"I will not leave you as orphans; I will come to you." John 14:18
Jesus spoke these words as a promise to us, and we receive them with comfort as God's children. As followers in Christ's footsteps, we are bound to love others as He has loved us, and that means that we cannot leave anyone else as orphans, either. At Southside Baptist Church, we are proud to have a fundamental commitment to foster care and adoption. We partner through our Global Missions Offering (GMO) with Miracle Hill Ministries and Connie Maxwell Children's Home, we support P.S. I Love You Ministries with donation drives throughout the year, and there are several adoptive families and a growing number of foster families already in our congregation.
Most recently, we celebrated the start of the foster licensing process for Jonathan and Abby Odom, a young couple at our church who has felt the call to adoption from the beginning of their marriage. As they started exploring the possible roads to adoption, they decided to open their hearts one step further to foster care. In the coming months and years, they will be opening their homes to infants and toddlers who await reunification with their biological families. Wherever reunification proves impossible, Jonathan and Abby will either serve as or help to find that child's forever family.
Their moms, Suzi Odom and Missy Simpson, threw them a Foster Family Shower in our church café, and we advertised it in our church bulletin. Our members did not fail to show up! Jonathan and Abby were showered with all kinds of things to help them finish the licensing process and welcome their future children. They are nearing the end of the licensing process now and want to thank everyone for their outstanding support. They are ready and eager to meet the children that God is going to send them!
If you would like to get involved with foster care or adoption, please call our church office at (864) 582-2341 and they will connect you with a member who can give you more information. If you would like to support Jonathan and Abby, please consider praying for them, visiting their baby registries on Amazon and Target, or asking them what they might need. If you are a foster or adoptive family in need of support, please reach out to our church office at (864) 582-2341 to see what we can do for you!
Contributed by: Sarah Burnett