Feeling inadequate in yourself to parent? I know I do. I knew God called us to adopt our sons, but I did not really know that I was getting into a battle for their best life. Oh, I knew the love and hard work of raising an adopted infant, but not the unique challenges of foster adoption. The unseen effects from prior trauma presented challenges that we could not conquer on our own. We were not meant to do this in our own strength.
We continually need God, and those he puts in our life, to support and love us. When the days are filled with hardship just to get through a simple routine that other kids master. When attempts at reading, writing, and math are monsters too large to face. When the break downs and phone calls from providers happen at a pace that demands we seek him. God provides both a model and support system to help us.
God is a Model for Us.
Psalm 68:5 “Father of the fatherless and protector of widows is God in his holy habitation.”
God is deeply concerned with both the protection and provision of those without a home and the physical support provided by parents and family members. He identifies himself as the ultimate father of those without such support here on earth.
Psalm 82.3 “Give justice to the weak and the fatherless; maintain the right of the afflicted and the destitute.”
He calls us to follow his lead as a parent to love those in such need. The father equips us to intervene in the lives of those children. We are designated to be the physical hands assisting their everyday growth. We are to be bold, sober in mind, and walk in faith – God placed the child under our care as his or her designated stewards.
James 1:27 “Religion that is pure and undefiled before God the Father is this: to visit orphans and widows in their affliction, and to keep oneself unstained from the world.”
Notice that the Apostle James calls us to act, not just sit back or withdrawal into ourselves as parents and Christians. We are to be proactive and go and visit (take care) and have fellowship with those in true need.
God Provides Others to Support Us.
James 1:5 “If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask God, who gives generously to all without reproach, and it will be given him.”
We are to seek guidance with a commitment to faith. That is not to say that we believe anything we hear, but that we hold fast to the promise of God to provide the answer we need at the moment.
Proverbs 15:22 “Without counsel plans fail, but with many advisers they succeed.”
Practical experience tells us that we do not know all the answers. It is wise to seek advice of those who have been there before, or that have helped others through the struggles that your family is facing. However, it is important to recognize that our plans may not be God’s plans.
Isaiah 55:8-9 “For my thoughts are not your thoughts,neither are your ways my ways, declares the LORD. 9 For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts.”
Remember: He will be faithful to your family and lead you along the correct path establishing his plans as you act in faith.
Romans 8:31-32 “What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us? 32 He who did not spare his own Son but gave him up for us all, how will he not also with him graciously give us all things?”
References:
Bible Verses: The Holy Bible: English Standard Version. (2016). Wheaton, IL: Crossway Bibles.
Jan de Bray artist QS:P170,Q541789, Jan de Bray – Tending Children in the Orphanage in Haarlem – WGA03132, marked as public domain, more details on Wikimedia Commons
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