Why China?

“We’ve decided to adopt from China?” I’d announce.

“Really! Why?” was usually the standard answer. Then came, “You know there are lots of babies who need good homes right here in the United States.”

I knew. And I’d seen some of their faces on adoption websites. It was gut-wrenching to read about them. The more I investigated the adoption process in the United States, the more I discovered our foster care system is bursting at the seams. There are literally thousands and thousands of kids who need and desperately want a family.

So why would we travel halfway around the globe for a baby?

I’ll admit, it’s a fair question.

I also investigated adoption programs in the Ukraine, Russia, South Korea, and a host of other countries. All with the same faces and stories of the kids I saw on the foster care websites. How could we pick? It was an impossible decision. So my husband and I started to pray about it. And as we prayed, it was clear  to me that when Christ called us to care for the fatherless he did not mean just those in the United States. He meant all children.

So I would say why not China? Why not Ethiopia, Haiti, South Korea, or the United States? Why not Russia or the Ukraine? It doesn’t matter what their birth circumstances are, a kid is a kid, no matter where they are born. Christians should be less concerned about where families chose to adopt from and more concerned and committed to caring for orphans.

There are thousands, dare I say millions, of children around the globe who desperately need a loving family. Too many die while they wait for a family. In legitimate adoptions, the birth family makes the painful decision to place the child for adoption. At the same time, many adoptive families, like mine, prayerfully considered which program to pursue.

We didn’t accidentally stumble across our daughter. I firmly believe that God knew she would be part of our family from the beginning of time.

So why did we choose China? The answer is simple: Because when God called us to get our daughter, that’s where she was. And we went.

(Amy has written children’s books, a teen magazine column, interviews, and adoption applications. She is the proud mother to two boys who are 7 and 4.  Her latest adventure led her to Beijing, China, with her husband Jonathan where they met their newest addition to the family, a two year old little girl.  You can read about her life, faith, and the ups, downs, and joys of motherhood at www.1001tears.blogspot.com.  Read her pervious TC post about the cost of adoption here.)