The stress of an unplanned pregnancy can make emotions run high. At first, you may feel confused, hopeless, and alone. It’s normal to worry about your future and about what your family and community will think.
Once the initial shock wears off, you can start to consider your options. Remember, no matter what anyone else has to say about your situation, this is your life and your choice. But what are the options if you are a Christian? Is it wrong for a Christian to give up a baby for adoption?
Every unplanned pregnancy scenario is unique. You may feel that choosing adoption for your baby is the best path for any of these reasons:
- The father will not be a partner in parenting your child.
- You don’t have a support system.
- You’re not financially secure enough to raise a child.
- You don’t have the resources to provide a safe, loving home for a child.
- You’re too young to raise a child.
- You’re pursuing college, a career, or anything else that would keep you from making your child your priority.
- You want your child to be raised in a two-parent, Christian home.
- You discover your child will have special needs that you cannot support.
- Terminating your pregnancy is against your Christian beliefs.
The one thing that women who are choosing adoption have in common is the desire to give their baby a hopeful future.
In fact, when you choose to make an open adoption plan, you don’t need to look at your choice as “giving up” your baby. In an open adoption, you actively plan a bright future for your child by selecting the perfect Christian adoptive parents. You may even choose to stay in your child’s life by keeping in contact and forming a special bond with the adoptive family. You are not “giving up” anything. You are taking a difficult situation and turning it into something beautiful.
It’s never wrong or sinful for a Christian to choose adoption if you are doing what is best for your baby. Choosing adoption could be the most selfless decision of your life.
Here are 4 reasons why choosing adoption is following a Christian path:
1. You’re choosing life.
When you choose adoption, you give your baby a chance to live. Abortion is a permanent choice that can lead to a lifetime of regret. You honor your Christian values when you respect God’s plan.
2. You’re giving your baby a chance for a hopeful future.
By placing your child in a loving, Christian home, you give her a head start to a successful life. She will have parents who can give her the care and opportunities you wish for her. They will be able to teach her the same Christian values that led you to make this loving decision.
If you choose an open adoption plan, you’re ensuring that your child has access to her vital medical history, as well as a special connection to her biological identity.
3. You’re making a sacrifice for your baby.
Contrary to what some might believe, choosing adoption isn’t taking the easy way out. It is a sacrifice you make out of love. Even if you know in your heart that this choice is best for your child, it is still a loss you will have to grieve. Christian history is filled with stories of sacrifice to realize God’s plan.
4. You’re helping another couple fulfill their dream to become parents.
Some Christian couples choose to adopt after experiencing infertility. Some couples have already raised children, but aren’t done with being parents. Others have a desire to help children with special needs. Whatever their calling, the couple that you choose to parent your child can fulfill their purpose because of your brave decision. There are many hopeful couples out there who are desperately waiting for the moment that a birth mother like you chooses them.
Choosing adoption is not wrong or sinful in the eyes of the Christian faith. As you consider your options, think about the future you want for your baby and yourself. You can contact Lifetime Christian Adoption to start an adoption plan at any point during your pregnancy. We will offer guidance and support, but you will have ultimate control over the choices you make for your child every step of the way. When you choose adoption, you put your child first, and that is a very Christian thing to do.
To learn about your adoption choices and how to move forward, contact Lifetime anytime by calling or texting 1-800-923-6784.
Founder of Lifetime Adoption, adoptive mom, adoption expert, and Certified Open Adoption Practitioner (C.O.A.P).
Since 1986, adoption expert Mardie Caldwell has been dedicated to bringing couples and birth parents together in order to fulfill their dreams.
“Many years ago, I was also searching for a child to adopt. We didn’t know where or how to get started. Through research, determination, and a prayer, our dream of a family became reality. I started with a plan, a notebook, assistance from a caring adoption consultant and a lot of hard work; this was my family I was building. We had a few heartaches along the way, but the pain of not having children was worse!
Within weeks we had three different birth mothers choose us. We were overwhelmed and delighted. Many unsettling events would take place before our adoption would be finalized, many months later. Little did I know that God was training and aligning me for the adoption work I now do today. It is my goal to share with our families the methods and plans which succeed and do not succeed. I believe adoption should be affordable and can be a wonderful “pregnancy” for the adoptive couple.
I have also been on both sides of infertility with the loss of seven pregnancies and then conceiving by new technology, giving birth to a healthy daughter. I have experienced first-hand the emotional pain of infertility and believe my experience allows me to serve your needs better.
It is my hope that for you, the prospective parents, your desire for a child will be fulfilled soon.”
