Children Are a Gift

Children Are a Gift

By Christa Blanchard

"Behold, children are a gift of the LORD,

The fruit of the womb is a reward." Psalm 127:3

As young ladies in our father's homes, we are taught that children are a blessing and a gift from the Lord. He alone determines the size of our families. It is certainly a blessing to have a peaceful heart knowing that God is in control of our lives. In the following verses we see that the Hebrews regarded children as a blessing from the Lord (see Gen. 13:16; Ruth 4:13-16; 1 Sam. 1:11). They are a reward and heritage, bringing joy to their parents. Rearing a child is a sacred responsibility, and parents must depend on the Lord to help them guide their children.

We see them as a blessing, but do we see them as a gift? Do you enter marriage expecting to have children right away? Or do you plan on waiting a few years or months and then "try"? Are our children born in our timing or God's timing?

The beginning of this verse tells us that "children are a gift from the Lord". If children are truly a gift from the Lord, should we expect to get pregnant in our timing? Should we expect to be pregnant at all? Do you expect a gift from family and friends when your birthday rolls around? Or are you surprised and grateful by the gift they blessed you with?

As women, God puts the longing in our hearts to bear children--to raise children up to the glory of God and to fulfill the mission that God has given to mankind, to be fruitful and multiply. Even though as women we are called to bear children, we still should not expect to be pregnant or even to obtain the number of children we desire.

I am the daughter to two wonderful parents, James and Stacy McDonald, who have ten children and raised me up to love and cherish little ones. I had dreams of having a large family. As a mother of one child, a three-year-old boy, I have struggled for the past two years trying to get pregnant with a second child. I know my husband and I had a hard time getting pregnant with our first, but it did not take this long. We have been to a doctor to see "why" it has taken us so long to conceive another child, and after many doctor visits, the doctor finally told us that we might not get pregnant again.

My husband and I want more children, especially since both of us come from large families, and we know that God opens and closes the womb. We are happy and thankful for the son God has given us, but we did not dream that we would be the parents of only one child.

After struggling for months with being discontent, I found myself missing out on life with my husband and three-year-old because of my obsession with "getting pregnant." Eventually, the Lord brought me to a resting place in Him.

It was this verse that gave me peace: "Children are a gift from the Lord." Children are God's gift, and He either withholds them or grants them to us for His own purpose and glory. Bearing children, as with any gift, is not a blessing to expect or demand. My God is in control!