A few weeks ago I attended Summit VII, a conference put on by Christian Alliance for Orphans. I was able to attend with three other members of the Reclaim Orphans Team. We each chose break out sessions that we had a heart for or fit within our area of Reclaim Orphans. One of the classes that I chose to go to was "Wrapping Around Adoptive Families." The session was put on by Focus on the Family.
Maybe you know someone who is adopting and you love them and want to help, but you are not quite sure how to help. Or maybe adoption is on your heart, but you are at a time or place in your life where you can not adopt. There is still much to do and supporting, loving and caring for an adoptive family is one way you can do this. Let me quote Focus on the Family here,
"For these children and the families who choose to adopt them, the road
to healthy family living may be a rocky one, and it may take longer than
they had hoped. Yet, in spite of the challenges, many families are
making lifelong commitments to children who need opportunities to heal.
Due to these challenges, many adoptive families desperately need support
from their church families. As is often the case in other areas of life,
however, asking for help can be difficult to do. Many adoptive families
may interpret their struggles as failure, question their call to adopt or,
worst of all, feel abandoned by God who called them to the journey of adoption. "
Yesterday, my pastor spoke about Joshua. God called him to be an assistant. Joshua was given the task of taking the Israelites into the promise land, conquering the inhabitants there and dividing the land up among the people. Joshua 23:10 tells us that "it is the Lord who fights for you." Joshua wasn't doing this work, God was. Joshua just was the assistant. I find it interesting that when God is commissioning Joshua in chapter 1, that in just 9 verses God tells Joshua three times, "be strong and courageous." Each time God says this he reminds Joshua of something that will help him to be strong and courageous: 1. I will not leave you or forsake you, 2. be careful to not depart from the Book of the Law, meditate on it day and night, and 3. do not be frightened or dismayed for the Lord is with you where ever you go.
What does Joshua have to do with adoptive families? Simple. God has called these families to an amazing work, to be His assistant: to show the love of Jesus, the grace of Jesus, and the mercy of Jesus to children who have lost much, who have scars so deep that need the healing only Christ can bring, and who have experienced such fear and anxiety that only the foundation of the gospel will bring stability to their lives.
Back to the conference... Focus on the Family uses the acronym W.R.A.P. to help people remember the ways that they can love and support these families who have been literally called to be the hands and feet of Jesus to little ones.
W stands for WRESTLE IN PRAYER.
R stands for RESPITE CARE
A stands for ACTS OF SERVICE
P stands for PROMISES OF GOD
I'm going to take time this week to blog and brainstorm about how we, the church, can WRAP around adoptive families. As children of God we all have adoption in our DNA. We are all called to play a part in caring for the orphan. When we, the church, wrap our arms around families who need love and support, we reflect the heart and strong arms of our heavenly father who adopts us, and then extends grace, love and mercy to his children, in our times of joy as well as our times of trial.
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