Q&A Follow Up

Thanks to everyone who responded to my Q&A Blog. I appreciate all of the encouragement that I received from your replies. Nathan and I are convinced that it is God's will for us to start a family through adoption.

Their are two questions that came from the comments. The first is easy, "How did you decide on South Korea?" The second question is a little more complicated, "Is it right for Christians to adopt children, particularly taking them away from their country of origin?" While the second question wasn't asked directly, it was implied. In my estimation, it is really asking "Can it truly be God's will for you and Nathan to adopt?" I will attempt to answer both questions in this post.

First, let me say this. I am thankful for the comments on this blog. It lets me know that people are actually interested in what Nathan and I are doing. I may not always agree with a particular post, but I feel strongly that everyone has a right to their opinion and they are free to express it here on my blog. All are welcome!

Question #1 - How did you decide on South Korea? (see post from Heather for specific question)

This is a great question and I would say that it was both a drawing to South Korea specifically and circumstances that led us to decide on South Korea.

Let me explain...

Nathan has always felt some sort of draw to adopt from South Korea. My initial feelings were to adopt from a Latin American country. I think that my feelings were primarily related to my mission trips to Honduras.

One of the first things that comes up when you speak with an agency either by phone or at a pre-adoption meeting is "What country are you interested in?" At that point for us, we were thinking that we didn't really care, we just want a baby! As you begin to weed through all the different countries and their qualifications, you quickly find one that is a fit for you. For example, Kazakhstan seemed appealing to us, we met all of the qualifications, then we found out that there is a required 45 day in country visit. This is almost impossible for us to do and still keep our jobs!

For us, South Korea was a great fit. I actually deferred to Nathan on this point, he felt strongly about South Korea and I didn't feel as strong as he did about any other country that interested me. Now I am glad that I deferred to his judgment because Guatemala, a county that I was interested in, is having a lot of problems and we would have been in the big middle of it!

Let me also say that we also feel a strong call to adopt from China (another post for another day). I will elaborate on that in the future. Our plan (for now, subject to change) is to adopt our second child from China.

If we had a ton of money, our home would be filled with lots of children with lots of different ethnic backgrounds. Recently I read a quote that seemed to describe me very well "My capacity to love a child is not based on whether or not they carry my genes."

Question #2 "Is is right for Christians to adopt children, particularly taking them away from their country of origin?"

For this answer I will be taking my answers primarily from information I have read from the Carolina Hope Adoption Blog. This a great website for dealing with the theological issues related to adoption. I wish I could better articulate theological issues...I will give a shot at explaining it as I understand it, but if you are interested, again, I suggest you read the Carolina Hope Adoption Blog (CHAB).

All throughout the Bible we see people who are adopted or raised by someone other than their biological parent. Some well known examples are Moses, Samuel and Jesus (who had a step father). Moses and Samuel both would have been raised in a culture or country that wasn't their culture or country of their origin.

In addition, the New Testament is filled with language about how God adopts us into His family and gives us all the rights and privileges that His Son Jesus has. It is amazing to think that we actually become joint heirs with Jesus. God cherishes us and choses to love us, His children.

As far as transracial adoption goes, I love what Dr. Dave Garner from Westminister Theological Seminary wrote in a recent interview with CHAB "...because all of us are descendants of Adam, we are actually all one race. Language, cultural, or ethnic distinctions do not trump the central truth of our common heritage. The sons of Adam are alone those who become the sons of God in Christ."

The cost of any adoption - domestic or international - is high both financially and personally. One way that we "balance out" this cost is when we think of the great cost that God went to for us to be adopted into His family - the life of His Son.

I know this was long, but I have had it on my heart for sometime and I wanted to share. Thanks again to all of you who care enough about us and our family to follow our journey.

Have a great week.