Churches rightly encourage adoption and support families going through the adoption process, but are they prepared when the child or teen comes home and is diagnosed with special needs or trauma-related issues? This series will present a theology of disability that can serve as a motivation for churches to meet the needs of these families. The series also gives a plan of action to support adoptive families in each life stage: preschool, elementary age, and adolescence.
Adoptive special-needs families deserve access to a church family that supports them and serves their needs, so they can be fully integrated church members. They may not fit into the traditional boxes of family ministry, but with creativity and help from the ideas in this post and the next two, churches can show their care and commitment to every family having the opportunity to hear and respond to the gospel.
Christian Families Are Adopting at a High Rate, Thanks to Support from Churches
Christians look to Scripture as a guide for how to care for widows and orphans. The stories related to adoption in the Bible, including Moses, Esther, and Jesus all show a pattern of inclusion. Psalm 68:6 says, "God sets the solitary in families," and churches are leading the way, by encouraging families to adopt and supporting them through the process. According to Barna Research, practicing Christians are more than twice as likely to adopt than the general population, "While only 2% of all Americans have adopted, this rises to 5% among practicing Christians. Practicing Christians are much more likely than others to have seriously considered adoption—38% of practicing Christians say they have, compared to 26% of all adults."
Churches have encouraged adoption for decades, seeing it as part of our focus on the sanctity of human life. Dr. Russell Moore writes in Adopted for Life: “Your congregation can encourage and equip the adoption of infants and children. Your church can preach the gospel and care for the vulnerable. You can provide the funds, encouragement and prayer support for untold numbers of Great Commission families. If adoption is to be a priority, it will take mobilizing congregations to do so. After all, it takes more than a village to adopt a child, at least for those of us in Christ. It takes a church.”
Unfortunately, parents and churches alike are often not prepared for life after adoption, including how to care for their children who may have special needs (a broad term used to include physical disabilities, cognitive disabilities, mental health conditions, behavioral challenges, learning disabilities, and results of trauma). Adoptive mom Grace Harris writes, "I knew a great deal going into this adoption process. I knew that becoming a mom meant sharing life with my husband, dog, and two young boys who had lived through more uncertainty, loss, and violence than anyone ever should. What I did not know, however, was much greater."
Nearly 20% of adopted children were reported by their parents to have moderate to severe current health problems, compared with 7% of biological children, and 37% of adopted children had special health care needs as compared with 17% of biological children. Another study shows 39% of adopted children have special health care needs and 26% have moderate to severe health difficulties, as compared to 19% and 10% in the general population.
Based on the probability that children and teens who are adopted will have special needs, the churches where these families belong should be prepared to meet these needs. In parts 2 and 3 of this series, we’ll look at the practical ways to meet these needs.
Sandra Peoples is a special-needs mom and sibling. She and her family live outside of Houston, TX. Sandra is currently a PhD student at Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary in family ministry with an emphasis on inclusion for special-needs families. She is the disability ministry consultant for the Southern Baptists of Texas Convention and an adjunct professor for Liberty University, teaching classes in disability ministry. Sandra the author of Unexpected Blessings: The Joys and Possibilities of Life in a Special-Needs Family. You can connect with her at sandrapeoples.com.
