Every baby is big news, but last month, the birth of one Toronto baby recently grabbed international headlines. What is Baby Storm’s claim to fame? The fact that his/her parents have opted to leave their baby’s gender a secret.
Storm’s birth wasn’t announced with the typical “It’s a boy!” or “It’s a girl!” Instead, an email birth announcement for the baby read: “We’ve decided not to share Storm’s sex for now—a tribute to freedom and choice in place of limitation, a stand up to what the world could become in Storm’s lifetime (a more progressive place?) . . .”
In a separate statement, Storm’s mom said, “Everyone keeps asking us ‘when will this end?’ And we keep turning the question back. Yeah, when will this end? When will we live in a world where people can make choices to be whoever they are?”
It’s a fascinating story that reveals much about the tug of war our culture is engaged in on the issues of gender, sexuality, and individualism. Certainly, Storm’s parents’ logic has some appeal. All parents want their children to have “freedom,” and “choice.” And all parents dream their children will grow up in a world where progress is being made.
But refusing to acknowledge the ways males and females are different comes at a very high cost. When we don’t understand why God created us as gendered beings, we all lose.
Since we are going to use God’s Word as our guide to tackle this delicate subject, let’s start at the beginning.
In Genesis 1:27 we read, “God created mankind in his own image, in the image of God he created them; male and female he created them.”
From this short passage, we learn three key facts:
- God created mankind (as in males and females).
- He created man and woman in His image.
- He made two humans with distinct differences—man and woman.
In Genesis 1:31, God declares the creation of man “very good.” But In Genesis 2 we read that the only element of creation that God declared “not good” was the fact that Adam was alone:
“The Lord God said, ‘It is not good for the man to be alone. I will make a helper suitable for him’” (Genesis 2:18).
But, Adam wasn’t alone. He shared his garden home with animals and plants and the very presence of God (2:16-17). However, God’s own judgment was that singular humanity without gender differences was “not good.” God’s answer was the creation of Eve, who was made in the image of God and was like Adam, but still uniquely different. Gender was an intentional and purposeful decision on God’s part.
The distinction didn’t stop in the garden. God created Storm (and each of us) either uniquely male or uniquely female on purpose and for a purpose. Defining that purpose is important for understanding who we were created to be and for understanding the very nature of God. That’s why Storm’s story matters and it’s why gender is a subject worth talking about.
I’ll write more tomorrow about what gender reveals about God. Until then, I’d love to hear from you. Consider leaving us a comment with your answers to these questions:
- Why does gender matter?
- How does gender reflect the image of God?
- As Christians, how can we lovingly teach God’s Truth in this area to the people around us?
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Comments
This saddens me. Boys benefit from the guidance of a godly man. Many young men have no idea how to value and protect a young woman.
Women have made great achievements in academia and the workplace. More young women are going to college now than young men. But the burden on women to provide financially and manage the home is huge.
The losers in our gender confusion are the children. Although women are gifted in nurturing, the demands on their time limit them.
I am very encouraged to find women that are blogging about home life. Women are using the internet to encourage each other. On my blog I have a list of links to women that are taking a counter-culture approach.
on Thursday, June 30, 2011 at 8:21 am
Gender has much to do with our identity. If God has specific roles for men and women, then we better know who we are and what we are, so we can fulfill His purposes and live obedient lives. God is not a God of confusion. He is orderly and does all things with purpose.
on Thursday, June 30, 2011 at 9:48 am
on Thursday, June 30, 2011 at 10:57 am
What do I mean? As in cars...certain types of cars in our culture bring status. Certain zip codes have meaning. Our culture values clothing labels and five star restaurants. "When will it end?"
Our culture values wrinkle-free faces and plastic surgery to prolong the aging process. The endless competition between children to overload them with activities in order to get them into the "right" schools. To get invited to the "right" parties to meet the "right" people so they can make the "right" connections. "When will it end?"
It ends in the box. At our own funerals. I have never once attended a funeral in which people stood around the deceased and stated how many homes the deceased owned, or designer shoes, or Botox injections, or networking connections he/she made. I never attended a funeral services in which people stood around and announced how many fur coats or cars the deceased collected or vacations he/she took.
No, what people spoke of was how the deceased made them laugh, or helped them when in need, or was there for them during a hard time. They talked about what a great father or mother they were. Or how they never demanded anything, but gave everything. How they made us feel like we were so special or the time she/he sat and listened for hours as we worried about our children. Or how he/she never missed an event and celebrated everything with great joy.
It ends at our funeral and our lives our celebrated and valued for our spirit here on earth and how we affected others.
The question shouldn't be "Where does it end?"
The question should be, "Where does it begin?"
It begins with how God chose each and every one of us for a purpose. Who are we to "choose" or decide if God's choice was the right one or not? By those parents asking, "When will it end" is just a sad admission that they are allowing their culture to place their own child among the ranks of cars, homes, zip codes and other meaningless status symbols and not allowing God to work His will within their child for His wonderful purpose that rises far above these earthly things.
And it begins by honoring and celebrating God's choice in how the child will begin his/her important journey in doing God's will - whether as a male or female - this is where it BEGINS....not ends.
on Thursday, June 30, 2011 at 11:13 am
on Thursday, June 30, 2011 at 11:58 am
Thanks for addressing this critical issue biblically and graciously. Can't wait to read more tomorrow!
on Thursday, June 30, 2011 at 12:00 pm
on Thursday, June 30, 2011 at 1:05 pm
on Thursday, June 30, 2011 at 1:08 pm
In the situation you mention, confusion already exists and that is where prayer and asking for God's wisdom in making decisions FOR the child as he/she is in the care of the parents. It is extremely rare that there is zero hint of which direction the gender was leaning towards during its growing stages in the womb.
As the child grows, much prayer, understanding and compassion will be needed to help the child to develop to fulfill a bigger plan. We aren't to play God, but rather, to ask for guidance and do the best we can with what we are given.
Just my opinion, but know I absolutely no science background, only little knowledge from what I have read. But a great love for the Lord and for people.
on Thursday, June 30, 2011 at 1:26 pm
on Thursday, June 30, 2011 at 1:30 pm
on Thursday, June 30, 2011 at 6:22 pm
Baby Storm needs our prayers as well as the parents who are believing the lie that children should not be told whether they are a boy or a girl, but define themselves as something in the future.
on Thursday, June 30, 2011 at 7:48 pm
There are many things that can be said, and theorized.
Very basically here is what one can do.
When born, look down at that area of the anatomy. Male? Female? Then act upon it. If born without an distinction... don't think this is a sexless child. It is a deformed child, just like some children are not born with arms or legs.
Mankind has made a major issue over the most basic thing. God made male and female. Then live in that context.
It matters because each sex has a role to play with very different attributes. Children develop in the balance of both male and female parents but mix it with one only and you have issues and the child is lacking. This is documented fact.
History will bear this out in time and already there are people coming forward whose lives have been shattered because of the blurring of sexes.
How does gender reflect the image of God? By living in the truth of your gender. Separate, distinct is each sex and when we live within that truth, we glorify God. God never would have expressed a distinction, male and female, if it wasn't what he intended for us.
We can teach others around us God's truth about this issue by loving them as Christ loves the church and treat them the way we want to be treated but at the same time standing firm (with much care) on what God's Word does say about it.
I hear these young parents thinking they are going to be so progressive with their little family. One of their sons wears dresses and has long braids, yet he doesn't like being called a girl. It is sad to me that parents would do that to their child, causing confusion. They better start putting money aside now for all the therapy they will inevitably be paying for... and it just might be for themselves as parents as these children may have a deep resentment to their parents for doing this to them.
The name itself of that genderless child.. is sad. Is it prophetic? Names mean something. Time will tell... at the expense of the children...
on Thursday, June 30, 2011 at 10:12 pm
Deuteronomy 6:24 (KJV)
And the LORD commanded us to do all these statutes, to fear the LORD our God, for our good always, that he might preserve us alive, as it is at this day.
on Thursday, June 30, 2011 at 10:21 pm
What I find most sad is that in their desperation for so called "freedom" they put their child in "bondage".
One can just hope and pray for that family that the scale be removed from their eyes because the hole in their souls cannot be filled by coming up with "new and futuristic" ideas but only by following the ULTIMATE plan that has been before we were formed.
on Monday, July 4, 2011 at 6:17 am
3 They said to each other, "Let's make bricks and bake them to make them hard." So they used bricks instead of stones, and tar instead of mortar.4 Then they said to each other, "Let's build a city and a tower for ourselves, whose top will reach high into the sky. We will become famous. Then we will not be scattered over all the earth."
5 The Lord came down to see the city and the tower that the people had built.6 The Lord said, "Now, these people are united, all speaking the same language. This is only the beginning of what they will do. They will be able to do anything they want.7 Come, let us go down and confuse their language so they will not be able to understand each other."
8 So the Lord scattered them from there over all the earth, and they stopped building the city.9 The place is called Babel[a] since that is where the Lord confused the language of the whole world. So the Lord caused them to spread out from there over the whole world.
In Genesis 1, God had told Adam and Eve to be fruitful and fill the earth:
27 So God created human beings in his image. In the image of God he created them. He created them male and female.28 God blessed them and said, "Have many children and grow in number. Fill the earth and be its master.
But after the REBELLION, man decided he didn't want to do it God's way. And so NOW we see the results of man's CHOICE.
In answer to your questions, God is sovereign. This is His design, will and purpose. I think that is what we need to teach.
on Tuesday, July 5, 2011 at 9:28 am
Another poster made the "short and sweet" comment that Storm's gender wasn't kept secret, her/his sex was. This is true, as sex = anatomy and gender = societal expectations. Yet no one replied or said anything in regards to this...
My question is this; Are you more upset that we don't know if Storm has a vagina or penis? Or are you readers more upset that Storm will be given both dolls and Nerf guns to play with? I am NOT trying to be snarky, I just honestly want to know why everyone is so upset.
In my own opinion, if this was done correctly, then you would end up having a child unfettered by societal constraints that friends and relatives try to "bestow" upon the child. If it turns out Storm is a boy who loves cooking, pink bracelets and wrestling OR that Storm is a girl who loves getting muddy, blue shirts and dolls...well, at least he/she will have chosen PERSONALLY.
on Tuesday, March 27, 2012 at 10:17 pm
We’re grateful for your question. As Erin mentioned in her post, God created each of us uniquely male or uniquely female; that distinction comes as a gift from our Creator not as a choice of the created. Gender is a gift given by the Creator, for His purposes, to reflect uniquely the image of our God.
Isaiah 45 says it this way, “Woe to the one who quarrels with his Maker-- An earthenware vessel among the vessels of earth! Will the clay say to the potter, 'What are you doing?’” Isaiah 45:9
on Friday, March 30, 2012 at 1:24 pm