Mix In A Lot of Faith

“A family without a commitment to the God of the Bible has no hope of stemming the tide of cultural onslaught. If we mix a little biblical truth, a little secular psychology, a little romance novel ideology, and a little eastern mysticism, we will get a deadly mixture of lies. Unfortunately, this is what many Christian families do . . . If we are to experience multigenerational faithfulness we must come to a place where we throw off the shackles of our culture and live in the fullness that is found only in Christ. We must be people who live the Word in our homes.”

~By Voddie T. Baucham, Jr

Christian Theism has much to say about human nature; secular psychology does too. I suppose I can understand why many people believe that psychology stands directly opposed to the Bible. I do not. In fact, the “Argh!” was almost audible when I read this week’s quote. A couple of years ago, the argh would have been audible and I may not have participated in this weeks “In ‘other’ Words.” I had just started blogging and had come face-to-face with the belief that all bad behavior reflects sin. Whether intended or not, as I read many of the blogs in the Christian blogger community, I felt condemned in the way I parent my child. I read things like, “I would never put my child on medications so that they were more tolerable to other people?” Well, would you medicate your child so that his or her behavior didn’t put them or others at physical risk? How about if your child couldn’t slow down long enough to prevent them from dodging out on to a busy road?  

My daughter was born addicted to cocaine, methamphetamines and alcohol. Her brain was damaged by prenatal exposure to alcohol. I spend a lot of time on my blog discussing the inherent dangers of drinking while pregnant. But, alcohol during pregnancy has always been an issue of risk. Not all children prenatally exposed to alcohol will develop Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder (FASD). The wisdom of God: who can understand it? God created my daughter’s brain the way it is. FASD is within God’s creative spectrum. My daughter’s dysregulated brain often creates behaviors which many people identify as defiance, laziness or a lack of character.

FASD is not a disease to be treated. Still, medication keeps my daughter safe and decreases her anxiety level. And, secular psychologists have helped me parent her. Francis Galton, considered the father of psychometrics did not have a biblical worldview. An intellect, and cousin of Charles Darwin, Galton wanted to quantify things like intelligence, abilities, attitudes and personality traits because he believed in eugenics, that is to say he wanted to improve human heredity by selectively breeding those people who were smartest, strongest and had the best attitudes and personality. Still, psychometrics has helped me identify my daughter’s specific strengths and weakness. I have a better understanding of how to create an educational program specific to her learning style. And, I undersand that there are some tasks in which she performs in the bottom 5th percentile of the population. She has qualitative differences in the way she learns and there are limits to what she can learn. There are some tasks for which she will always need an external brain, or a support person, to help her perform.

I have written my thoughts on the interaction between Behavior, Sin and the Brain already. I suppose that referring people to a previous entry might be viewed as cheating. But, I really haven’t changed my mind since penning these words.

And, because I have your attention, my acquaintances in the FAS Community have been making headlines!

Fetal-alcohol syndrome means a lifetime of struggle. I met Justin at FAS Camp this summer. He was great! On the last morning, when all the other campers were finding their friends, exchanging contact information and, generally, shirking their responsibilities, Justin was helping me vacuum. I moved the chairs away from the table and he operated the vacuum from his wheelchair.

Adoptees find last chance on ranch. Bill Sutley, the ranch’s “affable jack-of-all-trades,” was a support person at FAS Camp this summer too. He was attending camp with one of the boys at his ranch. The boys mother flew in from Hawaii to join us.

This weeks “In ‘Other’ Words” hosted by
Loni of Writing Canvas