Credit where credit is due

I don't want to be a guy who just criticizes the church, because the church is the bride of Christ, and there are many things evangelical churches are doing well. I hit on that in another post, but I've recently noticed another one (and I may notice a lot more - as an evangelical, I'm probably one of the last people to notice the characteristics of evangelicalism, good or bad).

Evangelicals are doing a great job recently (and it mostly just started recently) carrying out part A of James 1:27, which says, "Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world." As far as being polluted by the world, we've got some wins and some losses, but there's been a real drive recently in evangelical churches to adopt, and that's a great thing. Two quick examples, though I'm sure there are countless ones out there: Recently, a couple from seminary I'm facebook friends with adopted a son, and I've never seen something so "liked" as their first picture together - it beat out the typical popular person's engagement, wedding or new baby picture by about a factor of five. Another example: the church I attend has a fund specifically to help couples who want to adopt but can't afford it. The fund has money in it, and the church holds events to benefit that fund (and that's not the only adoption-focused thing they do).

Of course, adoption ought to be something Christians are totally "in to", because we've benefited so much from adoption ourselves. Paul says in Ephesians 1:5-6, "In love he predestined us for adoption to sonship through Jesus Christ, in accordance with his pleasure and will - to the praise of his glorious grace, which he has freely given us in the One he loves." Pretty cool what God has done for us, through the cross of Christ, and when we adopt, it presents a picture of his loving kindness to those we know. So it ought to be a Christian thing. But it is a Christian thing now, and that's great.

Evangelicalism has never been hostile to adoption, that I've been aware of, but it's a great thing to see it actively promoted and cheered on the way it is today. I don't know if there's a cause that started it other than the Bible and the leading of the Holy Spirit - seems like I read somewhere Focus on the Family was really trying to advocate it, or it might just have been God moving among his people, but either way, it's another good thing about evangelicalism, which brings us to 8 2/3.