it's orphan Sunday... how can you help?

Today is Orphan Sunday. This is a day in November (National Adoption Month) for Christians to stand up for the orphans, the fatherless, the children with no family. According to the Christian Alliance for Orphans (CAFO), "On Orphan Sunday, churches across America and beyond celebrate the love of the God who “places the lonely in families” (Psalm 68:6) and calls us to do the same. Ultimately, Orphan Sunday seeks to make the Gospel visible as Christians explore and respond to God’s heart for the orphan in adoption, foster care, and global orphan ministry."

To recognize this day, my parents and I wore our adoption shirts to church!

Adoption is an amazing thing. But not everyone is called to welcome an orphan into their family. And that's okay! God has different callings for different families and all of them are important. And what's more important is that you answer the calling God has for you. 

Even though not everyone is called to adopt an orphan, everyone is called to care for the orphans. 

"Learn to do good. Seek justice. Help the oppressed. Defend the cause of orphans." Isaiah 1:17

"Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world." James 1:27

"For the Lord your God is God of gods and Lord of lords... He defends the cause of the fatherless and the widow..." Deuteronomy 10:17-18

Caring for the orphans will look different for each person and family. But you do have a part! 

Are you wondering how you can help the orphans? Here are some ideas:

1. Pray for orphans. 

2. Pray for families who are adopting.

3. Give financial support to adoptive families. Of course, I'd love for you to donate to our adoption fund, but any monetary donation to an adoptive family makes a difference! You can be a part of bringing an orphan home. 

4. Sponsor a child. There are children in orphanages who need sponsorship. There are children without families to pay for their food and schooling. There are also children who do have families, but those family members can't afford to pay for their food or schooling, so the children either go hungry and uneducated, or are released to an orphanage even though they aren't truly without families. One organization that I adore is Amazima. Your sponsorship of a child through this ministry will educate and feed them so that their families don't have to relinquish the child due to lack of resources and funds to raise them in their family. There are plenty of other organizations you can sponsor a child through, like Holt International, where your sponsorship can help a child stay in their family, and if that's not possible, find them a loving adoptive family. 

5. Support adoptive/foster families in other ways! Make a meal, offer to babysit, send an encouraging note... there are so many ways to pour out love and support.

I love this image I saw online today.

Like I mentioned, not everyone is called to adopt but everyone is called to do something. Some people are called to foster, some are called to adopt domestically, and some, like us, are called to adopt internationally. Some are called to sponsor a child. Some are called to donate to an adoptive family. Some are called to be prayer warriors for the orphans. How is God calling you to care for His children?