Jesus has a special place in His heart for those who are most vulnerable in this world. In our day, and throughout history, children who are born in poverty and are without family are particularly vulnerable to the injustices of this world. The church, when it is at its best, has been characterized by how we care for those who are considered the least in the eyes of the world. What if we were known for how we loved the most vulnerable? What if we became a community that led in orphan care, foster care, and adoption? —John Parker, Lead Pastor
Stories of Adoption
Child Sponsorship
Most vulnerable or orphaned children have some family who love them and want to provide for them. For these children, adoption is not necessarily the ideal. Instead, partnering with the family to stabilize their environment is a huge blessing. A small monthly donation gives opportunities for the world’s poorest children, providing for their physical, educational, medical, and spiritual needs. For more information regarding child sponsorship, click below for a list of organizations and frequently asked questions.
RESOURCES FAQ SPONSORSHIP STORY
Foster Care
Foster care is temporary placement of children into surrogate families because of crisis within the their home. Foster parents and families are needed to provide safe, nurturing, stable environments, in the hopes that these children will one day be reunited with their families. For more information about foster care, click below for a list of organizations and frequently asked questions.
Domestic Adoption
For more information about domestic adoption—the permanent placement of an infant or child born in the US—click below for a list of organizations and frequently asked questions.
International Adoption
It can be quite intimidating when beginning the adoption process to balance the building of your family and the idea of meeting a need in the world. In addition, there are always rumors of unethical adoption practices and challenging ideas about what adoptive parents should or should not be doing. Do you prioritize adopting the most statistically “needy” children or what you feel would be best or easiest for your family? These are weighty questions that every adoptive family has to ask. This is a list of resources and ideas that one adoptive family at Summit has found very helpful in sorting through the ethics of adoption.
ETHICAL INTERNATIONAL ADOPTION
For more information about international adoption—permanent placement of an infant or child born in another country—click below for a list of organizations and frequently asked questions.
Other Avenues to Advocacy
Identity for Children
(407) 628-0027
www.id4c.org
Identity for Children works to provide children with a legal identity. Every child deserves the right to a name, a nationality, a family, to health care, to education, to property ownership, and the protection against child labor, sexual exploitation, and child trafficking.
Identity for Children provides social workers, attorneys, and other assistance to conduct the investigations and go to where the children are to facilitate the legal establishment of their identities. Through charitable contributions, in-country teams work as partners with the corresponding government officials to establish legal identities of the at-risk children that are reached.
Helpful Resources
Books
Raising Adopted Children by Lois Melina
The Open Adoption Experience Lois Melina & Sharon Kaplan Roszia
Dear Birth Mother by Kathleen Silber & Phylis Speelin
Inside Transracial Adoption by Gail Steinberg & Beth Hall
Adopted for Life by Russell Moore
The Connected Child-Bring hope and healing to your adoptive family by Dr. Karyn Purvis
