 Christian couples without children of their own and even older single women with strong maternal disposition who are financially stable should be encouraged to adopt children.
The main concern for the adoptive parents is that the child may one day discover that he is an adopted child and may face an identity crisis. However, this need not be the case if the child is loved, cherished and brought up as if he was the natural born child.
Where there is no discrimination in treatment between a child of the marriage and the adopted child, the adopted child will feel secure, loved and accepted in the family. In many instances the fear that the adopted child will trace the point of forsaking his adoptive parents is unfounded.
In fact it would be advisable to let the child know (when he is at an age to understand) that he is a special child, hand-picked, chosen and loved by mum and dad so much so that they chose to adopt him. To my mind this voluntary disclosure would be less traumatic for the child than for him to discover later on “by accident” that he is adopted.
Honesty and transparency in dealing with the issue at the outset will probably win the respect and devotion of the adopted child. There is no need to cover up. Children are innately sensitive and they know when they are loved and cherished by their adoptive parents and treated as if they were natural born.
There are orphans, abused and unwanted children out there who long to grow up in a wholesome, warm and loving family environment.
Childless couples and mature single women who love the Lord and who have the means of support are in an ideal position to lavish their love, care and nurture on these otherwise neglected children. It is a long-term investment in these young lives that will surely reap rewards in eternity.
For what greater legacy can a Christian parent leave behind than children that love, follow and serve the true and living God.
Vicky is a practising lawyer, deaconess and Vice-Chairman of Interserve Malaysia. In the next issue, she will talk about the legal procedures involved in adoption. Her story below clearly shows the importance of knowing the laws and abiding by them.
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