As I sit here I am rocked to my core. Shocked. Astounded. A couple months ago I sent an email to a friend, a very close friend, that I hadn’t talked to in over a year. Yes, I know, that sounds odd. How could I let a year go by and not talk to a close friend? We’ve been friends since before either of us had kids…so…over 12 years. They moved away about 10 years...
I was thrilled to read that THIS month’s Katelyn’s Fund support meeting is on lifebooks. This is something I have dabbled with now since we brought our first daughter home almost 5 years ago now. I have never made a "true" lifebook though, but still want to! For Chloe I made two albums when we got home – one was of all of the little girls in our travel group – there were 11 adopted out of the same orphanage,...
Because we are Christians, the Christmas season (that is, from approximately Thanksgiving through New Year’s Day) is one in which our family is particularly focused on Jesus. Traditions my husband and I (both raised in believing families) experienced as children included attending Christmas Eve candlelight service, giving gifts in celebration of Christ’s birth, and gathering with family to rejoice not only in the gift of earthly life but also in the promise of life eternal through Christ. Our youngest son was...
Chapter 6 – Embracing Our True Selves Summary Every day we all – consciously or unconsciously – receive false messages that attempt to define us and tell us who we are. As these messages penetrate our heart, we develop a false self-identity that influences how we view others and ourselves. (74) God wants to replace those false words with the truth about who we are. We are...
Chapter 5 – How Worship Builds Bridges Summary In this chapter, the authors share a story about a “concert of prayer” event in downtown Chicago. More than 1,200 people gathered. Eleven different denominations were represented as well as various races, including African American, Caucasian, Latino, Native American, Asian, and many others. This group held two things in common: “a commitment to the lordship of Christ and a dedication to reach the city with the gospel.” (59)
It is the wee hours of the morning and I have been evicted from my bed by my son, who at first sneaks in and cuddles with me, then slowly pushes me off towards the edge of the bed. After a while of fighting this as well as being spurned on by the whines of my ravenous dachshund, I reluctantly get up and start my day. Now, as I...
As a parent, I am always on the lookout for wonderful parenting resources. As an adoptive parent, I am on the lookout even more so! I read almost any book written on adoption – I just want to give myself all the preparation I can for those upcoming years when our children will begin to ask questions that are harder to answer. So when I found this article online – I felt it was one that other adoptive parents might bookmark just like...
Before our adoption, I thought I already knew how to successfully create a biracial family through adoption. My heart was in the "right place." I was perplexed at the vast amount of adoption training our agency required. For example: How many close friends do you have that are of a minority race? How many role models within your child’s culture can you identify in your community? Somewhere near the middle of the training, I began to understand: Not because of my faults, but through circumstance, I...
Chapter 4 – A New Model Summary In this chapter the authors present two primary models that have been used for racial reconciliation up through the present, and then present their own model. Relational or Interpersonal Model: “Make a friend with someone from another race or ethnicity, and you will bring about social change through friendship, one life at a time.” (47) Strengths: a) it is feasible b) it is “extremely motivating for people who are newly interested in...
Chapter 3 – A Better Way Summary This chapter begins by describing a time when the 2 authors were working together in preparation to teach a seminar on the book of Acts. They struggled particularly with Acts 2. McNeil noted the multiethnic dimensions stating “it was not by accident that God revealed his Spirit and proclaimed the gospel to Jewish converts who were from many nations and spoke many different languages.” (32) While Richardson felt...
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