“The Spirit himself testifies with our spirit that we are God’s children. Now if we are children, then we are heirs — heirs of God and co-heirs with Christ, if indeed we share in his sufferings in order that we may also share in his glory.” — Romans 8:16-17
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Calvin Ridley is a wide receiver for the Tennessee Titans. He is very successful now, but his childhood was difficult. As a foster child, Ridley would lay awake at night and worry about his future. Football became one of the only constants for him, and became an important outlet through high school and as he went on to play for the Alabama Crimson Tide, Atlanta Falcons, Jacksonville Jaguars and now the Titans. Ridley appreciates what people did to help him get where he is today, and he honors them through the NFL’s My Cause My Cleats campaign by supporting SOS Village, the foster care community that took him and his brothers in when they were young.
Many foster parents are some of the most loving and giving people. Sometimes they’ve already raised their own children or may still have children at home when they volunteer to take in one or more children to provide a safe place. In any given year, about 200,000 adults foster more than 300,000 children in the United States. Some children are not away from their parents for long, but others spend several years in the system. Around 50,000 children are adopted out of foster care each year and placed in a home after careful consideration.
When adoption works out well, it can be a beautiful picture of God’s love in action. In the Bible, God often speaks of His own concern for orphans and any child in a difficult situation, and calls us to step forward and help when we’re able. “Defend the weak and the fatherless; uphold the cause of the poor and the oppressed. Rescue the weak and the needy; deliver them from the hand of the wicked” (Psalm 82:3-4).
When we believe in Jesus, we’re adopted into God’s family, and the Lord enjoys blessing His children in ways beyond our understanding. “Yet to all who did receive him, to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God” (John 1:12). As a believer, we can enjoy wonderful benefits through our salvation in Christ.
Peter lifted up praise to God when he thought about what salvation means. In his first letter, Peter asked us to join him in praising God for saving our souls. “Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! In his great mercy he has given us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead” (1 Peter 1:3). Furthermore, Paul spoke about how great it is to be God’s adopted child. “The Spirit himself testifies with our spirit that we are God’s children” (Romans 8:16).
As Christians, more important than how much property or money we have is that our sins are cleansed by the blood of Christ, and we enjoy the inheritance of being God’s children. That’s more precious than anything we see with our eyes.
— Bill Kent, Pastor of Memorial Baptist Church, Sylvania, Georgia
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