Today's Straits Times, 21st April, 2007, had two stories that just popped right out at me!

1. No more menstruation?!
One was an article from the New York Times,which reported that FDA is going to approve a pill that stops menstruation!

What is scary is that the study done by the drug company (Wyeth) said that nearly two-thirds of ladies surveyed are interested in eliminating their periods! In fact, Prof Linda Andrist of MGH Institue of Health Professionals in Boston was quoted as saying, "We do not want to confront our bodily functions anymore. We are too busy." Hmmmm....

Sure there are those who have really painful periods but does that mean the only solution is to eliminate it? How about treating the cause and not just the symptoms? And how many of those two-thirds interviewed have such bad periods?

What is the real deal here? Could it be that what these ladies really want is to be free from the worry of an unwanted pregnancy?  Or for convenience? I don't know.

2. A C-Section is Less Painful?!
The other article reported that more in India are choosing to have a c-section over a natural birth. One of the reasons is that women are afraid of labour pains. Why do these women and many more all over the world think that a c-section is either not painful or less painful than a normal ******l birth???

There are real reasons for having a c-section and I am grateful that we do have this option now instead of just dying in childbirth! But to say that natural, God-designed labour is more painful than a c-section  operation where the doctor cuts through layers of muscles???

Even if one doesn't believe in painfree labour & delivery (and obviously I do! ) there are so many pain relief medication available to help one through labour that one need not be afraid of labour! Labour pains (if any) lasts only for a while and then the baby is out. But the after-effects of a c-section is long. It is afterall a major operation. You don't just get up and going after a c-section.

And if you look into natural birthing and working with the design of our bodies created by God and stand on the promises of His redemptive work on the cross, you can have a painfree labour and delivery! See our birth stories for encouragement.

It was interesting to me that the WHO (World Health Organisation) said that a country shouldn't have more than 15% of c-sections. I wonder what is Singapore's c-section rate?

The way I see it, there is a similar theme running through both stories - man interfering with God's design for his own convenience. But interfering with God's original design is foolish.

Let's not play God.

...On Mothers

Have you read the one where Mr Lim Swee Say calls mothers "the pillars of society"? He made this remark to calls from some to award stay-at- home-mothers (SAHMs) with similar benefits as low wage earners. He counters (and rightly too!) that SAHMs should not be compared to low wage earners. But in the same breath writes off any economic benefits SAHMs may have in the latest Budget Bill! Hmmm....

It's called a back handed compliment if I may say so!

...On the function and role of schools

The latest debate on what the schools should be teaching...It seems that society wants the school to take over all parenting roles and function! First they want the schools to teach sex education - and the earlier the better! Now everybody is going to cite the case of the 9-yr old as an example of how the schools ***need*** to teach sex education.

And to add to all that, they want schools to teach morals and character as well!

So - where does that leave the parents??? Just concentrate on bringing the bacon in?! Farm everything out to the "experts"?

I am not saying that schools should not teach morals and character but haven't we gotten everything upside down?

It used to be that parents teach morals and charcter and then what they taught are ***reinforced*** in schools. Now, everyone wants the schools take over everything!

Saying that we are uncomfortable about talking about sex or have no time to teach morals and character building is a pathetic cop out. No, it is not easy. But I quote the title of James Dobson's popular book, "Parenting Isn't For Cowards!" And we have to take all these areas back!

Our children are given to us by God. We are responsible for how they turn out. We are accountable for their souls! How are we to give a record to God in that final day?

"Sorry God, I had no time and I am really squeamish about talking about sex, so I farmed it out to the school/church, etc...."

Sometimes I think us, parents would like everyone else to take over our jobs so that we can have someone to blame when things don't turn out the way we want it to.  But that's not how things work. Even if we farm out these duties, we still stand accountable to God for how they turn out.

I'd rather do *my* part and answer to God than to pass the buck to someone else and still have to stand before God to answer Him. 

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