Adoption and the Gospel

For six years my wife and I participated in the work at a mission orphanage in the Philippines.  We gave the children lots of attention and affection and did everything we could to love, care for and encourage them and improve their living conditions.  Sometimes we even brought them to our home for extended stays, but we always returned them to the orphanage. We told the children we loved them, but leaving them behind in the orphanage left them wondering. We gave the children everything except our heart, our home and our name. We fulfilled their physical needs, but never succeeded in giving them a sense of belonging.  

For a long time, the children were eager to greet me, and they competed for my attention every time I arrived at the orphanage. I had such joyful times with them, but I always left them behind in the orphanage. No matter how much love and attention I gave them, they were still orphans. If you have ever visited an orphanage, you can probably recall a vivid image of all the children with their happy, smiling faces, frozen in time, and never growing older. Your picture of an orphan is exactly what the children want it to be, because it’s what they desperately hope will cause you to fall in love with them and take them into your heart, your home and your life. They are wooing you with every ounce of enthusiasm they can muster. They are so extremely skillful at putting on this façade that I was convinced they were contented and happy in the orphanage, and their façade accomplished the exact opposite of what they hoped it would. They not only put on the façade for visitors, they also did it for orphanage staff and administrators!  I became an orphanage administrator, and it was a very long time before the façade came down and I was able to observe behavior that demonstrated the children’s true feelings.

I had the privilege of meeting two young ladies who were ministering to orphans while living full time with them in an orphanage. They were volunteers and not orphanage staff, and were free to devote all their time and attention to the children who were obviously enjoying this unique relationship. I had instructed them before going on this extended mission to take note of any differences in the behavior of the children based on the presence or absence of orphanage staff and visitors. Both of them reported observing incredible differences in the children’s façade or natural behavior. Their reports strongly confirm my own conclusions about the children’s façade, after years of pondering their body language, and repeatedly asking myself, “what’s wrong with this picture?”

When the children finally decided I was never going to adopt them, their behavior began to change and unmask their true feelings, but I still wasn’t getting it. I was so strongly focused on caring for “orphans” who belong in an orphanage that I couldn’t think about caring for “children” who belong in a family. I was too blinded by their façade to understand it. Now I can fully understand why God instructed me when we first arrived in the Philippines that we would be there for six years. I know without any doubt that God had broken my heart for orphans in order to prepare me to devote the rest of my life to adoption ministry.

This study will discuss why orphan ministry is more than just caring for children in an institutional environment (orphanages & foster homes).  Orphan care and adoption are equally important means of providing for the care and protection of orphan children, and they both deserve our prayers and financial support.  Not all are adoptable, but children belong in families and every child needs a sense of belonging.  

Adoption, as a ministry in the church, is truly a global movement of the Holy Spirit. Unfortunately, adoption currently represents less than 1% of ministry to orphan children, but the potential is so much greater!  The Holy Spirit has already called countless families to adopt and it just makes sense to match them with children who desperately want to belong to a family.   Jesus himself said, “I will not leave you as orphans...”  (Jn. 14:18)  We, and many others, have observed that up to 5% of families in churches around the world already have a desire to adopt, which amounts to untold millions of families. Most of them have never pursued adoption because they assume they could never afford it, and this vast potential remains virtually untapped. Questions that beg to be answered include, “What would the Lord have us do?” and, “How do we develop a more balanced approach to institutional care and adoption?” Woven throughout this study are suggested ways that anyone can help.  For example, pastors can begin by teaching about the biblical doctrine and gospel nature of adoption. They can also share how it relates to evangelizing orphan children, and how adoption ministry can empower families to adopt. 

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I believe that most of the adoptable children in the world could be adopted, by simply identifying  and empowering families in our own churches and communities who already want to adopt.   This could create a vast amount of vacant orphanage space, sufficient to care for countless more children who are currently living and dying on the streets.

If you are wondering why ministry to widows and orphans needs to be added to the mission strategy of your church, this study will offer answers from God’s word. (Jas. 1:27) Applying this concept to your mission strategy can lead to healthy church growth. (Mt. 5:16 and Jb. 29:12-13)  We should be grateful for those who minister to children in an institutional setting, but we also need to understand the importance of including adoption in every orphan ministry.  We need to seek a more balanced approach to orphan ministry by investing far more energy and resources in adoption. We also need to understand that adoption of children by families in their own country and culture is generally far more cost-effective than institutional care.

God has provided the solution through the beauty and simplicity of adoption ministry.  He is calling the church to reestablish her ministry to orphans and widows, and He promises to abundantly bless the people, churches and nations who heed that call. (Dt. 14:28-29; Dt. 28:1-2; Mk. 9:37) Rather than be overwhelmed with guilt and paralyzed to act, I pray that you will be inspired to participate in this incredible solution that will ultimately help millions of orphan children who so desperately need and want to belong to a loving family. Families who are called to adopt, deserve all the help we can give them, and they should not be forced to ask for it. The church is called to be a voice for the children who have no voice, and we need to make it commonly known that help is available through the church.  (Pr. 31:8-9; Mt. 5:16 & 10:8)

Ask God how He wants you to participate in rescuing orphans.  He will speak to you through His precious Word and the gentle calling of the Holy Spirit, if you open your heart to hear and obey.