In my posting about deciding not to have my fertility tested and instead allow God to either give me children or not, someone posted the intriguing comment:
“what about health care?”
If you are allowing God (not science) to be the author of your children where does healthcare fit in? If we leave our families up to God, does that mean we leave our health up to God? How are those two things different?
I have my own convictions about this, which I will share, but first I would love to hear how God has convicted all of you on the subject.
Hmm...it depends on how you view healthcare.
ReplyDeleteI don't engage in preventative health care- ie pap smears, regular check-ups of any kind. I've never been to a gynaecologist in my life.
I will generally go to a Dr. if there is a sign of something being amiss and then proceed with treatment based on prayer and research.
I don't consider leaving my family size up to God the same as leaving my health up to God, because not contracepting is the biological norm. I leave my reproductive system alone the same way I don't mess with any other normal biological function that is working the way God ordered it.
However, if my reproductive system was not working the way God ordered it I would look into it. Now let me be clear, when I say 'not working the way God ordered it', I mean an identifiable condition with outward symptoms, such as endometriosis or PCOS. If I ever develop one of these types of conditions I would seek healing and wellness from that condition, not seek fertility treatments. Medicine or therapies to heal my body seems more orderly to me than trying to create a child outside of God's creation order (like IVF) and then putting that child into an unhealthy womb.
Having said that, if I didn't have a symptomatic condition such as PCOS, I would not view an absence of pregnancy as a sign that my reproductive system was not in working order. I firmly believe that God opens and closes the womb. When God closes my womb, whether it is after menopause or even tomorrow, I will trust that it is His will.
Hi Amy,
ReplyDeleteI've yet to comment on your blog, but I've been enjoying it ever since I came across it through the TF blogroll.
My strong opinions on healthcare were shaped during my first pregnancy, in that I as a Christian and Canadian firmly believe that public healthcare should be available to all citizens. Please let me explain.
My husband was employed at the beginning of my pregnancy but events had us move and we both found temp jobs, meaning NO work health insurance. Not having private insurance meant we had to pay for our own dental care, glasses, private hospital rooms, etc. Doctors appointments, prenatal care, labour & delivery, midwifery service, etc was all covered by our provincial health care. God blessed us with a healthy baby, but if we had an emergency that would be taken care of.
Realistically in a world without public health care many women are going to be pregnant with babies they don't feel they can afford (multiples, special needs, sick, or unexpected pregnancies). Not everyone has the strength of conviction to continue a pregnancy they feel they won't be able to afford and handle. That's why I don't understand American politicians like Rick Santorum who is both pro-life yet doesn't support public healthcare. No; public healthcare does not prevent abortions, and the system isn't perfect and often gets abused. But I am very grateful to live in a place where our poor and their babies are taken care of with dignity.
Sorry if my foreign opinion is controversial, this is just what I believe