The Board of General Superintendents announced it approved a request from the Nazarene Children's Leadership Network to designate the first Sunday of November as Orphan Sunday. 

"There is a very special place in God's heart for children," said General Superintendent Jerry D. Porter. "When we love and care for a child, we are deeply touching the Lord's heart. Orphan Sunday is a way of honoring the children and the parents who are a family by choice. May the Lord strengthen the Church as we lovingly encourage and bless these families."

According to NCLN, many orphans live a life on their own, without an earthly mentor or guide and without the security or permanence that a family brings. Some live in abject poverty, begging daily for food, shelter, and clothing. Others wait for years in orphanages and foster care for their forever families. 

"The orphan crisis is connected nearly every social issue, including systemic poverty, crime, homelessness, HIV/AIDS, illiteracy, human trafficking, and abortion," said Margie Schwarz of the NCLN Orphan Initiative.

Orphan Sunday is a worldwide-movement sponsored by the Christian Alliance for Orphans. Thousands of churches worldwide, including some Nazarene congregations, will lift up the cause of the orphan on November 3.

Participation can involve a Sunday School class, small group, or the entire church. Consider featuring the dedication of an adopted child, host a service project making blankets for children in foster care, or hold a time of prayer for children in an orphanage on the other side of the world. Other options include a fundraiser for a family in the church who has been called to adopt or a sermon on Christians' adoption into God's family after accepting Jesus.

Visit orphansunday.org to find videos, lesson plans, prayer guides, service project ideas, and additional resources.

To brainstorm, ask questions, or discuss orphan ministry, contact Margie Schwarz at orphans@nazcln.org.