Pastor's Corner

19 Oct
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Mid-Week Challenge

In the Creation account in the Book of Genesis, Chapter 1 records the creation of people.  When God created man and woman, He gives them this command in verse 28: 

“Be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth and subdue it, and have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over every living thing that moves on the earth.”

Any couple would quickly admit that the “be fruitful” part is an easy command to follow, but given inflation, the “multiply” part has taken a back seat.  According to Data Commons (a group that tracks these things), the fertility rate in the US has never been lower.  https://datacommons.org/tools/timeline#&place=country/USA&statsVar=FertilityRate_Person_Female  It does not help when the media presents children as burdens.  We hear single people proclaim children to be restrictive of free time and more than that, they are super expensive.  Back in April the Wall Street Journal reported that it now costs $300,000 to raise a child!  https://www.wsj.com/articles/it-now-costs-300-000-to-raise-a-child-11660864334?fbclid=IwAR0Tkp2IHIrh9W9ZWne1cDr5B-VHeqS5ygY4JAfgBGUzi05wpjATUxJtKDQ

Wow, if this is true my parents were rich! They raised two of us!!  Now that I think of it, I guess my wife and I are really rich because we still have one at home! Seriously?? How do the reporters come up with numbers like this and where do they come off talking about children in such a negative light? “Children are just too expensive,” its sounds a lot like an urban legend that explains away the selfish choices some in our society use to alleviate their guilty conscience.  Kind of like when a couple, who refuse to get married, move in together and say, “well two can live cheaper than one!”  Really? That’s your reasoning?  I do have a greater respect for those who are honest and respond to the question of kids with, “I just want more leisure time.”  That really is the number one reason.  https://www.nytimes.com/2018/07/05/upshot/americans-are-having-fewer-babies-they-told-us-why.html 

My heart goes out to the couples who want to have kids, who do pay a fortune trying, and are not able.  When I read stories like the one from the Wall Street Journal https://www.wsj.com/articles/it-now-costs-300-000-to-raise-a-child-11660864334?fbclid=IwAR0Tkp2IHIrh9W9ZWne1cDr5B-VHeqS5ygY4JAfgBGUzi05wpjATUxJtKDQ  I can’t imagine how this negative description of having children makes them feel.  Like all things in life, anything worth having is worth the personal sacrifice it takes. If you have had difficulty having children, don’t lose heart.  God hears your prayers.  There are a number of examples in the Bible that shows God does not take your desires lightly, and He is not ignoring you.  If you are thinking about having children and you are on the fence, don’t let the personal agenda of a lost world hamper your desire.  Ask any parent, kids are worth the cost; most days. 

By: Dr. Jonathan Richerson

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