A forever family—the dream of every kid in foster care. I didn’t realize until recently how many of my stories mention foster care or adoption. In some books it is a featured part of the book, and in others it is on the periphery of the story. I drew inspiration from families who have been foster parents and those who have adopted children. In our church small group, there are four families who have adopted children out of the foster care system. It is wonderful to see children who find a stable home in their adopted families. As Christians we know that God has adopted us into His family. We are children of God. What a wonderful thought! We read about it in Ephesians 5:1.
One of my early books, FOUR LITTLE BLESSINGS, tells the story of Cassie Rankin who takes in her two nieces and two nephews in order to keep them out of the foster care system. It is a difficult task for a twenty-one-year old to navigate the waters of caring for these young children.
In my book, A MATCH TO CALL OURS, the hero, Parker Watson, is raising his adopted twin daughters, and he hires the heroine as a nanny who will home school his daughters.
Now I’d like to share books by some of the Inspy Romance authors that also are stories about adoption or foster care. You will find buy links below each book. I hope you’ll check them out for a good read.
You can purchase this book here.
You can purchase this book here.
You can purchase this book here.
You can purchase this book here.
You can purchase this book here.
You can purchase this book here.
You can purchase the book here.
You can purchase the book here.
You can purchase the book here.
I hope you will find the time to read each of these books that touches on adoption or foster care. Remember as Christians we are all part of a big family through God’s adoption.
How has foster care or adoption touched your life? I will be giving away an ebook copy of either Four Little Blessings or A Match to Call Ours, winner’s choice, to one person who leaves a comment here. I will draw the winning name on January 25, 2021, at 9PM MST.
“Void where prohibited; the odds of winning depend on the number of entrants. Entering the giveaway is considered a confirmation of eligibility on behalf of the enterer in accord with these rules and any pertaining local/federal/international laws.”
Merrillee Whren is an award-winning author who writes inspirational romance. She is the winner of the 2003 Golden Heart Award for best inspirational romance manuscript presented by Romance Writers of America. She has also been the recipient of the RT Reviewers’ Choice Award and the Maggie Award for Excellence. She is married to her own personal hero, her husband of thirty plus years, and has two grown daughters. She has lived in Atlanta, Boston, Dallas, Chicago and Florida but now makes her home in the Arizona desert. When she’s not writing, she spends her free time playing tennis or walking while she does the plotting for her novels.
My brother is adopted. Was about 3 weeks when Mum and Dad got him.
My 2 cousins are also adopted. When they adopted number 2 the older girl put her pocket money in the money box and told everyone she bought her little sister (she was about 3).
My friend who I got to meet in Georgia ended up adopting 6 children after fostering them the older 3 were 3 brothers and the younger 3 had the same mother (different fathers) and the youngest was only a few months old. On mothers day one year before she had adopted them they were honoring mothers and asking if you have x amount stand up. her sons said mom stand up. She hadn’t cos she didn’t think others considered her a mother but when they said 6 children they kept saying mom get up. It didn’t matter to them she was their foster mom as far as they were concerned she was mom.
My friend raised 5 kids mostly one her own and is now in her 50’s and a foster mum to 2 and does respite care at times. Its very hard to adopt from the foster care system here which is a pity cos many of the children would really benefit.
I have friends who are foster parents, and I honour their hearts of love for their children. Some of those kids are now at an age where according to the system they are ready to leave the nest. I pray they retain the love and truth they have received.
We have many adopted children, children of our hearts, in our extensive family. The joke is they are special as their parents actively chose them, the rest of us our parents got whatever popped out.
I have quite a few friends who are foster parents, and quite a few who have adopted. I’ve read quite a few of the books you mentioned. One of the best books I’ve read this past year was The Edge of Belonging by Amanda Cox, and dealt very well with this topic. I have an older friend, in her 70’s, who fostered babies for a few years, until she had to quit because of her health. She is still able to keep them for short periods, like if Mom has an appointment or the foster family is going out of town for a long weekend. I’ve thought of fostering, myself; however, it’ll have to wait til I adjust to my new normal, and then I’ll check into it a little more.
My husband was adopted, my sister and I were in foster care, and my guans and I did foster care for a few years and adopted out youngest son.
I find I work those experiences into my writing as well. My Christmas novel has a hero who grew up in foster care and the heroine is challenged to start living again because of his ministries foster children on his Christmas tree farm.
Adoption is a beautiful thing and I’m glad to know more people write about than I’d realized. Thank you for this post.
Fostering and adopting has always been on my heart. My husband and I went through a lot of infertility struggles. At one time, we were licensed foster parents with a goal of adoption. Unfortunately, we lived out in the country and had a difficult time getting placements (sad, right, with all the kids that need them). We eventually did a round of IVF and were blessed with our daughter. However, I still have a soft spot in my heart about adopting.
So many books that show the loving hearts of adoptive parents! Adoption has touched me in so many ways. I am not adopted but have a few friends who have been. I have one friend who I always knew was adopted and knew from the beginning that my husband was as well. Several years after we were together we had the shock of finding out that my husband and close friend were birth siblings. Through that discovery we ended up meeting all 5 of their other siblings (after being on the TV show Unsolved Mysteries). Though I have had the heartache of my daughter losing her oldest son it turned out with the blessing of him being adopted by my niece and her husband. And she had a job-of all things-of being a social worker who helped make sure adoptive children were an appropriate fit with adoptive families. This beautiful couple had adopted 2 teenage girls shortly after marrying followed closely by my grandson. Even though the way this all came about being heartbreaking I have no doubt this young man is in the home God intended him to be in. He is being raised by a very special Christian couple and it is a huge blessing that he lives close to me as well.
All this to say that adoption holds a very special place in my heart and life. Naturally I love reading books about this special subject!
Jenny, that’s so nice that you have a brother through adoption. Adoption is a big part of your family story. Wonderful!
Margaret, fostering kids is wonderful. The heroine of my book, Hometown Dad, is one of those kids who aged out of the foster care system.
Dianne, that’s a wonderful phrase, “children of our hearts.”
Trudy, I’ll have to check out that book. Thanks for mentioning it. Wow! That’s amazing to foster kids in your 70s. We have a couple in our small group who are getting close to that age who just stopped fostering because of age. It’s a challenge to take care of kids when you are older.
Dalyn, you are right. Adoption is such a wonderful thing, and it mirrors what God has done for us.
I hope to maybe one day adopt or foster, I don’t know if it is something God will lead me to though.
Melanie, it’s true that there are so many children who need help and not enough families to do the job. I’m so happy when I hear of people who are doing foster care or adopting kids.
Deb, thanks for sharing your story. I had a very good friend in elementary school who was adopted.
Abigail, I hope you are able to do this.
I know some people that have either fostered and adopted and after hearing their stories, especially from those who foster I’m blown away by the love it takes to foster a child that you know may not be with you very long. Its wonderful that some of these children can have a loving home, even if only for a brief time.
My mom was in an orphanage from age 5 to 16. My niece adopted a daughter from Ghana. Thank you for sharing.
Hi, all these books sound like very good reads. I have 2 cousins the were adopted,my aunt and uncle adopted them , they were from different families and they are like 2 years apart. They grew up very close and they have always been like sisters.Only thing is they were never told they were adopted, our uncle passed away about 6 yrs ago and my aunt has dementia and the girls were never told. My aunt and uncle loved them both like they were their very own. Have a Great weekend and stay safe. Thank you so much for sharing about your wonderful books and all the other authors books. (not entering this ebook giveaway, but thank you, I don’t read ebooks at all)
Megan, I think it does take a special person to be able to give kids a temporary home.
Lelia, was your mom eventually adopted or did she go out on her own?
Alicia, I think these days adoptees are more often told they are adopted and many get to find their birth parent or parents. My husband has an aunt who recently met her birth mother, and we have friends whose daughter adopted a boy and he knows his birth parents.
The only way foster care has touched my life was when I very young, maybe 10 years old, my mom took care of two little girls who were in the middle of a custody battle. I don’t remember any of the details, just that my mom really loved on these girls — more than on us, oftentimes, but I wasn’t jealous because I knew they really needed that. They weren’t with us for very long, but it remains in my mind as one of the great examples my mom set for us.
All boxes I would love to read. I will make a note of them. Thanks Merrillee. Our little, just turned three year old granddaughter explained to me very clearly what ‘adopted’ meant. We were playing with her plastic animals and my plastic animals, picking them up, showing each other and saying their names. I picked up a little dinosaur and said it had no family. She very quickly said “Ok, I will adopt it. Adopted means that when someone doesn’t have a family, someone else gives them one”, and she kept going on with her animal display. It sure took me by surprise.
Lila, thanks for sharing that. Kids do need someone to love them.
Sandra, your granddaughter is a very smart little girl.
I have friends who have adopted children. Such a blessing to provide a home for a child in need <3
My grandma was a foster mother for many years.
Our brother-in-love and his wife have adopted 7 kids from China, the oldest now finishing college and the youngest in elementary school. We also have friends from church who, after rearing two to adulthood, got into fostering and have adopted two more.
There is a family in our church who have been foster parents for many years. Their older daughter just adopted her two young nieces & nephew because the parents (her brother & his wife) decided drugs were more important then raising their children. It’s a sad situation, but I’m glad that the kids have a loving aunt who wanted them. Their family has many extended members, so there’s no lack of love & care to go around!
My husband and I are legal guardians & raising our six year old granddaughter right now. It’s not an easy task, but we didn’t want her to go into the foster care system that doesn’t always work. We know where she is and that God has given us the ability to care & provide for her.
Children are a blessing from God, whether we have them through natural means or adoption!