tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15073302.post3511437526467340875..comments2023-03-25T02:10:11.782-06:00Comments on strangerlands: seeking a homeland: Please adopt.Jenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04584320412257836824noreply@blogger.comBlogger8125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15073302.post-39486835328352364102007-10-15T07:23:00.000-06:002007-10-15T07:23:00.000-06:00Indeed, Shannon, it's perhaps more troubling that ...Indeed, Shannon, it's perhaps more troubling that the ingenuity and determination are being praised so extremely. The claim is almost "if only we all had so much money, we could also do such heroic things"!<BR/><BR/>As for Piper, yes, beautiful and wonderful. He wrote some other bits about the loss of his granddaughter too--search around the <A HREF="http://www.desiringgod.org" REL="nofollow">DG website</A> for more. Sobering and worshipful.<BR/><BR/>And Rachel, yes, I missed seeing you too. Dern kids :) Next time, eh? Make it soon!Jenhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04584320412257836824noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15073302.post-87362723542021348182007-10-14T20:38:00.000-06:002007-10-14T20:38:00.000-06:00thank you for sharing...i am so sorry we missed se...thank you for sharing...i am so sorry we missed seeing your family last week when we were in town...the kids were sick on sunday so we missed church...i hope we will be back soonAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15073302.post-54360399143860619332007-10-11T20:58:00.000-06:002007-10-11T20:58:00.000-06:00I saw an article that she (Stewart) did in a magaz...I saw an article that she (Stewart) did in a magazine somewhere this week (can't remember which), and I was struck by her selfish, whiny attitude. We've been thinking a lot lately about what it looks like to live generously, and her pursuit seems such the opposite of generosity. Obviously she's not working from a Christian worldview, but it's still difficult to see in action, and to see heralded as a "way to stick to your convictions" kinda thing. <BR/><BR/>I hadn't seen that from Piper about his granddaugter...what a heartbreak. Love his thoughts, as usual.Shannonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01586661777030815520noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15073302.post-65720556063269317442007-10-10T14:23:00.000-06:002007-10-10T14:23:00.000-06:00Nice balance there, Sic. Much more concisely put ...Nice balance there, Sic. Much more concisely put than my long bit.<BR/><BR/>Medical school leaves you enough time to watch Oprah, eh? Just the commercials, though :)Jenhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04584320412257836824noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15073302.post-33709891336533927072007-10-10T10:58:00.000-06:002007-10-10T10:58:00.000-06:00I swear we must be on the same existential plane o...I swear we must be on the same existential plane or something. I actually found out about that a few days ago when, absent-mindedly, I turned on Oprah to see her and her audience self-assuredly condemning parents for some interminable reason. That pissed me off, but then I saw the advert for the next Oprah, which was the one you saw, and I was heart-broken as well. It's hard to imagine that our culture is so perverse, but it truly is.<BR/><BR/>That being said, I can't even imagine what it is like to be a woman who can't conceive, I'm sure it must be devastating. I just think that whole oprah deal was insane.My Breathments Offhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11829473849684369166noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15073302.post-43262174858780856702007-10-10T10:52:00.000-06:002007-10-10T10:52:00.000-06:00This comment has been removed by the author.My Breathments Offhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11829473849684369166noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15073302.post-79567973165991384262007-10-10T09:08:00.000-06:002007-10-10T09:08:00.000-06:00Indeed, Brent--cost is a huge factor, but fear is ...Indeed, Brent--cost is a huge factor, but fear is a bigger one. Of course, finances are not the issue for the folks featured on Oprah, who have all spent on infertility at least as much money as an adoption would cost; this is the main prod for my sadness.<BR/><BR/>But fear is absolutely huge, and not to be simply dismissed, so thanks for bringing it up. It's infinitely easier, no matter what the financial cost, to raise your own child, or so I hear. And raising children is never an easy thing, so I wouldn't begin to say that not adopting means you're some lesser person or whatever. Parenthood itself entails trials, and they are surely magnified when the child did not come from your own loins, as it were.<BR/><BR/>No doubt, it is hard to swallow a doctor's decree that you cannot have children of your own. I do not mean to minimize that, knowing personally the joy such birthing brings. And no doubt, it is difficult to raise a child that you did not conceive. <BR/><BR/>But we humans are called to many difficult things, and our Creator and Redeemer stand ready to equip us for them. I might be so bold to argue that a closed womb--and maybe an open womb too--<B>is</B> a divine invitation to another kind of parenthood. Not through IVF or other costly technologies, but through adoption.<BR/><BR/>My comment here is becoming lengthy enough to serve as another post, so I'll close by saying that I would not impose adoption on any couple, or think that anyone has an obligation to adopt. Rather, I want to implore us all with great urgency to love orphans (and others) with wide open hearts. I would urge us all to practice extreme hospitality, as described more broadly by Amy Laura Hall in "<A HREF="http://www.religion-online.org/showarticle.asp?title=2706" REL="nofollow">Making Prental Choices</A>".<BR/><BR/>Thanks again, Brent, for your comment.Jenhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04584320412257836824noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15073302.post-81347359583498564022007-10-10T06:43:00.000-06:002007-10-10T06:43:00.000-06:00An impassioned yet rational appeal... What do you ...An impassioned yet rational appeal... What do you think are the barriers to adoption for most people? Seems like cost is one, but also the fear of the unknown is another biggie. I think adoption involves a very strong faith that all things work together for the good... THX<BR/><BR/>BrentBrenthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01379904614908562271noreply@blogger.com