How the Church Solves the National Adoption Crisis

November is National Adoption Month in the United States and Adoption Awareness Month in Canada – and for good reason. 

Here in America, there are nearly 400,000 children in foster care. Over 100,000 are waiting to be adopted, meaning the courts have terminated parental rights for any number of reasons. 

That means the Rose Bowl in Pasadena, Calif., even with a capacity of nearly 90,000 seats, couldn’t hold all the children currently waiting for a mom and dad. Does that break your heart like it does mine? But think about this: There are over 300,000 churches in the U.S. If just one church out of three had a family that was willing to adopt a child, the number of kids on the foster adoption rolls would be zero.

Wouldn’t that make for a great headline? “Christian Church Wipes Out Foster Care Adoption Lists!”

Of course, that goal shouldn’t be too much of a stretch. That’s because, as Christians, we’re called to do just that. James urges believers “to look after orphans” (James 1:27). Scripture teaches that God calls each of us to care for the vulnerable. Other than a child in the womb, no one is more vulnerable than a child without a family. 

Not only have I personally spent time in foster care as a young boy, Jean and I have fostered nearly 15 children over the years. Their stories are gut wrenching. Abandoned, neglected, abused – horrific details that put a lump in your throat and often anger in your heart. No child should have to endure what these precious young people have experienced. 

Yet, make no mistake about it. It can be tough. Being intimately involved in people’s lives for Christ can be messy. We often assume that the Christian life is supposed to be easy and simple. Yet, the Bible is filled with one story after another about difficulty and the need for faith.

I’ve seen research that suggests that foster children who get even just brief exposure to a functional family have a markedly improved chance for success when they get married. Foster children who have known nothing but brokenness but live with a healthy family for four to six months experience what healthy family relationships can and should look like. When they can feel wholeness, sense it, be a part of it, it helps set them up for success in life in the best of ways.

Can you and the church you shepherd be part of the solution?

I would encourage you to take the issue to prayer. Then consider some meaningful ways to engage. For starters, your family might feel called to provide respite care for foster children for a season. You could also help a family in your church who’s already answered the call to foster and needs encouragement and support. Or maybe God will place it on your heart to adopt and provide a permanent home for a hurting child.

The adoption or foster care journey is deeply meaningful. But adoptive and foster families face unique stressors, including insecure attachment issues, trauma responses, and service agencies who don’t provide sufficient training and support for adoptive/foster parents.

To be sure, not everyone is called to foster or adopt, but every church can do something to help. The challenges are real. But so are the powerful stories shared by believers who have expressed the love of Christ through foster care, respite care, or adoption.

For more information about the foster and adoption ministry of Focus on the Family, go to waitnomore.org.

©2024 Jim Daly. Used with permission.