The Spirit of Adoption by Randy Bohlender

Author:Randy Bohlender [Kelsey Bohlender, Randy]
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 978-0-7684-8480-9
Publisher: Destiny Image, Inc.

EIGHT

Myths about Adoption

Our season in Washington, DC during most of 2005 was an incredibly formative time for us. As we stood in front of the Supreme Court, God shared a prophetic strategy that would be a tangible way for families across the nation to get involved and put feet to their prayers: to adopt and care for the very ones they were praying for.

It seemed overwhelming at first. We knew little about adoption and what little we did know was inaccurate. Answering the call to adopt felt a little like jumping off a cliff. Even saying it out loud seemed like a holy commitment, one that could not be rescinded. It’s wisdom to think before you jump…but sometimes, it’s also wisdom to go ahead and jump. We jumped in with both feet and soon found that adoption is filled with miraculous activity, mundane paperwork, and myths. We were astounded to watch the myths begin to shatter as we learned more.

The myths surrounding adoption are developed in a number of ways. Most often, someone hears of someone else’s unusual experience and retells the story as if it’s the norm. Other myths are propagated by profiteers in the adoption industry. There are thousands of godly people working to help adoptive families, but as in any other area where there is much emotion and finances at stake (medical care, insurance, funeral homes) there are also people who are in the business to make money. Even so, rarely do these people flat-out lie, but they often exclude a portion of the truth to make their help seem more valuable than it really is.

Other times, myths are simply propagated by ignorance. People cannot be blamed for what they do not know, but what they don’t know often holds them back.

Our experience in adoption exposed a number of beliefs that are wrong or misleading. These myths need to be countered with the truth at every opportunity.

Myth #1 There are no babies to adopt in the US

If the topic of adoption is raised in a group, invariably someone will say, “We want to adopt internationally because we want an infant, and there are no infants available in the United States.” Understand that we wholeheartedly support international adoption. The United States offers opportunity like no other country on earth and any child who can be rescued from an orphanage in Ethiopia, Ukraine, or a host of other nations, will be blessed as will the family who welcomes them. That said, international adoption should be considered, but not simply as an easy alternative to domestic adoption. It is not intrinsically easy. International adoption requires the same amount of paperwork as a domestic adoption does, and often more, along with the additional difficulty of navigating cultural and language barriers.

The idea that there are no babies in the US often comes from the story of a cousin or distant friend who had to wait an extended time to adopt a baby. There are multiple reasons why an adoption may take an inordinate time or perhaps never happen at all.

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