An Adoption Story

World Magazine contains a great story about the adoption of Michael Oher of the Baltimore Ravens (www.worldmag.com/articles/16080).


Because of his adoption, Michael Oher moved from begging for food on the streets of Memphis as a teenager to a potential rookie of the year in the National Football League. His story challenges conventional wisdom about the potential of inner-city kids, the willingness of wealthy people to get involved personally in the lives of the poor, and the potential of adopting older children.

It's an inspiring true story of love and kindness.

Jail Ministry, Old School Style

I am always looking for positive African American male role models, because I want Christopher to grow up with a vision of what a good black man looks like. I had not thought about looking in a jail cell...until now. At www.worldmag.com/articles/15341, I read the story of California minister Walter Hoye. Mr. Hoye went to jail nearly a month and a half ago for trying to offer an alternative to people who were on their way to abort their children. While in jail, he became a minister to the inmates. He serves as an excellent example of faith, courage, and compassion. If Christopher (or Janet or I) ends up in jail, I hope it is for similar reasons and with similar results.

Ministries to the Needy Contest

World Magazine, an evangelical Christian news magazine, has announced a contest for ministries to the needy (www.worldmag.com/articles/15246). Since it's my favorite news magazine and the winner will receive an year-long subscription extension (and the ministry will be featured in the magazine), I entered the Contact Church of Christ in the contest this evening. This is the body of the e-mail I sent to the magazine tonight:

"The Contact Church of Christ was established 7 years ago specifically to serve the urban poor in Tulsa, Oklahoma. A few of its ministries include:

"1. The Contact Recovery House. The recovery house has been set up to help men overcome their addictions through providing housing, 12 step meetings, and the study of God's word. All participants save 20% of their income until their departure. The Bible studies focus on developing men of integrity as unbelievers are offered an opportunity to know salvation through Christ and believers are offered an opportunity to grow in their faith.

"2. The Contact Life Ministry. The Contact Life ministry is a pro-life ministry serving the needs of pregnant girls and women in poverty. The new mothers enter a program to learn parenting skills. They learn about prenatal care, fetal development, bonding with their babies, the importance of touch, newborn care, and good parent-child relationship skills. As they complete their assignments, the new mothers earn points which they can redeem for baby furniture, baby and maternity clothes, toys, diapers, formula, and other necessities. The goal is for each new mother to build a relationship with their teacher as they learn how to make good choices for themselves and their children.

"3. Panthers for Christ. In 2005, the Contact Church 'adopted' Clinton Middle School. At that time, the school was on the state's 'at risk' list as a failing school. Every Wednesday during the school year, members of the Contact Church hold a club meeting for the Panthers for Christ club at the middle school in which students are given donuts and juice, a short Bible lesson, and an opportunity to talk with church members about their lives and concerns. Since adopting the school a few years ago, Clinton Middle School had been removed from the 'at risk' list. The principal credited the Panthers for Christ and the Contact Church of Christ for helping to change the atmosphere of the school in a positive way."

I would love to see the Contact Church featured in World Magazine. Hopefully, the editors will be interested in the urban ministry. (By the way, Contact Church staff members who are reading this blog need to be prepared to receive a phone call or an e-mail just in case they are interested.)

Pro-Life Articles

"For you created my inmost being;
you knit me together in my mother's womb.
I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made;
your works are wonderful,
I know that full well" (Psalm 139:13-14).

World Magazine contains several excellent articles about the pro-life movement in its current issue.

An article about the American pro-life movement of the 19th century can be found at www.worldmag.com/articles/14857. (This was an interesting piece of history which is generally unknown, even in pro-life circles.)

About 15 years ago, the pro-life movement made a conscience shift in its strategy. As a result, the abortion rate in the United States has declined nearly 25%. The story can be read at www.worldmag.com/articles/14862.

A disproportionate number of African American babies die by abortion each year. In recent years, a number of black leaders have become aware of this tragedy. They have begun to work to overcome the problem. The story can be found at www.worldmag.com/articles/14858.

More articles may be found on the magazine's home page. Janet and Christopher have given me a subscription to the magazine as a gift for the past two Father's Days. I would recommend it to anyone who wants a great news magazine from a Christian perspective.

Ideas for Christians Who Want to Help Orphans

"Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world" (James 1:27).

World Magazine contains an interesting article this week about churches that provide matching funds and no-interest loans to families who want to adopt. It may be read at www.worldmag.com/articles/14558.

Jenna Marie Howard of World Orphans left a comment on my blog this afternoon at http://adisciplesthoughts.blogspot.com/2008/09/influencing-powerful-on-behalf-of-weak.html. She works for a group that helps churches provide homes for orphans in countries that have been devastated by the AIDS crisis, famine, war or other factors that have left the communities with large numbers of orphans. Churches may be interested in using the services of World Orphans at http://www.worldorphans.org/.

Finally, I can recommend Christian Services of Oklahoma (http://www.christian-adoption.org/) for families wanting to adopt children. The cost is about half the normal cost of an adoption because Christians from Churches of Christ donate enough money to keep expenses down. We used Christian Services of Oklahoma during our adoption process.

Thanks for reading!

A Black Man's Dilemma

World Magazine, my favorite news magazine, has a good article about Clenard Childress, a black Baptist pastor in New Jersey who has incorporated pro-life convictions into his advocacy of social justice.

According to the article, "Today, hundreds of thousands of black babies are aborted each year. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, almost one in every two African-American pregnancies ends in abortion. According to the Allen Guttmacher Institute, African-American women are nearly five times more likely than non-Hispanic white women to have an abortion."

Whenever I read such statistics, I'm thankful to God for the courage of Christopher's birthmother. She mentioned to us at the hospital that she was making an unpopular decision.

The article may be read at www.worldmag.com/articles/14473.

Abortion and Urban Ministry

The World Magazine blog had an interesting post about abortion and urban ministry this week at http://online.worldmag.com/2008/09/24/abortion-rate-at-30-year-low/. The post emphasizes the need to reach "da hood" and "the trailer park" in efforts to reduce the abortion rate. (Just a side comment: Having grown up in a trailer park, I did not even realize at the time that people might look down on me for where I lived.)

At the Contact Church, Mary Lasarsky leads a great ministry for pregnant girls and young women as a part of the urban ministry. More information can be found at www.contactchurch.net/contact_life. She has been making a difference for years now.

Neighbors

In the latest issue of World Magazine, Marvin Olasky has written a good piece about how conservative Christianity can make us better voters by teaching the need to love our neighbors as we love ourselves (http://www.worldmag.com/articles/13719). These are my favorite paragraphs:

"Churches and Christian schools that teach us to love our neighbors can grow better voters. They should teach that expansive, non-defensive Christianity has been the outstanding vehicle in human history for increasing the liberty of those seen as subhuman until Christians began viewing them as neighbors: the poor, the sick, the sexually exploited; racial, ethnic, and religious minorities; the not-yet-born and the declining but not-yet-dead."

"Like or dislike his politics, it was good that Barack Obama could win in Iowa, where few African-Americans live. Like or dislike the Clintons, it's shameful that they have fought back by playing racial cards. While recognizing the need to control our borders, we should be sad to see some GOP candidates playing the immigration card."

Pro-Life Progress in Hollywood

"Thank you for making me so wonderfully complex!
Your workmanship is marvelous---how well I know it.
You watched me as I was being formed in utter seclusion,
as I was woven together in the dark of the womb.
You saw me before I was born. Every day of my life was recorded in your book.
Every moment was laid out before a single day had passed" (Psalm 139:14-16, NLT).

World Magazine contains an excellent article about a shift in Hollywood concerning abortion and the pro-life perspective (see http://www.worldmag.com/articles/13634?CFID=4524769&CFTOKEN=99698648). While some movies and television shows are embracing pro-life ethics, others are respecting the pro-life position while not entirely embracing it. This is a major change. A few years ago, it would have been unthinkable to respect pro-life values.

One reason for the positive changes: the pro-life position has come to be seen as heroic and sexy. As the article states, "Abortion is not only unarguably un-sexy, but also un-heroic. And without sex and heroes, Hollywood would have few bankable stories to tell...'To make a movie on abortion is just not sexy,' Gonzales said. 'To hear Meg Ryan, for example, say at a party, 'Oh, I really want to do this abortion movie'---people would just kind of shriek inside. They kind of shudder.'" Selfish choices do not make heroes. Without heroes, an audience finds it difficult to bond with movie characters. We like heroes.

Many of the movies center on heroines who choose life for their pre-born children. This is totally appropriate. Our son Christopher's birthmother is a heroine. We should admire such women.

Another reason for the positive changes: a new generation has arisen. The younger generation of filmmakers has seen its siblings aborted and it is not sympathetic. The article continues,

"At a Feminists for Life event at UCLA, keynote speaker and actress Patricia Heaton asked the crowd of about 100 how many were pro-life and how many were pro-choice. A show of hands revealed a mixed group, but heavy on pro-life views. Heaton then asked a pro-life member of the audience to explain why she held that view.

"'I don't want to judge my parents because they did what was right for them,' said one young woman. 'But I've grown up knowing that they aborted two of my siblings. I've grown up my whole life wondering if they were glad they kept me'...'Gen-X and Millennial filmmakers understand that an abortion most often means mom just didn't want to be inconvenienced, in the same way she just didn't want to stay married to dad'."

It's good to see the changes in Hollywood.

National Adoption Month 2007

"Rescue the perishing;
don't hesitate to step in and help.
If you say, 'Hey, that's none of my business,'
will that get you off the hook?
Someone is watching you closely, you know---
Someone not impressed with weak excuses" (Proverbs 24:11-12, The Message).

Since this is National Adoption Month in the USA, I hope to be able to link to several articles with adoption themes during November. I'm sure it is no secret that I love being an adoptive father, and that I would love for others to enjoy such a blessing, too.

In this week's edition of World Magazine, Clint Rainey has written an excellent article about several families in central Texas who have adopted orphans from around the world. His article is titled, "Twelve is not Enough." It may be read at http://www.worldmag.com/articles/13466?CFID=4524769&CFTOKEN=99698648.

I was especially impressed with members of the Church of Christ in Hearne, Texas, who adopted several Ethiopian orphans when others turned away from helping those children in need. The members of that church have honored Christ in their faith, attitudes, and actions.

Tony Dungy: A Good Role Model

"Praise the LORD! How blessed is the man who fears the LORD, who greatly delights in His commandments. His descendants will be mighty on earth; the generation of the upright will be blessed" (Psalm 112:1-2, NASB).

Indianapolis Colts head coach Tony Dungy has turned me into a Colts fan. I heard him interviewed on the radio program FamilyLife Today a few years ago, and I have admired his work and life ever since. He comes across as a sincere, godly, and solid family man.

About a year and a half ago, he and his family suffered an unimaginable tragedy when his oldest son committed suicide. During the emotional turmoil, his inner strength (which is based on his faith in Christ) helped him to lead the rest of his family through those difficult days. I heard a recording of Coach Dungy addressing a prayer breakfast before the Super Bowl just a few weeks later, in which he talked about what he had learned from his children. It was a very moving speech, revealing a very caring father who was dealing with very difficult circumstances.

Last season, he became the first black head coach to lead his team to a victory in the Super Bowl.

Recently, I became a subscriber to World Magazine, a weekly news magazine that seeks to approach current events from a biblical worldview. In this week's issue, the magazine contains an excellent article about Tony Dungy (see http://www.worldmag.com/articles/13057). I would like to share a few quotes.

"Dungy used the big national platform to draw attention to his faith, even as he was being heralded as the first African-American coach to win a Super Bowl. He didn't run from the racial side of the story, but he was quick to draw attention to the fact that he and Bears coach Lovie Smith were not only African-Americans but also Christians who sought to live out their faith in football."

"Yet he'll use his influence for faith-based causes. He avoids commercial endorsements to keep a focus on his family message. He and his wife Lauren have quietly adopted children to blend with their birth children. He was scolded after the Super Bowl by advocates of same-sex marriage for accepting a fatherhood award from the Indiana Family Institute, which was supporting a marriage amendment. He came back with a ringing endorsement of the amendment and family values."

"Those close to the coach attest that his faith helps him not only with fatherhood but also with coaching. 'The inspiring thing about Tony Dungy's story is that good guys do finish first,' says Colts owner (Jim) Irsay. 'You do not have to compromise your core values to win and to be competitive.' Irsay sees Dungy as humble and quiet, yet not weak. 'A humble person can be strong and disciplined and tough and all those things you need to be,' Irsay said."

I understand that Coach Dungy's autobiography is scheduled to be available sometime this summer. I plan on reading and reviewing it on my blog.

You may not be able to read the entire story online without subscribing to World Magazine. A subscription is worth the price, though. It is an outstanding magazine.