The Joy of ADOPTION from Chestnuthill – A Christian Understanding

Chestnuthill Township family shares joys of adoption. This news article is an inspiring piece for anyone thinking about adoption.

EFFORT — Five-year-old Talulah loves playing hide and seek, but mostly hides behind her family when strangers come to visit her Chestnuthill Township home.Adoptive parents Steve and Erica Benzkofer remember when they took 3-month-old Talulah in as their foster child in 2012.”She was a dainty little thing,” Steve Benzkofer said. “She was our K-Mart baby.”This is because the Benzkofers received a voucher from Monroe County Children And Youth Services to shop for Talulah at K-Mart when the

Read the Benzkofer’s story HERE

Source: Chestnuthill Township family shares joys of adoption

What are the Joys of Adoption?

Adoption is the process by which a person who does not belong to a given family is formally brought into it and made a full, legal family member with the rights and responsibilities of that position. The practice of adoption was not common among the Jews, but was more widespread in the Greek and Roman world. The apostle Paul used the term to illustrate the truth that believers have been given the status of “sonship” in the heavenly family; they can call God “Father.” Adoption makes it clear that our sonship is conferred on us, in distinction from Christ’s, which is inherent. (The Shaw Pocket Bible Handbook, Walter A. Elwell, Editor, p. 346)

Paul now draws application from his previous discussion that each believer has a responsibility to live each day in the control and power of the Holy Spirit. It is not enough for us to have the Spirit; the Spirit must have us. Furthermore each Christian is to refuse to follow the inclinations and desires of his sin nature. The result of a sinful manner of life is death (v. 13). This does not mean that a believer who sins will face eternal death in hell, but instead that he will not enjoy his spiritual life.

How do We Come into God’s Family?

We come into God’s family by Spiritual birth. But the instant we are born into the family, God adopts us and gives us the position of an adult son. A baby cannot speak, walk, make decisions, or write checks on the family bank account. However, the Christian can do all of these the moment he is born again. In New Testament times, adopted sons enjoyed the same privileges as natural born sons. As children inherit their parents’ estates, each child is an heir, and the children together are co heirs. In the same way, Christians are God’s children, and they are heirs and co heirs with Christ.

Three characteristics of those who are adopted into the family of God.

1. They are led by the Spirit (v. 14). – It is the Holy Spirit who places the believer as an adult into the family of God.

2. They are loved by the Father (vv. 15,16). – Through the miracle of regeneration, we are brought into the closet intimacy with the Father.

3. They are lifted by the Son (v. 17). – Adoption into the family of God involves being lifted by Christ so that we can share both His suffering and His glory.

APPLICATION:

How do I put to death the wrong things I do in my body? Do my thoughts and the way I spend my time match up to what I believe God wants me to do with my life? Why or why not?

National Adoption Awareness Month

November is national Adoption Awareness Month and all over the US, little children are being adopted into their forever homes! National Adoption day is the Saturday before Thanksgiving so this year it will be on November 17th. Mass adoptions take place all over the US on that day and many orphans and children who have been placed in foster care due to neglect or abuse will finally have a mommy and a daddy who will be there for them.

Manly Training Ministries understands the need for men to grow into becoming the Fathers that we  were created to be and if adoption is or has been a part of your life or if you may be contemplating the possibility of adoption, The next 16 days will encourage you. Please share with your friends and family whose lives have been transformed through adoption.

My Friend David Lafferty from Million mile Secrets has some great information in an article he published recently. Check it out at :  The Ultimate Guide to Adoption Travel for Expecting Parents

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Eduardo Quintana is also featured as an author on Lightworkers Media