There is never a “perfect time” to be obedient. Being “ready” is kind of a myth when we are speaking in the emotional sense. In the next few posts I am going to give some practical tips to people to help them determine whether their situation in life will allow them to get approved to foster/adopt. That being said, you will never feel “ready” to take on the task of fostering/adopting children from the system. Your financial situation is never going to be where you want it to be, you are never going to be completely stress free, you are never going to have the perfect support system, and you are never going to be able to completely eliminate risk from your life. And thats okay.

I meet so many people that I am 90% sure meet all of the requirements to be foster/adoptive parents yet they all tell me: “It just isn’t the right time for us.” If we are believers, it is always the right time to step into obedience. If the only thing we are fearful of is adding more hardship and worries to our life, we need to check our motivations. Taking care of the downtrodden in society, the hurting, the grieving and the orphan is the responsibility of the church. No one else. The reality is that if it is the goal of the church to care for all of the children that need it, we are going to need many more families to step up to the plate.

I encourage you to read the posts that follow this one to challenge yourself. If, as you read, you find that you wouldn’t meet the approval requirements, again, thats okay. Ask yourself how else you can care for hurting children in your community. Is there a foster family you can support? Do you know if your county has a foster closet? You could volunteer there or start one yourself. Could you start a foster care ministry at your church through Promise686 (more on them later)? Could you bless a foster family financially through a gift? Could you use your vocational skills/gifts to serve children? And finally what could you do in your life (if anything) to help you get to a place where you could be approved as a foster parent?

If you could be approved as a foster/adoptive parent, what is holding you back? Fear of the unknown? Fear of the system? Fear of getting attached (see my post on that;)? Laziness? Wanting to spend your time on your own pleasure? Fear for your safety? Fear for your child’s safety?

I will be praying for your heart. I will be praying that trust in the Lord and desire to obey Him would drown out any scary emotions. I know its scary. But if God is for us, who can be against us? (Romans 8:31) What can separate you from the love of Christ? (Roman 8:35) Who will bring a charge against God’s elect? (Roman 8:33) We are free in Christ to fearlessly obey.

Please comment with your questions and thoughts.

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