sethbarnes Nov 22, 2007 7:00 PM

The dying room

We were sitting with Dave S. in downtown Hong Kong last week when Dave said something so unsettling I had to stop him and ask him for an explanation. ...

Subscribe


We were sitting with Dave S. in downtown Hong Kong last week when Dave said something so unsettling I had to stop him and ask him for an explanation.

"When we adopted our daughter from one of the thousands of orphanages in C---- (a large Asian country), she was one of the oldest orphans to come out.

"When I asked how many of them graduate out as teenagers they told me, none do. They told me, 'That's why we have a dying room.'"

A dying room - a room where love and nutrition-starved orphans go to end their days.

The words just landed in my spirit with a thud. Later I checked the internet and found an expose (no longer on line) showing the dying rooms of C---- - 21 million babies born a year and the unwanted have to die somewhere.

In a world so full of opportunity and resources, in a faith so filled with hope and love, how is it that dying rooms exist? How is it that in America a couple can spend $30,000 trying to adopt a child when orphans in C---- are sent to a room to die?

How is it that we preoccupy ourselves in America with lowering our golf handicaps when situations like this exist?

When we pray "Thy kingdom come," I think one of the ways God responds is, "Help get rid of the need for dying rooms." We can adopt, we can go, and we can give. We don't have to live out our days turning a blind eye to this kind of pain.

Comments


Comment created and will be displayed once approved.

Related Blogs

Looking for God in a messy situation

Looking for God in a messy situation

I had my 12 Angry Men moment this past week. Every five years I seem to get a ju...

By sethbarnes
How Should Christians Respond to Terrorists in Places Like Istanbul?

How Should Christians Respond to Terrorists in Places Like Istanbul?

Terrorists are showing up with new ways to fill us with fear every day. Bombs ...

By sethbarnes
The necessary journey to brokenness

The necessary journey to brokenness

So many of us are stuck in ruts in life, places where we're trapped by past ex...

By sethbarnes

Related Races (3)

South Africa | Semesters | June 2026

South Africa | Semesters | June 2026

Nepal | Alumni | August 2026

Nepal | Alumni | August 2026

Spain | Alumni | June 2026

Spain | Alumni | June 2026

Next article

Talking Jesus doll - product of a consumeristic society?

AI Generated Content

Here's a suggested caption you can copy and tweak.