By Katie Devine, Church Engagement Specialist
Foster care ministry in the church isn’t just for families who open their homes—it’s for the whole Body of Christ. And for my family, it started with one yes. We saw a news report about children tied up like animals just down the street from where we used to live. That moment broke us. But truthfully, God had been preparing our hearts for a while—through infertility, through my years teaching in Title I schools, and through watching a cousin become a foster parent.
Church-Based Foster Support Requires Community
In the fall of 2017 we began the licensing process and were approved to foster the summer of 2018. Around that same time, we launched a support group for foster and adoptive families at our church. We knew we needed community to survive the journey—and we saw other families needed it too. Foster care ministry in the church thrives when there’s a committed network offering spiritual, emotional, and practical support.
Obedience in Foster Ministry Is Costly but Worth It
Our first placement, a girl we called “Beautiful,” stayed only two weeks. Even in that short time, God reminded us that no stay is insignificant. Then came Jurney—a six-year-old girl with a heartbreaking history. Loving her was gut-wrenching. We gave everything we had, but ultimately had to release her to a home better equipped to handle her needs. That decision felt like failure, but it wasn’t. It was wisdom. And it was obedience.
Faithful Foster Parenting with Church Involvement
What followed were placements that stretched and refined us. Sibling groups, reunification cases, courtroom disappointments, and emotional whiplash. We welcomed Brennyn and Lamaya, then Katarina and Kainn. Then a sibling group of four. In 2020, Brennyn came back into our home. This time, for good. We became his forever family—and on March 31, 2022, we adopted all five children who are now part of our family. That day was marked by peace that only surrender brings.
Building Foster Care Ministry in Local Churches
The church showed up for us in powerful ways. That’s what foster care ministry in the church looks like: people willing to get close to the pain, even when there are no easy answers. People who stay when it’s messy. That’s what we needed—and now, it’s what I help other churches build.
Today, I serve as the Church Engagement Specialist at The Alliance. I walk with churches that want to move beyond awareness and build active foster care support ministries—churches ready to wrap around families in real and lasting ways. Some start support teams. Others develop respite care networks. All of them begin with one obedient step. The foster care crisis won’t be solved with policy alone. It’ll take churches entering the gap.
Launching a Foster Care Support Team at Your Church
If your church hasn’t started a foster care ministry yet, don’t wait. Start with prayer, with one family, with one meeting. Just start. Because foster care ministry in the church doesn’t require perfection. It requires obedience.
