Should a Christian consider foster care?

Answer

Yes, absolutely and without a doubt, Christians should prayerfully consider foster care. Not everyone will be in a position to take in foster children, and it’s not God’s will for everyone to be a foster parent, but Christians should at least be open to the possibility.

The foster care system is run by the government and exists to provide a service to families who are struggling. Sometimes, children must be moved out of their homes to ensure more safety, stability, and opportunity. A foster parent’s role is to provide a nurturing, safe environment for children in families in need of help until the children can be reunited with their families. Foster parents partner with birth parents and intermediaries (i.e., social workers) to offer mentoring and other support and work toward reuniting the family.

During a recent calendar year, an estimated 269,690 children entered foster care in the U.S. (source: the Children’s Bureau division of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services). Currently, there are over 400,000 children in foster care—a number that has been increasing in recent years. Therefore, the need is significant. Children and families in crisis require trained, compassionate individuals who can help heal the emotional and physical wounds those children have endured.

Christians should consider foster care because we are called to be salt and light in the world (Matthew 5:13-14). Foster parents make a difference. Taking in a foster child may not change the world, but it will certainly change the world for that child.

Christians should consider foster care because being a foster parent is a wonderful way to demonstrate the love of Christ. Jesus had compassion for the “harassed and helpless” multitudes «But when he saw the multitudes, he was moved with compassion on them, becaUse they fainted and were scattered abroad, as sheep having no shepherd.” , (Matthew 9:36); He received children to bless them “And he took them up in his arms, put his hands upon them, and blessed them.” , (Mark 10:16); He taught us to love our neighbors as ourselves “And the second is like, namely this, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself. There is none other commandment greater than these.” , (Mark 12:31). Fostering a child moves us beyond theoretical discussions of love to the place where we are showing bold, practical love.

Christians should consider foster care because of God’s commands to care for the orphan and the needy. “Defend the weak and the fatherless” (Psalm 82:3;cf: Isaiah 1:17). Most children in foster care are not literally fatherless, but they are all experiencing a separation from their birth families, and they need defending and care. Protecting vulnerable children shows the heart of God.

A Christian family would seem to be a natural choice for foster care, for these reasons:

➣ foster care shows the love of Christ

➣ foster care supports and preserves families

➣ foster care can be a mission field within your own home

➣ foster care is pro-life

➣ foster care helps heal the brokenness of the world

➣ foster care is conducive to a saner, more stable society

Many of the objections to becoming a foster parent have to do with personal feelings of inadequacy or a perceived lack of resources. Countering those objections are the many agencies that provide training, resources, and ongoing support for foster families. And, really, what’s most iImportant in a foster home is love for the children and a stable environment.

Foster care is not suitable for everyone, but every Christian can participate in assisting children and families in need. We can pray for the children who are being removed from their homes, their biological families, their foster families, and their social workers. If we are unable to foster a child ourselves, we can still offer assistance and support to foster families: providing babysitting or meals, covering sports fees for a foster child on a soccer or baseball team, driving a foster child to piano or dance lessons, mentoring a foster child, or initiating a foster care ministry at church.

The demand for foster care is significant, and we serve a magnificent God who desires to utilize His people in extraordinary ways to bring about change in this world.