Hello again! :)....and my thoughts on Quiverfull teaching.

Wow, summer apparently is a bad idea for my blog! Oh well, maybe now that fall is coming I will get into a good routine.

I don't have anything earth shattering to share, but as I was thinking over things this summer, I stumbled upon a thought. In the quiverfull movement Ps. 127:3-5 is quoted a lot:

Lo, children are an heritage of the Lord: and the fruit of the womb is his reward. As arrows are in the hand of a mighty man; so are children of the youth. Happy is the man that hath his quiver full of them: they shall not be ashamed, but they shall speak with the enemies in the gate.

First of all let me preface by saying that I want lots of children. Personally, I happen to think large families have many benefits. That being said I do not make a doctrine out of the above verse. The above verse is not a command.

Second, just because something is good does not mean you must go to the extreme. Children are precious, but they are not a contest or spiritual status. I remember a speaker who said, "Children are a blessing. Why would you want to cut off God's blessings by only having a couple?" Basically he was saying every time you say no to trying to have a child is like saying no to God's blessings. Who would do that?!?!? Then it dawned on me that 1 Corinthians 11 says hair is a women's glory. So if we interpret 1 Cor. 11 like we do Ps. 127 we must conclude that women should keep their hair as long as possible and never cut it. Why would you want to cut off your glory? Yet the speaker doesn't follow his own logic. His wife cuts her hair all the time. I don't think I've ever seen it much longer than her shoulders. How is that for consistency!

My third point is Ps. 127 is talking about a man in his youth. ("so are children of the youth" or another translation says "children born to a young man") Many times those who chose not to have anymore children because they are older and their wife's safety and health are a concern are looked down on as not trusting God. I would beg to differ. Maybe they are just being wise and prudent. (I am not talking about a women who has already gotten pregnant and discovered that there are complications and now wants to end the life growing inside of her. That is a different matter!)

Prov. 24:13"...eat thou honey because it is good.
Prov. 25:16 "Do you like honey? Don't eat too much, or it will make you sick!"

Maybe too much of a good thing ends up a bad thing??? Children are a blessing!!! But that doesn't mean have so many that you end up abusing them. (spiritually, physically, or mentally) Each couple should seek God's wisdom. The number of children God wants each family to have will be different. We as Christians need to stop making doctrines out of side issues that were never commands in Scripture. We need to focus on the main thing and that is Jesus.