Went for a run to vegas. Saw the BABY. My friends came to Vegas with a suitcase of cash, and are leaving with a life, a story, and an example of Gods intentions and power.
See, there is a mom out there that has a history that is painful, and rather predictable. Especially in Las Vegas. And somehow, she decided to forego killing her child, but stick it out and release this baby to the state in hopes that the baby would have something that even she probably didn't have.
As well there is a couple that have some babies. And yet God is stirring them to go beyond just their stance about "pro-life", and intentionally intervene. And all these factors come together in a special little dance that has really impacted me.
I actually got to hold her... I joked that I have cooked chickens bigger than this baby. She isn't underweight or anything, don't get me wrong. I just forget how little they are. I think that's so they come out better, and also for people to think they are cute to help them continue to take care of them. I didn't ever remember my babies looking that little!
She is little, and cute, just like she should be. And to me she represents the fruit of labor and work and redemption in a practical way that is pretty dramatic. I just want to party, and enjoy the whole thing.
But here is the twist... Underneath all this redemption is a system that I am finding out needs dramatic change. Serious Change. In fact, I would say it might be possible the whole process of adoption might need to be redeemed. I don't know if there is a better word. Here is a fancy attempt at metaphor....
We all walked down the Las Vegas Strip last night. I gorged on food, and navigated moving billboards of naked and seductive women (some men too) which have a lot less pull on me than ever before. We all KNOW it is wrong. But it is so saturating, it actually becomes less sensational quickly. And we stop and do one of my favorite things. We watch the fountains at Bellagio. At night, with the lights. And we wait until we see the softer music ones, where it makes the water look like dancing, and my emotions are all caught up in this. I think it is beautiful, and makes me think about heaven, and God, and creativity....
None of this would be possible without the money involved in gambling, and the parallel opportunities. There simply wouldnt be enough money to create a lake in the middle of the desert, and shoot off water if people werent going to lose money.
Some people think gambling is sin. I dont. I like it. It can be fun. Some people might think shopping is sin. I kind of do at times, especially with what and how and where some of these organizations present themselves, and what they tap into. I definitely think lust is sin, and perpetuating it is going to create incredible grief for people. Some people might think Las Vegas in sinful. I think it is a city. The people, and what they pursue, have been allowed to use it for their own purpose.
And yet out of all this, come these beautiful fountains, and things like the Cirque du Solieil. And communities of immigrants that come to America and work. But it isn’t worth it is it? Wouldn’t we rather have nothing there, because even though there is some beautiful things, the reason they exist is because of the desire and resources of sin, or at least the result of corruption?
I see something similar in the "adoption industry". I haven’t been through the process, and I dont know enough about it.....YET. But just simply watching and reading and hearing, Im sick. Because in my heart, I love the idea of redemption of something out of a bad situation, but the way it is handled is almost similar to the way Las Vegas runs. This whole process runs on money, and its mechanism is to exploit the needs on both ends for redemption, and connection.
I bet others would even have more to say. But I see a system that presents pretty fountains, and we all know that this is better than babies, and that most of the time something bad has happened for a baby to need to be given up. And yet underneath it is a sick and twisted thought process. How come it costs more $$ for a free, Caucasian baby? And that the more racially diverse the baby is, the more it costs compared to babies that are exclusively other than white?
My business mind tells me why. SUPPLY AND DEMAND. And demand creates voids and opportunities for profit centric systems to jump in and manipulate supply. If there is a demand for gambling, and lust, and hedonism, it is a matter of time before someone will jump in and supply it. And as they do, they can coat it with things that misconstrue and distract you even from your own desire for things.
We are actually talking about brokering. We are talking about commodities trading. I see nothing much different from an agency finding a woman distraught and afraid, and either ashamed enough or convicted enough not to want to kill a baby, and brokering her situation to the highest bidder. She/the baby is basically a
future, and the price is negotiable!!!! How can a sale price be negotiable if the there isn’t a profit margin in this?
On the other side is a couple that for a few simple reasons wants to adopt these babies. Usually it is tied to the inability to have biological children and sometimes a conviction.(and soon I believe it will be volumes of people who can, but choose not to. Or, what if "barrenness" occurs in the church? All of a sudden, it isn’t uncommon for Christians to not have biological children. Bet we would think about it as a curse, and I would say what if it is a word from God to fulfill scriptures). So fairly well meaning people engage this process, and are told they need to go through hurdles and agencies and costs. And their ability to pay, and their willingness to sacrifice helps determine what they can get. And I dont have a value placed on drug free, Caucasian, etc... They are all lives and babies. One isnt better than another.
Both sides are caught in a place of need or desire, and both are manipulated for the purpose of making money, while the face of it is presented as this wonderful thing called adoption. And the pro life folks are excited because someone isn’t killing babies, which is GREAT, and yet there is a taste in my heart similar to when I go to Las Vegas.
The metaphor isn’t a great one, but it is me trying to get my head around what is going on.
I think it is time to assault the adoption industry. I would rather have it than not, but the costs, the gymnastics, and the premise of for profit companies brokering babies has got to be brought to an end.
It must be possible to jump into the market and apply similar processes, but with different motives, and therefore different results. When a market exists, and someone is selling the same product for less, with the same quality and delivery, they will erode the market until the market loses its ability to provide profit to anyone not capable of doing business the same way. Is it possible to create a matrix in which adoptions can be done, and only the actual costs are passed on to the buyer? And the supplier is motivated to work with the broker because of ease of business, and the ethos of the broker? How many birth mothers would prefer to work with an agency they KNEW wasn’t making money off them? Do they even KNOW that is happening?
I am going to do some research, and I am going to get some really smart people in the same room, and we are going to talk about this. Prayers are appreciated. There is something afoot.
