My nephew, who is just 10, was recently diagnosed. He's on insulin shots a number of times a day, now. :(
This site has such a great summary of how people should use animals for good and not evil from a Biblical perspective:
http://www.dianedew.com/animals.htm
"Whenever I read of the intense zeal of animal rights advocates or legislation being passed on behalf of their cause, I cannot help but sense something abnormal in their avid devotion to these lower life forms.
In light of the lack of legislation protecting the unborn child -- and inadequate laws regarding child abuse and neglect -- I can come to only one conclusion: These zealots suffer from a severe case of misplaced priorities.
The Biblical Perspective
There is a balance. God cares for animals. He provides daily for their needs. (Lk 12:24) "... not one of them is forgotten before God." (Ps 147:9) "The righteous man cares for the life of his beast." (Prov 12:10) Thus, cruelty to animals is condemned by God. (Ezek 34:2, 3) When Balaam "smote the ass with a staff," God rebuked him. (Num 22:23-33) If an ox falls into a pit, we are to help it out. (Lk 14:5) We are to provide animals the necessary food and drink (Gen 24:14), medical care (Ezek 34:4) and rest (Ex 23:5).
However, animal rights activists generally fail to discern between the value of human life and that of a beast: that "there is one kind of flesh of men, another flesh of beasts ..." (1 Corin 15:39)
Scripture teaches that man is valued above beasts. (Heb 12:20; 2 Pet 2:12; Jude 10) "Ye are of more value than many sparrows." (Lk 12:7, Mat 6:26) God gave man dominion over animals (Gen 1:26, 28). They were created for our pleasure (Rev 4:11); but we are not to exalt "the creature more than the Creator." (Rom 1:25)
Fur, Leather & Ivory
Animal rights activists reacts with outrage to the wearing of fur or leather. Nevertheless, it was God Himself who clothed Adam and Eve with skins in the garden. (Gen 3:21) Throughout Scripture, animal skins were used for cloth, wearing apparel (Lev 13:48; Heb 11:37; Ex 22:27), shoes (Gen 14:23; Neh 1:7; Ezek 16:10; Mk 1:7), etc. John the Baptist wore camel's hair and a leather girdle. (Mat 3:4; cp 2 Ki 1:8). Paul was a tanner .(Acts 10:32)
It took many animal skins to make the 75-foot by 45-foot covering for the tabernacle in the wilderness (Exodus 25:5; Numbers 4:8-14)! Leather was also used in the construction of armor (1 Sam 17:4-7, 40, 49; Judg 20:16; 2 Ki 3:25) and for containers, particularly for wine because the skins would expand when the wine fermented (Gen 21:14-19; Judg 4:19; Josh 9:4, 13; Lk 5:37, 38; Job 32:19). Solomon's throne was of ivory, from the tusks of elephants. (I Ki 10;18). "
Continues...
Wow Diana,
Now you are educating me. I bookmarked those Biblical references.
The best sermon I ever heard was one where the pastor talked about how God protects the smallest hummingbird (weighing only ounces), as it crosses a continent.
And hearing it made me realize my problems are far less perilous than some of those HE protects.
Thanks for posting those.
My son was diagnosed at 10. He's 12 now. If his parents can manage it, I highly recommend the pump. Now it's just one "shot" every three days. Giving insulin is as easy as using a pager now. He climbs trees, swims, rides his bike and raises hell like every other pre-teen boy. He eats when he wants to, as much as he wants to instead of when the clock tells him he has to.
Also, I suggest his parents look into Benfotiamine. It's a synthetic vitamin B-1 that prevents the complications that come with diabetes. It costs about $20 a month. My kid's a Brittle Diabetic and it brought his A1C down from 12 to 7.6 after only 2 months. I know one father who brought his son's A1C down to 4.6 in less than 6 months.
In another year or two MiniMed will have their continuous glucose monitor approved for children and most insurance companies will pay a large part of it. It's set up like the pump, with a set you change every 3-5 days and takes readings every 5 minutes. It alarms if the kid goes too high or low and the user can personalize the settings. It was just approved for adults a few months ago.
Diabetes is never a good thing, but I have to say that it's better to be a diabetic now than in any time in history. Just 50 years ago it was a death sentence. Now its a serious, expensive, pain in the @$$. But you can live with it.
PS: It takes about a year for parents to stop the serious grieving. They'll never fully accept it, but they will learn to live with it. Everything gets better with time.
The hardest part is not feeling pity for the kid and that's the worst thing that anyone can do. I thought I was being tough, but I let my kid get away with waaay too much. Now I'm reigning in a kid who thinks he can slide because he's a diabetic. It's important to treat him just as he's always been treated. If he gets a whap on the butt for mouthing off, then he needs to get a whap when he mouths off. If he has chores he's always had to do, he still has to do his chores. If he goes low then treat the low, allow him 15-20 minutes to recover, retest to make sure he's back where he should be, then make him finish his job. It sounds harsh, but parents need to nurse their broken hearts on their own time.
And that's my sermon for the day! ;-)