Christian Alliance for Orphans (CAFO)

Building resilience in kids starts at home. Scripts can provide us with thoughtfully chosen responses to use in challenging moments. Dr. Nicole Wilke, Director of the CAFO Research Center and co-author of Overcoming: What Scripture & Science Say About Resilience, shares some of her favorite scripts to use for cultivating resilience in children. ?? Learn more at cafo.org/blog “At the end of the day, building resilience in our children isn’t about having all the right words at all the right times. It’s about consistently pointing them toward truth, even when we’re tired, overwhelmed or unsure.” https://lnkd.in/eDiNHMP6

Adoptive mom, author and co-founder of Show Hope, Mary Beth Chapman shares her story and her journey of BECOMING through the various joys and trials she’s navigated and how God has used it all to impact the lives of many children through the ministry of Show Hope. Be encouraged and inspired by Mary Beth’s testimony from CAFO2024 in Nashville, TN. You can watch Mary Beth's full keynote on our YouTube Channel at the link below: https://lnkd.in/e_7SsPHv

Books and movies can build resilience in children. Today on the CAFO blog, our team is sharing a list of helpful books and movies to cultivate resilience in the children you care about the most. What books and movies would you include? Drop your recommendations in the comments! https://lnkd.in/et8YY6zy

Your Organization as a Place of Spiritual Formation Wednesday, Dec. 11 @ 2:00 pm - 3:00 pm EST As Christian leaders, we long to help vulnerable children and families to thrive spiritually — and in every sphere of life. To succeed, this work must begin with us and our teams. How can we cultivate this in our organizations? Join CAFO President Jedd Medefind to hear a compelling vision — and learn some very tangible practices — for making your organization a place where people are growing together to BECOME more like Jesus each day. Register here: https://lnkd.in/ewDMHyXT

Pure Religion Sunday 2024 was incredible! God was truly at work, and we believe the impact this day had on the Kingdom will be felt for years to come. Here are some of our favorite photos from #purereligionsunday. We hope you enjoy them as much as we do! P.S. – scroll to the end for an extra “sweet” photo! ??

Drs. Nicole Wilke and Amanda Howard explore the ins and outs of resilience in their new book,?Overcoming: What Scripture and Science Say About Resilience. They reveal that “resilience is a good gift we can give our children through small actions repeated over time. We can’t do the overcoming for them, but we can build the scaffolding to heal from early adversity, to conquer challenges, and to fulfill their potential.” Read more about understanding and cultivating resilience in children at https://lnkd.in/eMqJ8Qbs

Wondering how to effectively catalyze your church on behalf of the vulnerable on Pure Religion Sunday? In our latest blog post, we’ve put together some thoughts around how to speak about God’s heart for vulnerable children and families, and how to inspire your congregation to take their right next step. Read more at?https://lnkd.in/ed-YT9Fr

You want to see children and families thrive, and you believe your community can work together to fill the gaps that will make the biggest difference for children and families in foster care. But it’s not easy. Maybe you’ve tried some things before, and your community’s efforts to provide more than enough for children and families have stalled out. Efforts to work together to transform foster care often get stuck. Here are four of the ditches that may feel familiar to you: 1) The “Everyone Can Help Me Do My Thing” Ditch: Often, a person or organization has an idea (a great idea!), and the goal becomes to gather everyone else around that one project or program, crowding out true collaborative problem-solving. 2) The “Kumbaya” Ditch: Sometimes groups get together over coffee and bagels with the best of intentions—but two years of polite meetings later, nothing of substance has actually gotten done. 3) The “We All Have Other Jobs” Ditch: Everyone is already busy and overwhelmed, so the key follow-up meetings don’t get scheduled, great collaborative ideas you dreamed together die in an email chain, and the strategic next steps fall through the cracks. 4) The “Clique” Ditch: Relationships are crucial to getting stuff done, but efforts to fill the biggest gaps in foster care hit a wall when only narrow, existing circles of people are at the table to figure out what should happen next. The good news is there’s a way to avoid these ditches, working with others to create greater community involvement, build stronger relationships, and get better results for children and families. If you’re ready to move forward in your community, join More Than Enough, CAFO’s US Foster Care Initiative, for Unstuck: Transforming Foster Care Where You Live. It’s an interactive, two-hour workshop on November 13th where we’ll explore how to see real change in foster care. Register here: https://lnkd.in/eRsXzZWf

November 1 marks the beginning of National Adoption Month. Jason Johnson, Director of the Pure Religion Project at CAFO recently interviewed Pastor Jay Strother from Brentwood Baptist Church to discuss what discipleship in action looks like for his church when they engage in foster care and adoption. Read more at?https://lnkd.in/eesVuCwQ

Ever felt a bit stuck trying to do something about all the?“not enoughs” of foster care where you live? I’d love for you to join me—and other folks like you around the country— for a virtual workshop on November 13th where we’ll explore practical ways to get foster care unstuck in your community! Check out more details below, and register here: https://lnkd.in/gfxGNMqg