By Dr. Jessica Johnson
Guest Column
The film “Sound of Hope: The Story of Possum Trot” begins with a beautiful truth about childhood innocence.
As the camaras pan over the woods of rural southeastern Shelby County, Texas, the narrator mentions that when you are a child, you don’t have much to worry about because the world just seems simpler. At least this is the way it should be for a child fortunate enough to grow up in a loving home with their parents and a caring community, even if their family isn’t wealthy.
“Sound of Hope” is told through the voice of Donna Martin, the first lady of Possum Trot’s Bennett Chapel Missionary Baptist Church. In 1996, Donna obeyed the call by God to adopt after the death of her mother, who raised 18 children. The wound of grief was deep for Donna in losing her “anchor,” but she firmly believed that the Lord was directing her to intervene in the lives of children who had suffered brutal trauma and violence, broken and rejected kids that no one wanted.
It took some convincing for her husband, W.C., since they had two children of their own, which included a special-needs son. They had to meticulously balance their household bills along with overseeing the finances of the church. Adding more mouths to feed at their kitchen table certainly didn’t seem practical.
But as W.C. began to embrace the vision God was showing his wife, the Martins took an incredible step of faith to bring four foster kids into their home. This extraordinary act of compassion led to 22 families in their congregation adopting 77 children who had been shuffled in and out of the foster care system.
As I watched “Sound of Hope,” I kept thinking about how the Martins and their Bennett Chapel members walked by faith when no one in their community had an abundance of resources or money. Several families fell a little short of the minimum income threshold to adopt children, but they did not let this deter them. It is hard for many people to understand this level of faith and determination.
I recall hearing sermons where pastors would point out, “God is asking what is in your hands?” For Moses, it was a rod. For the lad mentioned in the 14th chapter of Matthew, it was two fish and five loaves of bread. When we utilize what we do have, God performing miracles is often the result of us maximizing the simplest of means.
While emphasizing strong faith, “Sound of Hope” also does an excellent job portraying the hardships and challenges faced by the Martins and the Bennett Chapel families. Food was stretched thin, and utility bills increased. Many in the community reached a breaking point with behavioral issues from children who came from abject poverty.
For Donna and W.C., their patience, love and kindness was severely tested by their adoptive daughter Terri, who had been so devastated by emotional abuse from her mother that she took on the personality of a cat. The Martins put Terri in positive, reinforcement therapy, but nothing seemed to be working.
One Sunday, W.C. held an altar call for each family who was feeling regret and carrying an extremely heavy burden of pressure. “God never promised us easy,” W.C. said, “but that He would be by your side.” As everyone held hands in prayer, W.C. cried out, “Take the weight (God), give them the Holy Ghost power!” The prayer reinvigorated the church, and people banded together even more to assist with household chores and meals for the children.
Terri also eventually got the emotional breakthrough she needed. All 77 children today are successful adults. Some attended college, and others chose a blue-collar career path.
The happy and miraculous ending of “Sound of Hope” comes with a continued call to address the adoption crisis in our nation. Recent statistics from the Children’s Bureau show that over 400,000 kids are in foster care in the U.S., and approximately 20,000 of them age out of the system each year. Domestic adoptions also decreased during the COVID-19 pandemic.
For others, a group of donors, nonprofits, businesses and government agencies that help children placed a powerful statement on their website regarding the impact of the Possum Trot community: “Imagine what we could do if all churches in America stepped up in a similar way. There would be no child welfare crisis, no child without a home, and no family left to struggle alone.”
This is not a miracle that we need to pray for, but one we can put into action.
Dr. Jessica A. Johnson is a lecturer in the English department at The Ohio State University-Lima. Reach her at [email protected] or on Twitter @JjSmojc. Her opinion does not necessarily represent the views of The Lima News or its owner, AIM Media.
