FACT

10/22/2026

Sit with me for a moment this morning. Adoptive parents…

Just as you do not have to diminish the significance of biology to defend the legitimacy of your parenthood, neither must you spend your life justifying a love that has already demonstrated its sincerity through the quiet, ordinary, extraordinary work of raising your child.

There is something profoundly beautiful about a love that does not require a biological beginning to become a lifelong commitment.

You did not have to be present at the beginning of your child’s story to become an irreplaceable part of its unfolding.

You are there for the ordinary mornings, the sleepless nights, the celebrations, the disappointments, the whispered prayers, and the countless moments that will never make their way into photographs but will forever shape the person your child becomes.

And somewhere within those seemingly insignificant moments, something extraordinary happens…

A family is not merely established. It is lived.

Please remember that your parenthood is not a lesser expression of motherhood or fatherhood simply because it began differently. Your family is not an imitation of something more authentic. And your love is not an inadequate substitute for a biological connection.

You are not pretending to be a parent. You are parenting.

There is a difference between acknowledging the significance of a child’s origins and suggesting that those origins determine the limits of who may love, nurture, and belong to them.

Your child’s history deserves respect. Their questions deserve thoughtful answers. Their experiences deserve compassion. And none of those truths requires the erasure of your place in their life.

So when the world grows loud with arguments about what makes a family legitimate, remember that the deepest expressions of parenthood rarely announce themselves.

They are found in the steadfastness of your presence, the sacrifices no one witnesses, the tenderness you extend when patience is exhausted, and the promise you continue to honor long after the excitement of becoming a family has given way to the responsibilities of being one.

Biology may explain where a life began, but it cannot, by itself, measure the depth of the love that helps that life flourish.

You do not need to win every argument about adoption to live the truth of your parenthood.

Sometimes the most compelling defense of a family is simply the beautiful, imperfect, faithful life being built within it.

And perhaps that is what I hope you remember most this morning: Your family does not need the world’s permission to be real.

10/19/2026

https://volunteermckinney.galaxydigital.com/need/detail/?need_id=1324833&fbclid=IwZnRzaAVDT2pleHRuA2FlbQIxMQBwZG9mBWZkaWQWUQk3g52r4_L66mXQsSDwHSiapIRyXnNydGMGYXBwX2lkCjY2Mjg1NjgzNzkAAR6N2gfkbxgbxM7YBsFl44g-F55KM4bEAE3fLR0cOdmNIKrG388Y8wwND3euPg_aem_yWfJheTCbEYpQiBfxqbI1w

Embrace Texas is a non-profit that supports foster, adoptive, and kinship children and families in our community. The historic home in downtown McKinney where we office needs some attention after housing foster youth for the past few years. Join us as we freshen up the space with some paint and orga...

10/16/2026

IT’S TIIIIIIIME 🥳

Nominations are OPEN for 2027 Bananas Foster Families, better known as our BFFs 🫶

Tell us about a foster family, foster parent, foster care caseworker, social worker, CASA, or anyone you know who is making a difference in the foster care community! We are so excited to learn more about the foster care superheroes throughout the United States, Canada, and Mexico and celebrate them for their incredible impact! 🇺🇸🇨🇦🇲🇽

2027, we’re coming for you! ⭐🍌🩵 Head to the link below to nominate your favorite difference-maker 📲 https://bananasfoster.org/bff-nominations/
-

10/14/2026

5 year old Dean is a little helper in the kitchen, who enjoys learning how to cook. When outdoors, he loves to ride on his scooter. Dean is currently in foster care, waiting for adoption. Will you join us in prayer that a forever family will be found for Dean?

10/10/2026

Person: Oh, she’s precious! How old is she?

Me: Eight months. She’s crawling everywhere now! 🤍

Person: That’s so exciting! How much longer will she be with you?

Me: I don’t know.

Person: Do you think she’ll go back to her mom?

Me: I don’t know.

Person: What about her dad?

Me: I don’t know.

Person: Is reunification still the goal?

Me: I don’t know.

Person: Will you get to adopt her if she can’t go home?

Me: I don’t know.

Person: Are there relatives who might take her?

Me: I don’t know.

Person: Does CPS have a plan for what happens next?

Me: There are plans. But plans change.

Person: Do you think the people making these decisions understand how attached she is to your family?

Me: I hope so.

Person: What about her brothers and sisters? Won’t they miss her?

Me: More than you know.

Person: If she leaves, will you get to see her again?

Me: I don’t know.

Person: How do you prepare yourself for that?

Me: You can’t.

Person: Doesn’t it scare you to love her this much when you don’t know if she’ll stay?

Me: Every single day.

Person: Then how do you do it?

Me: Because she deserves to be loved without having to promise she’ll stay.

This is foster care.

It’s knowing everything about a child except what tomorrow holds for them. It’s being the person who knows how they like their bottles, what makes them laugh, how to soothe their tears, and which arms they reach for when they’re scared, while having no idea where they’ll be sleeping six months from now.

It’s celebrating milestones while decisions are being made about their future. It’s loving them like they’ll stay forever while knowing you may have to say goodbye.

And it’s answering “I don’t know” a hundred different ways when all your heart wants is certainty.

Our Lou is eight months old. She’s crawling, laughing, growing, and discovering the world. She doesn’t know about courtrooms, case plans, or the uncertainty surrounding her future.

And she shouldn’t have to.

So while the grown-ups work through the things she is far too little to understand, we’ll keep doing what we’ve done from the beginning. We’ll love her. Completely. Without conditions, without guarantees, and without knowing how this story ends.

Because she doesn’t need us to know whether she’s staying. She just needs to know that while she’s here, we’re staying.

“For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord…Jeremiah 29:11

I don’t know what tomorrow holds for our Lou. But I know Who holds her.