Letting Faith Overcome Fear

Have you ever wanted to send God a text message simply stating, “LOL?”

Alexis Wagoner has.

The University Park mother of three has found herself finding God in the smallest of details more and more since opening her home to a foster child.

“It’s almost comical,” she laughed telling a story about trying to purchase a polka-dotted suitcase for a 5-year-old little girl placed in her home full of boys.

“I was literally Googling on my computer a polka-dotted suitcase and then my doorbell rings,” she said.

There her friend was, holding a polka-dotted suitcase full of clothes.

“I just wanted to text God, LOL, good one,” Wagoner said. “Even in the tiniest of details you can just see God’s hand.”

Wagoner has spent many Mother’s Days surrounded by the love of her own children, all boys ages 9, 14, and 15. But for the past two years foster children have been a part of the celebration. While there isn’t a simple answer to explain why she and her family opened their door to a foster child, Wagoner said there is a culmination that led to the decision.

It all began about four years ago when her middle child was 10.

A family they knew was mentoring a child and her son latched onto the idea. She still remembers the excitement in his voice when he gleefully said, “we need to do that.”

But, at the time, their plate was full, and it just didn’t make sense to take on a family mentorship. So, like any curious 10-year-old Wagoner’s son did his own research and looked for a similar opportunity he could explore.

“No one was willing to let a 10-year-old step up and help that way,” Wagoner said.

While her son found another way to volunteer, the situation left Wagoner and her husband wondering: How do we let our children have access to people who need help?

“Most of the volunteering for young kids, it’s hard for them to see who’s benefiting from packing the backpacks or serving the food in the food bank,” Alexis Wagoner said. “It’s hard for them to make that connection. They don’t understand.”

It wasn’t until two years later and a few more revelations by God that had the Wagoner Family at Buckner Foster Care in Dallas.

It took eight months to get licensed, almost the length of a pregnancy, Wagoner noted.

They used that time to process a host of insecurities; What if they bring us a child we cannot handle? What if they bring us someone we can’t love? What if they bring us someone we love too much?

Ten days after being licensed, they received their first placement call.

Through it all, Wagoner said her faith has taught her two things: One, to trust God. Two, to have faith in Him.

“I get such sweet glimpses of validation,” she said. “You know, sometimes I worry. My youngest son had a birthday just a few days after [her latest placement, a nine-year-old girl] got here, and we were in such a frenzy to take care of her immediate needs that I wanted to make sure he didn’t feel he was being cast aside on his special weekend.”

And then she got a sweet note from his teacher. In the classroom, they had read a book about someone who inspired people. Afterwards, the teacher asked the class who inspired them and Wagoner’s son raised his hand and said, ‘My Mom.’

“The things that I worry about, I feel like God answers those prayers by saying, ‘Stay on course, this is going to all work out.’ ”