care facilities available. Although Bobbi and I have not been on the emergency care roster for over two years, we were finally called about 8pm that night by desperate social workers. Despite the fact that we were all ready at capacity in our foster facility, the county arranged for an exemption so that we could pick up Zoe.

Zoe has blessed our house for three weeks now. During this time, all efforts to find a foster home with room for the two siblings has proved fruitless.

As a next best scenario, Bobbi was finally able to arrange a meeting for Zoe and Noah last week.

This is the part that I was totally un-prepared for.

This past Thursday, Zoe awoke to Bobbi’s announcement that she would get to see her brother that day. The announcement was met with uncontrolled sobbing on Zoe’s part.

When my wife was finally able to calm Zoe down, she asked what was the matter. And that’s when Zoe said, “My brother is in jail I saw the police take him.”

In Zoe’s 3-year-old mind, the very people who were carrying out their duty to protect the welfare of these children were the ones who were responsible for their separation and incarceration.

The meeting with Zoe and Noah began and ended with tears—and with permission from the county to have Noah spend the night with us last night: Noah is at church with us today.

Life is NOT fair. Children deserve the best and often get so much less—unlike all of us who deserve nothing but the wrath of God, and yet, because of the resurrection power of Jesus Christ, get so much more.

Let’s take a moment to get right with God—to confess and repent of any sin, and to thank God who doesn’t give us what we do deserve, but by His mercy and grace, gives us life everlasting life through the sacrifice of His Son at the cross.