Advocating
10 Reasons Why I Love Being a Foster Mom
by FaithBridge Foster Care
Isn’t it just like God to turn the thing we never wanted to do into one of the joys of our lives?
10 Ways to Help a Special Needs Parent
by Key Ministry
If you know a family with special needs in the mix, Kara Dedert shares a few ways you can jump up and help them.
3 Helpful Responses When Countries Close International Adoption
by Shannon Dingle
How should we, as the church, respond when countries close to international adoption?
5 Reasons Our Family Fosters
by FaithBridge Foster Care
My husband, three biological children and I knew that it would be hard to love and let go, but we also knew that God would give us His peace and strength to enter the difficult journey of temporarily loving children from hard places.
5 Things Christians Should Stop Saying
by Jason Johnson
Sometimes our attempts to say something "spiritual" actually end up sounding unbiblical or unhelpful.
5 Ways Fostering has Shaped Our Biological Son
by FaithBridge Foster Care
Foster care is often a refining process which can be hard on anyone … especially children. But on the other side of that refining journey,our biological son has become a young man who is shining brighter than ever.
5 Ways to Bless the Heart of Your Foster Mom Friend
by FaithBridge Foster Care
When people have taken the time to know what will really help us, it is a heart blessing like no other.
5 Ways You Can Minister to a Family with a Failed Adoption
by Shannon Dingle
Adoptions are complex and they don't always end the way families would expect. Families going through grief need the support and love of others.
7 Ways To Serve Your Pastor
by Jason Johnson
Here's 7 ways to serve your pastor that offer real encouragement and deep, meaningful support as they work hard to love you well.
A 105-Year-Old Woman on a Baseball Field and Other Things That Might Surprise You
by Christian Alliance for Orphans
We all like to be surprised by goodness or when beautiful things catch us unaware. And we never look more like Jesus than when we're surprising others with grace.
A Bamboo Family Reunion
by Bethany Christian Services
When it comes to adoption, stepping into the unknown can be intimidating, but connecting with a community of people who understand what you’re going through changes the game.
20:51
A Biblical Worldview?
by Regi Campbell
Most descriptions of a Biblical or Christian worldview say there’s an all-powerful, all-knowing God Who created the universe. He created absolute moral truth and stated it in the Bible.
A Circle of Support
by Bethany Christian Services
Everyone touched by adoption will feel the pain of loss in varying degrees of intensity. A family's network can offer support in many different ways.
A Daily Funeral
by FaithBridge Foster Care
When you're a foster parent, you can know all the behaviors to expect and the techniques to apply, but when you get in the middle of it and you start experiencing all of those things for yourself, it’s hard.
A Foster Care Failure
by Christian Alliance for Orphans
One family's painful attempt to change the trajectory of a 13-year-old boy in foster care didn't work. Is this one more example of foster care failure? Maybe not.
A Letter to Foster Care “Trauma Mamas”
by FaithBridge Foster Care
I love him as if I had birthed him myself and it’s a messy birth story like any other, I suppose. No birth arrives without blood, sweat and tears.
A Ministry for the Whole Family
by FaithBridge Foster Care
It is a great ministry for our family because it is something we all can do together. Our daughters certainly can help us take care of children who need a family.
A Place Of Hope
by Dr. Crawford Loritts
The care for orphans and widows is cited by James 1:27 as "pure religion" -- which means that if you have an authentic life-changing experience with Jesus Christ, it should positively impact those around you.
49:24
Adopting for the Right Reasons
by Mark Gregston
Be sure that you're considering adoption for the right reasons. If not, you could be setting yourself up for heartache when your adopted child reaches his or her teenage years.
Adoption and Family
by Bethany Christian Services
Bill Blacquiere hosts Chuck Johnson, president and CEO of the National Council for Adoption, an organization committed to the belief that every child deserves to thrive in a nurturing, permanent family.
27:18
Adoption From Foster Care
by Focus on the Family
It's important to take the time as a family to evaluate if you are able to meet a particular child's needs.
Adoption Options
by Focus on the Family
If you're thinking about adoption, here are four options for you to consider.
Adoption: What Helps and What Doesn’t
by Focus on the Family
What helps — or hurts — children who have been adopted? What about adoptive families and birth mothers?
Adoptive Families Need Help
by Focus on the Family
Many children awaiting adoption today are older, have special needs, or are part of a sibling group. And, they often struggle with multiple traumas and behaviors that may overwhelm their new family. Adoptive parents offer some guidelines to those willing to lend a hand.
An Honest Telling: Engaging the Church in Foster Care Through the Power of Story
by Christian Alliance for Orphans
Storyteller Steven Bush says that foster care is one of the most tangible representations of the Gospel of Christ. And if the church wants to share the Gospel with an unbelieving world, then it must tell a better story.
09:48
Are Churches Blind to Mental Illness?
by Dr. Steve Grcevich
Dr. Steve Grcevich shares data and analyzes how often local churches support members affected by mental health issues.
Are They Really Depressed, Or Do They Have Something Else?
by Dr. Steve Grcevich
Diagnosing depression in a child or teen requires a considerable degree of thoughtfulness. And, a thorough understanding of why a child is sad or irritable is essential to developing a sound treatment plan.
Are We Being Wise with the Words Orphan and Fatherless?
by Shannon Dingle
We still use orphan or fatherless when we’re talking about adoption and foster care, even when those words don’t fit with our current culture or a specific circumstance.
Arrested in Africa
by Jason Johnson
May our fear be not in failing, but in succeeding in things that are not bound up in Jesus.
Becoming a Trauma and Attachment-Informed Church
by Shannon Dingle
Adoptive and foster parents know about trauma and attachment, so their churches should too. But what does that mean?
Bishop Aaron Blake: Walmart Love - Building Families That Love Like God
by Christian Alliance for Orphans
How can you assure your foster and adopted children that they'll ALWAYS be a part of your family? Bishop Aaron Blake Sr. shares a personal story about unconditional love.
09:59
Blank Paper, Lame Lunches, and the God of “More Than Enough”
by Christian Alliance for Orphans
When it comes to the foster care crisis in our country, most of us recognize that the need is enormous. We also recognize that what we have to offer is totally insufficient to meet this need.
Blessed Are the Peacemakers
by Key Ministry
Students with disabilities are frequently written off, deemed to have little potential for learning or living an independent life. Amid those negative thoughts, I wondered how finding peacemakers was even possible.
Blueberries and Mac & Cheese: Can the Church Really Work with the State in Foster Care?
by Christian Alliance for Orphans
When it comes to things that don’t seem like they go together, this is probably the best rule of thumb: Don’t knock it 'til you try it.
Broadening Friendships
by Bethany Christian Services
If your adoptive child is racially different from you, he or she becomes visually obvious to the community at large. Here's how to help your child navigate the complex world of racial relations.
Broccoli and Ballet: When Things That Aren’t Your Thing Become Your Thing
by Christian Alliance for Orphans
There are parts of advocating for children that you love and that come naturally to you. But then there’s all the OTHER stuff.
Busyness, Obedience, and the Perfect Time to Foster or Adopt
by Jason Johnson
The perfect season may never come. Are the parameters you've set for adoption or foster care perhaps too narrow?
Call Us Heroes if You'd Like. But We're Normal and, at Times, Needy Too
by Shannon Dingle
Are you friends with a parent whose adopted children? Cherish your friendship more than you exalt any heroism you might see in them.
Caring Connection
by Bethany Christian Services
Every life is precious, and no child should be discounted or tossed aside.
Challenges of Adoption
by FamilyLife
Paul and Robin Pennington talk about the hard realities of adoption. The adoptive parents talk about ROOTED, their online training course that offers gospel-centered support for adoptive and foster families.
24:36