I was boning up on my C.R. Wiley this week, taking off the shelf my copy of “The Household and the War for the Cosmos,” given that he will be our guest speaker a week from this Saturday at our Men’s Breakfast. I was reminded of a quote from the book I found particularly insightful:
When people believe in the future, they tend to fill it with little copies of themselves. Children are a vote of confidence. Today, the most pampered people in the history of the world can’t be bothered. Some of them go so far as to say that having children would be immoral—a crime against the planet, or something like that (101).
Godless Europe stopped having kids years ago. Chasing Europe has been fashionable for our cultural elites for some time, so it makes sense the United States would eventually do the same. And now we have. We have stopped having babies, too, recently falling below replacement rate for the first time in our history.
But not us. You may have heard me say having kids is our primary church growth strategy. Perhaps you thought I was jesting. Nope. It really is.
Christians who are able should have kids. Some Christians should have lots of kids. Foster care and adoption are also ways to add arrows to the quiver:
Behold, children are a heritage from the Lord, the fruit of the womb a reward. Like arrows in the hand of a warrior are the children of one’s youth. Blessed is the man who fills his quiver with them! He shall not be put to shame when he speaks with his enemies in the gate (Psalm 127:3-5).
Regardless of one’s eschatology, Christians should never lose their hope and optimism. Jesus is on the throne. He rules over all. He has saved us. No one can snatch us out of his hand. He will return.
Many secularists don’t want the “bother” of children. They take time and resources. Who wants that when you want to play all the time? Some Christians don’t want to have kids because the world is spinning in a porcelain bowl. But when has it not?
We love giving baby showers. We love baptizing them. We love watching the little ones scurry to the Fellowship Hall for a cookie. We love the laughter they make on the playground. We love that their souls are forever. We love that they will join us around the Throne one day, adding to the chorus of praise to our Creator and Lord.
So, go have some kids. We have more room in the sanctuary. And we have more room in our hearts.
Pastor Rich Hamlin
January 27, 2022