By Heather Noel, director of communications for Arkansas Baptist Children & Family Ministries
Sometimes the stories we tell are the ones that first told us who God is.
For me, especially when I think about the children who’ve entered our home through foster care, the story that always rises to the surface is the story of Hagar. Cast out, wandering in the wilderness, unsure of what’s next, Hagar encounters a God who not only speaks to her—but sees her.
And she gives Him a name: El Roi, the God who sees.
Foster care can feel like it’s about the big moments—placement days, reunification, adoption. But what actually changes lives is often the quiet, faithful choice to see. To notice the child who’s been overlooked. To acknowledge the parent who feels invisible. To recognize the weary worker, the waiting teen, the struggling family.
At ABCFM, we talk a lot about love, healing, and stability. But underneath all of that is something more foundational: the relational needs we all share.
To be seen.
To be soothed.
To feel safe.
To be secure.
Isn’t it powerful that seen is the very first?
It’s also the first name God was ever given in Scripture. And not by a prophet or king, but by Hagar—a woman with no status, no power, no voice. That’s the heart of the gospel: God saw her. And He sees us.
He did not leave Hagar to figure it out on her own. He didn’t leave you or me, either.
And today, as His Church, we are called to reflect that same kind of presence—to be people who see.
Here in Arkansas, the foster care need is real. But it is also meetable.
As of February 2025, there are 3,353 children in foster care in our state. And there are more than 500,000 Arkansas Baptists. If just 1% of our faith family stepped forward to foster, every child in care would have a safe home to welcome them.
This isn’t just a need for someone else to meet. It’s not just a calling for a few—it’s a clear mandate from Scripture for all of us to care for the vulnerable. The foster care need in Arkansas is great, but the solution is already in the pews of our churches.
This May, as we observe National Foster Care Month, we’re asking a simple question:
Will you be someone who sees?
Maybe it means becoming a foster parent.
Maybe it means mentoring a teen, supporting a foster family, or helping a child’s biological family find stability.
Maybe it means giving, serving, or simply praying.
Whatever it looks like, your presence matters more than you know.
When we see as God sees, hope begins to take root.
Together, let’s be people who see—because we follow a God who does.
Get Involved today at abcfm.org/get-involved.