In the spirit of Isaiah 1:17... "Defend the cause of the fatherless."
I can remember right where I was when I first felt God prick my heart toward adoption. I was standing at my kitchen sink looking out the window at a banner being put up for the
Connecting Hearts with the Forgotten Conference. Isaac was just an infant then... and as I held this sweet little baby in my arms, I could hardly imagine what it must be like for the millions of children who long for a mother's arms to hold them. It was also in the aftermath of the horrific earthquakes and tsunami in Haiti... Isaac had been blessed with so many baby showers, the gifts of clothes and blankets so filled our home that I felt practically guilty for the excess.
I called Marianne, our pastor's wife and founder of the Connecting Hearts with the Forgotten orphan care ministry. "Is it crazy to attend an adoption conference when I'm holding a newborn baby in my arms?" I was nearly in tears explaining to her how upset it felt to look out at the conference banner and do nothing... Of course, she assured me I wasn't crazy, (wink) and that was the first of several adoption conferences Luke and I attended. (Here's a
video from an early conference)
At each conference, our hearts were stirred by the pictures, stories and statistics of vulnerable children all around the world; including those in our own back yard. Yet as much as we felt the tug to help orphans, we were so overwhelmed by being new parents and the demands of Luke's career, that we just couldn't see any way the orphan crisis involved us. As the next 6 years went by, we now see how the foundations built at those conferences prepared our hearts to love the unwanted. In the end, it was Luke's career that propelled us into ministering to vulnerable children.
As a firefighter/paramedic, Luke and his crew are often the first to respond to victims of abuse and violence. Each call that involved children pierced his heart and never quite left him. The call where he tried in vain to resuscitate a child who had finally succumbed to chronic physical abuse cut him to the core. He had dreams about this child and I'd often wake to him crying in his sleep. When the case went to trial and Luke had to relive the moments again in testimony, we knew we needed to do something. (More about this painful season of life in
Luke's church testimony.)
Out of the pain of these calls and the trauma he witnessed, Luke was fed up with just picking up the pieces. "I've gotta do something on the front end of these things... before abuse happens."
We could no longer deny God's calling. He turned our pain into a passion.
Without wading into the current political pool, let me gently say that a revelation to me in recent years is what it actually looks like to be "pro-life"! Growing up, that was almost a mantra passed out each election year. But while it's extremely important to vote for leaders who respect ALL forms of human life with dignity, from conception to natural end of life, being pro-life can't just end at the ballot box.
In the political realm, the conservative position is actually only pro-birth! But as Christians, being pro-life must mean involvement in foster care, adoption or at the very least, giving of our time & money to offer life-affirming resources to help fledgling mamas who choose to keep their pregnancy to the end.
If we're against sex-trafficking and slavery, we must be pro-adoption and pro-foster care... Currently 2 million vulnerable children (read orphans and abandoned youth) are victims of this horrific abuse!!
I'm ashamed to admit that this concept has taken me this long to take root in my mind and heart... because it's just too easy to simply check that box in the voters booth and walk away. But we do our pro-life movement, and more importantly, our proclamation as followers of Christ, a massive disservice if that's where our pro-life support starts and ends.
This is a great segment from an article posted
here, written by Trent Friberg; a pastor out in Washington State. Not only is he a biological father of four, but is also a self-proclaimed "rookie" foster parent to four. He writes;
"So I ask: How can we be so passionate and proactive about the inherent rights of the unborn child and be so lethargic about the needs and care of those already born? People do things like
this to care for unborn children, and yet children sleep in DSHS offices because there aren’t enough foster homes for them.
Here is my plea: Let our cry to care for children extend beyond the day of their birth. I’m not trying to talk anyone out of being pro-life. I don’t even know where this legal and political debate is headed. What I do know is that there is a great need right NOW, and I would love to see more people involved, at some level, in caring for already-born kids.
If we truly are pro-life, our passion to protect and advocate for children should extend well beyond their time in the womb and into our hearts … and our homes."
Luke recently read a book called
"Orphan Justice" by Johnny Carr. In his book Carr strips away all the pre-conceived notions people have about the orphan crisis and brings to light our own
fears and insecurities that often
prevent us from becoming involved with orphan care in the first place. And he doesn't just stir up our emotions; he gives practical ways for Christian to become involved in orphan care. (To read a terrific book review on Orphan Justice, check out
this blog post by
Lindsy Wallace)
Here are some quotes from the book; taken from Wallace's post:
“Choosing to stand by and do nothing where we see injustice, suffering, and evil is wrong. It is a sin. We must take active steps to care for orphans . To do anything less is blatant disobedience.” {Chapter One – True Religion: Orphans and My Family}
“We dare not continue to ignore child trafficking because we feel it is too complex or too corrupt. If we truly care about orphans as Jesus does, we can’t just walk away. For the children who need to be adopted, we must navigate the process with wisdom. We must be willing to wrestle through tough and confusing questions. It’s not as simple as walking into an orphanage and picking out a child.” {Chapter Two – We Can’t Handle the Truth: Orphans and Human Trafficking}
“Man made orphanages for children, but God made the family for children… As followers of Jesus we cannot be satisfied with children living in orphanages as a long-term solution.” {Chapter Four – Home Sweet Home: Orphans and Orphanages}
“But all too often selfishness keeps us from taking care of these (foster) children. Somewhere along the way, in our concern for an easy, happy, comfortable life, we may be missing the heart of the gospel – to seek and to save the lost, to reach out to the forgotten and the oppressed, to love sacrificially, and to pour our lives out so that others can catch a glimpse of Jesus. If the only reason we refuse to get involved in foster care is because “it’s too hard emotionally” or “we can’t handle saying goodbye,” we may need to repent of self-absorption. We must ask the question: Do we truly love our neighbor as we love ourselves? What if a foster child is the “neighbor” that God has brought into our path to love?” {Chapter Six – To Love is to Risk: Orphans and Foster Care}
“If you are a follower of Jesus Christ, racism is an issue you can’t afford to dismiss. Racism keeps us from practicing pure religion. It’s not only the government, pop culture, or gangs that need to change – it’s me and you. Confronting racism in our own hearts is the first step to truly loving our neighbor and accepting orphans who don’t look or act just like us.” {Chapter Seven – A Change of Heart: Orphans and Racism}
“As long as there are more than 100,000 children in the U.S. foster care system who are waiting to be adopted, I don’t think we will ever be taken seriously. So let’s turn that around. If we really want to make a statement about children and how much we believe in the sanctity of life, let’s start a campaign to get every adoptable child in the foster care system into a loving home in the next twelve months. That would speak far louder than any tract, any sandwich board, or any March in Washington, D.C.” {Chapter Eight – More than Sandwich Boards: Orphans and Abortion}
We don't just want to raise awareness of the plight of orphans and vulnerable children in this post... we all can be moved to tears by the pictures of forlorn children around the world and in the U.S. foster care system. We believe every Christian who is attuned to the Holy Spirit's stirring in their hearts is moved to compassion for orphans. So instead of drawing mere emotion for Orphan Sunday, we want to give you tangible ways for you to help orphans - even if you don't feel the call to adopt.
There are SO many ways to get involved with orphan care ministry... From taking a meal to a foster family, buying groceries for the single mother at your church, offering respite babysitting for foster and adoptive families; ideas are limitless. Every spiritual gift can be used to promote orphan care in your church and community!
Here are a few links to get you started! It’s not an exhaustive list; we know you can come up with your own ideas wherever God's planted you:
Our church has a King's Closet where people can donate gently used or new clothing for kids of all ages and baby gear (beds, strollers, highchairs, ect.) for foster parents and low-income families. Maybe you can get one started at your church!
Coat and shoe drives
It's Orphan Sunday... what will you do?
