Jan and Brady Simmons have four children – two natural and two adopted. “We adopted Anna when she was four-and-a-half from the streets of the Montrose area in Houston where she lived with her homeless mom,” Jan said. They adopted Levy, Anna’s half brother, born prematurely with drugs in his system, three-and-a-half years ago.

Jan continued, “There was no hesitation for us to take Anna (nine) and Levy (three) back on the streets.” She and Brady, who have regularly taken children’s outreaches to Houston, both agreed it was not God’s desire to shield Anna from the truth about her life on the streets, but instead to help her process it in the context of the safety and security of His love. “God has walked us through step by step,” Jan explained. “When we first went to Street Church in Houston, Levy was too young to understand but Anna was terrified and kept holding me. I was able to tell her, “Yes, this is a scary place. And yes, this is a bad place to live, but you do not have to live here any more.” After several trips Anna began to feel safe.

In September 2009 Jan and fellow YWAM mom, Anne, started the Radiant Kids Club. The children began to experience God for themselves. Anna along with others gave their hearts to Jesus. “We sensed the Radiant Kids Club was to go to Houston for a summer outreach. Brady and I felt it may be time for Anna and Levy to meet their birth mother, Patricia,” Jan recalled. She and Brady knew Anna’s memories of the past would be stirred up but really felt she needed to see God’s faithfulness to heal her as she faced her past.

When Anna accepted Jesus God restored her, but He did not stop there. His plan was for her to give what she had received to restore others. In Houston, Jan and Brady invited Patricia to Street Church. The Radiant Kids sang and danced, and Anna gave her testimony. She said, “I used to live on the streets and it was hard. Now I love Jesus and you can, too. My [birth] mom gave me to a family. They changed my life and God changed my heart.”

Something unlocked in Anna’s heart. A light sparkled in her eyes. She saw what she had been rescued from and that she had light to give. She didn’t know she had it before. When the light came something in Anna’s spirit clicked and she could see the darkness for what it was.

After the service Patricia ran to Jan and Brady, broken and crying. She was saddened by her choices and said humbly, “Thank you,” grateful that her kids have a chance at life.

Patricia has chosen to stay on the streets and Anna continues to be concerned for her. She wonders if she has enough to eat, if she is sick, or if she can she go to a doctor. In spite of this, Jan concludes, “Somehow, going back to minister was more healing than anything we have done with Anna.”