Good From Evil

I always enjoy reading the Old Testament Story of the life of Joseph of Canaan (current day Israel including the West Bank and Gaza) discussed in the Book of Genesis in Chapters 37,39-47. To make a long story short, Joseph was a precocious, ambitious, and incredibly gifted young man whom his 10 older brothers envied and resented. One could say that at times Joseph may have been a little short on humility and self-deprecation, but his father Jacob took special note of his gifted son much to Joseph’s brothers’ chagrin. The jealousy and envy of Joseph’s brothers eventually got the best of them, and they took the opportunity to overpower Joseph during shepherding work to sell him into slavery to a group of Midianite traders who in turn took Joseph to Egypt and sold him to an officer of Pharoh. After serving the officer of Pharoh honorably, Joseph was falsely accused of sexual misconduct by the officer’s wife and then placed in prison. Once again, Joseph served the prison warden honorably and with distinction and through a God-given talent accurately interpreted the dreams of two of Pharoh’s former staff who had also been placed into prison with Joseph. Two years later, following a favorable reference from one of the former imprisoned staff members, Joseph was released from prison and called into service and once again used his God-given talent to successfully interpret the Pharoh’s dream regarding seven years of plentiful harvest and then seven years of famine. Pharoh was incredibly grateful for Joseph’s interpretation and made Joseph Prime Minister of Egypt and empowered him to manage the food supply through the upcoming periods of plenty and famine. It was during this time that Joseph reencountered his brothers who had traveled to Egypt from Canaan in search of grain. Joseph reassured his brothers that he was not intent on revenge because God had ordained their wrongdoing to place Joseph in his current position to manage the famine and save the lives of Joseph’s family and the lives of many others. In other words, what Joseph’s brothers intended for evil God ordained for good.

As I consider Joseph’s remarkable story, it reminds me of a current day story where evil by a nation was used by God for good. I am referring to the China “one child policy” which was in effect from 1979 to 2015 to curb what the Communist government believed at the time was an over population crisis. After finally recognizing the grave error undertaken with this policy, the Chinese government replaced this policy with a two-child policy in 2016 and further modified to a three-child policy in 2021. But the sad fact today is that China now has another crisis, and it is a declining population. Live births are not replacing deaths, and to no great surprise the Chinese government’s efforts to reverse this trend have been largely unsuccessful. China is getting old before it gets rich! But the real story here is the human carnage that resulted from the one-child policy. This policy was brutally enforced with sterilization, forced abortion, and in many cases infanticide as boys were the preferred sex and many times infant girls suffered the consequence of not being the desired sex at birth. For a far more in-depth discussion of this tragedy, I have included a link from a recent podcast from Dr. Albert Mohler. It is comprehensive and also heart-breaking. https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-briefing-with-albert-mohler/id390278738?i=1000746021760.

But just as was the case in the story of Joseph and his brothers where God ordained good from the evil acts of men, God did the same thing in China. It is estimated that during the period of the one-child policy, there were over 2 million abandoned infants with the vast majority being girls. Tens of thousands of abandoned infants were placed in orphanages each year. Most of these infants were abandoned in blankets near police stations or orphanages where they would likely be seen and safely placed in the orphanage. God bless the mothers of these children for choosing the loving thing and not aborting these children. It is estimated that a total of 160,000 infants were adopted by individuals from other countries during the period of the one-child policy. It is further estimated that the United States share of the abandoned infants from 1999-2022 was placed at approximately 82,600 infants (almost all girls).

Someone may ask my reason for interest in the tragic state of affairs in China as a result of the one-child policy. Indeed, a great question. I just happen to know of a husband and wife and their 5-year-old biological son who traveled to China in July 2005 for the purpose of adopting a 17-month infant girl who was herself abandoned near an orphanage. The process leading up to the adoption was long, laborious, and at times stressful. But when the adoption was completed in the city of Guangzhou, China, the new parents and brother were incredibly thrilled and grateful. Now over 20 years later this young woman will be graduating this May with honors from Cedarville University with a BS in Nursing. I am so very proud to say that this young woman is my daughter! And just as in the case with Joseph and his brothers, what man intended for evil God has ordained for good!

God bless you and thank you for the privilege of your time in reading my blog.