Soapbox

If you read my blog at all, I know you think I have plenty of soapboxes, so you may be wondering which one is on the agenda today.  You are right, I do have plenty to say about several different things (just ask my poor, introverted husband), but lately, you may have noticed that the theme of my blog is mostly the orphan.  Yes, I still give you some unsolicited medical advice from time to time and believe me, I am still very adamant about the state of "health care" (or lack thereof) in our nation.  I still get really worked up over people who would rather pop a pill, or give one to their kids,than do what it takes to change their lifestyle.  I still give you my two cents worth on home schooling from time to time as well - and my thoughts on that really haven't changed much over the years, so you can always look in the archives if that interests you at all.

However, I have recently come to the realization that there are only a few things I am truly passionate about - Jesus, my family, and the orphan.  That's really it.  I have plenty of other interests, plenty of things I spend so much time researching that I could probably testify as an expert witness - but, nothing stirs up heart ache in me and the overwhelming need to spend hours on my knees before God like the plight of those most vulnerable children.  Their faces haunt my dreams and sometimes I am crushed by the weight they have to bear.  I want to spend my life advocating for them - and I pray that one day God gives our family the honor of being even more hands on.  "Send us!" is my daily prayer.

Today, I come to you pretty annoyed, to be quite frank.  Yesterday I, along with many other believers around the globe - I suspect mostly adoptive mommies like myself - spent the day in prayer for orphans around the world, specifically asking God to intervene in the Russian ban, to bring home the babies already promised to their families, and to shake believers, especially in America and other wealthy nations, to their very core.  As a mom of young children myself, I did not get to sit in my prayer closet all day, as I would have loved to do.  No, there were still meals to prepare, errands to run, and snuggles to give.  I did get a few segments of uninterrupted prayer time during the day, which was awesome - but, mostly I prayed constantly as I went through our normal daily activities.

Today though, as I peruse my Facebook I see comments that really just tick me off.  I have a large network of adoptive moms as my FB friends.  Many of them I have yet to meet in person, and I may not meet them until Heaven - but, we are sisters, not only in Christ, but also under the banner of adoption.  Our hearts are broken for these babies all over the world and I suspect that most of us are willing to follow God's call to the ends of the earth to advocate for, serve, and bring them home.

When I see comments along the lines of "Why are you so concerned about children in Russia, when there are starving children in America?" - then I am left almost speechless at the callousness of such a statement.

I said almost speechless - you should not be surprised that I do have a few things to say on the subject.

Here is the deal.  There are orphans and vulnerable children all over the world.  Upwards of 165,000,000 of them.  Way more if you count the ones who live in less than ideal home situations.  Every single one of these precious lives are creations of the Living God.  Every single one of them bear the Imago Dei.  The image of that same God.  They are all precious in his sight.  All.of.them.

That includes the ones in America, the ones in Ghana, Ethiopia, Uganda, Russia, Ukraine, China, Brazil, Cambodia, Guatemala - and any other place on the face of the globe.  He looks down on His creation and the way we treat human life and oh how He must grieve.  How far we have fallen from His original intent.

But, you know what else grieves His heart?  Looking down on His children, those of us who bear His name and are filled with His Holy Spirit - backbiting, pointing fingers, and telling each other what country in the world we "should" adopt from.  One of the pastors at our church has a sermon entitled "Keep Your Nose in Your Own Bag."  The premise of the sermon is that God gives each of us a life, and it is best if we live our own and not nose around in other people's.  If every one of the 2 billion people on earth who claim to know Jesus would live out of their own bag - there would not be an orphan crisis.

When I hear people say that American children are more deserving and those who have adopted internationally should take care of the children "at home," then I always ask them how many foster children or domestically adopted children they have.  You know what the overwhelming answer is?  NONE.  You know why?  Because those of us who have adopted a child, who know the joys and the emotional roller coaster that adoption brings, know that all children are precious and deserving of a family.  We do not care where you travel to bring home your next child - around the corner or around the world.  We only care that you stop talking about it and DO IT!!

God did bring us a son through a domestic adoption and we can not imagine our lives without him.  I love him to the moon and back and his adoption was ALL God.  I intended to do an international adoption and if God wills, I will do an international adoption in the future.  When Patrick came into our lives, it was clearly the will of God for us at that time.  We would not change a thing about it.  However, never once has the thought crossed my mind that he was more "worthy" than my friend's precious children from Ghana, or my other friend's precious girl from China, or my other friend's treasures from Uganda.  Neither are those children more worthy than the three babies other friend's of ours adopted from right here in our home town.

All of these children need and deserve a family.  And no one has the right to imply (or outright say) that any child is more worthy of one than another based on where on earth they live.  It just blows me away that people can be so callous.

I have to say that we have never had anyone make a negative comment about our adopting Patrick - a few people did imply that we should have used the foster system instead of a private adoption.  To them I said, and I will say it again - Patrick's adoption prevented him from ever being in foster care, where he would have surely ended up.  Our precious friends who are foster parents are absolute heroes in my eyes, and one day God may indeed call me to be one too.  I will embrace it.

My point is, that we all have a job to do.  None is more important than the other and we are not behaving in a Christ like manner when we point fingers at each other for fulfilling God's call to the orphan.  Can we not encourage, support, and help each other along this path, which is not always an easy one?  Can we not look at every child as deserving of a family, no matter where they were born.

If you are one of those who has thought (or said) the old phrase, "We need to clean up our own doorstep before we start sweeping someone else's?" - then, I have a piece of advice for you.  Go ahead.  Do it.  Start cleaning up your own doorstep.  Bring American foster children into your home, adopt children domestically, mentor a child at a local Big Brother or Big Sister Club, or invest some other way in the life of a needy American child.  That's fine, great in fact.  But, I can promise you one thing, once you look into the eyes of a vulnerable child - helpless, hurting, and desperate, once you invest your life in the life of one of these innocent ones, and allow God to change your heart, your entire outlook will change. You will realize that it doesn't matter where they are born, what color their skin is, what special needs they have, or what they have been through - ALL that matters is that they need the love of a forever family.  All that matters is that they are beautiful people, with much to offer if given a chance at life.  You will forget that you ever cared what country they were born in.

So, if American children are your calling, then good for you.  Go for it!!  But, allow others to follow God's call on their life, because there are children all over the world with only one need - the need for a mommy and daddy to kiss them goodnight and brothers and sisters to play with.  The need for a real forever family.

Let's stop trying to tell other people what God must "surely" want from them.  God's call on each of our lives is personal.  Just follow the one He places on you.  We will all be a lot better off.