Surrendered Womb

What if . . .

Instead of wondering how many children God wants us to have

We allow Him to give us the children He wants us to have.

Simple–

Trust God to be God; He’s certainly smart enough to handle this.

The question is not whether He can manage it; the question is

Whether we will surrender control.

-Jessica Roldan, The Heavenly Hearth

How counter-cultural the above statement is! Yet, if we are honest with what the Bible says about having children, we must admit that it is true.

“Lo, children are an heritage of [from] 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 . . .” Psalm 127:3-5

We are able to conclude several things from this text:

Children are a heritage

A heritage is something passed down to a person from one’s parents. Children are our heritage, passed down to us from our loving heavenly Father.  Usually, parents take satisfaction in knowing they will pass down some sort of financial security to their children; God seems to take satisfaction in knowing that He has passed down to us a form of security in our children. If we train them properly while they are little, they will eventually be the ones taking care of us when we are old! They will also carry forth the torch of our spiritual legacy into the future, beyond where we ourselves are able to reach.

Children are from the LORD

This Scripture clearly states that children are “of [from] the LORD.” They are His gift to us. They are not a result of chance (contrary to appearances), nor are they ultimately a result of our choice as parents. Though God has given us the freedom to either reject or accept them, He is the One who has the power over life and death, not us. He is the One Who gives our lives purpose, so that not a single one of us is an accident! When we open our wombs to the Lord, we are not opening ourselves up to accidents; we are opening ourselves up to God’s gifts.

“Neither is [God] worshipped with men’s hands, as though he needed any thing, seeing he giveth to all life, and breath, and all things” Acts 17:25

“The Lord killeth, and maketh alive: he bringeth down to the grave, and bringeth up.” 1 Sam. 2:6

“See now that I, even I, am he, and there is no god with me: I kill, and I make alive; I wound, and I heal: neither is there any that can deliver out of my hand.” Deut. 32:39

Children are fruit

Just like a vine produces fruit (grapes), a woman’s womb produces fruit (babies). When do we ever regard fruit as a bad thing? Usually, we are happy to see vines producing many robust bunches of grapes! Children are not a disease or a thorn: they are the beautiful fruit of a healthy, normal marriage.

“And God blessed them, and God said unto them, Be fruitful, and multiply, and replenish the earth, and subdue it: and have dominion . . .” Genesis 1:28

Children are God’s reward

Wow, this is totally against the grain of our anti-child culture! We tend to see children as burdens and as obstructions to our plans. Even people who have children and appreciate them will often see any potential additions to their family as an intrusion. They are happy with the number they have pre-decided upon, and want no more. But they don’t realize they are saying, “No,” to a reward — God’s reward for them. Though children are a lot of work, they also bring many blessings and much joy to our lives.

In the Bible, God never “curses” people with fertility! Our fertility is not a curse, contrary to what our culture believes, and also contrary to what we ourselves imply we believe if we use methods to prevent pregnancy.

Will we send away that which Jesus taught us to receive? To Him, children were not an interferance, but a joy. He even went so far as to say that when we receive children, it is the same as receiving Him!

“And he [Jesus] took a child, and set him in the midst of them: and when he had taken him in his arms, he said unto them, Whosoever shall receive one of such children in my name, receiveth me: and whosoever shall receive me, receiveth not me, but him that sent me.” Mark 9:36-37

“And they brought young children to him, that he [Jesus] should touch them: and his disciples rebuked those that brought them. But when Jesus saw it, he was much displeased, and said unto them, Suffer [allow] the little children to come unto me, and forbid them not: for of such is the kingdom of God. Verily I say unto you, Whosoever shall not receive the kingdom of God as a little child, he shall not enter therein. And he took them up in his arms, put his hands upon them, and blessed them.” Mark 10:13-16

Children are arrows

Arrows, as weapons of war, are a benefit to the one using them. The mighty man can place his arrow carefully in the bow, aim it in the right direction, and release it to follow its course. That arrow will reach beyond where he himself is able to go. Interesting that God doesn’t say children are a sword or a dagger, as if they would be useful in hand-to-hand combat. He speaks of them as arrows, which do their own work after we direct them toward their target and then let go. This reminds me of a verse that says, “Train up a child in the way he should go; and when he is old, he will not depart from it” (Proverbs 22:6).

He who has his quiver full of them is happy

Happy, not oppressed. Though parenthood is not always a walk in the park (and can at times be downright exhausting and even painful), at the end of the day having children does make us happy. To see them growing into the people they are supposed to become brings delight to our hearts. Though they stumble many times along the way, we take pride in their efforts, in their creativity, in their ambition, in their passion.

They are not  little miniatures of ourselves, though they come from us and were crafted through our training with care.

Also, notice that the quiver is full, not half empty. God expects that we will be happy with many children, since He gives them to us for our own benefit, just as having a full quiver of arrows would be a benefit to a warrior.

A very clear issue

There are many, many other passages of Scripture that I could bring up. I have only touched the surface of what the Bible has to say about having children; I recommend that you take the time to jot down every instance you come across in your personal Bible study. I am sure you will be amazed!

This is not a hazy area, as some suggest, but one that is abundantly clear: God delights in giving us children — sometimes, lots of them! This is something to be happy about and thankful for. This is not something to complain about or reject as a burden. No, birth control was never part of God’s plan for us.

My husband and I personally went through a life-changing journey as we gradually came to realize what God’s plan was for our marriage and family. Since deciding to let God have control over this area of our life, He has added a new child to our family about every two years. We love our children greatly and consider each of them a treasure. What a tragedy it would have been if any one of them had never existed! We are so grateful to God that He opened our eyes to the truth and spared us from making the huge mistake of trying to limit our family size.

I will be listing links related to this subject below, to be a resource to you as you investigate more about this topic. Also, feel free to check out my posts right here on The Heavenly Hearth about having a Surrendered Womb. You might also be interested in reading the Birth Stories!

If you would like to submit a birth story of your own, you can find out how to do that here. Every child’s birth is special, and I would love to acknowledge your baby’s birth, too, if I can!

Though this is a sensitive subject, I believe it’s too important to not discuss. That’s why I’ve dedicated a large portion of my blog to writing articles on why my husband and I have given this part of our life to the Lord and how we manage our own household of many “arrows.” May these resources be a blessing and a help to you in your own childbearing journey!

~Jessica

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Helpful Resources

Checklists:

Bible Verses: 

History:

• Early Church condemnation of birth control
• Timeline of modern legalization of the birth control pill

Books:

• A Full Quiver: Family Planning and the Lordship of Christ, by Rick and Jan Hess *MY TOP RECOMMENDATION* (Thorough, biblical treatment; humorous.)
• Be Fruitful and Multiply: What the Bible Says About Having Children, by Nancy Campbell *HIGHLY RECOMMENDED* (Full Bible study on the issue; gracious and gentle.)
• Redeeming Childbirth, by Angie Tolpin (Emphasis on preparing for childbirth by inviting God into the entire process. Supports children as a blessing, and pregnancy/childbirth/motherhood as a special honor given to us women by God which we should embrace.)
• Family UNPlanning, by Craig Houghton (Good, brief overview of the biblical reasons for trusting God in the area of family planning.)
• The Way Home, by Mary Pride (Addresses not only the issue of giving God control of our womb but also tackles the topic of Feminism in general. Talks about homekeeping and homeschooling, as well.) 
• The Bible and Birth Control, by Charles D. Provan (Top verses from the Bible which prohibit birth control. Also gives a list of quotes from prominent historical Protestant figures who were against birth control.)  
• Outlawed! How Anthony Comstock Fought & Won the Purity of a Nation, by Charles Gallaudet Trumbull | Edited by Scott Matthew Dix (The story of how birth control, pornography, and abortion came to be outlawed in the U.S. at one time. The link above connects to the Birth Control Movie website; you can also find the book here on Amazon.)
• Does the Birth Control Pill Cause Abortions?, by Randy Alcorn (The link provided connects to the Eternal Perspective Ministries website, which offers FREE educational resources on the Pill in addition to the book, which is available for free in PDF format, or at a very low price in paperback.)
• A Consumer’s Guide to The Pill and Other Drugs, by John Wilks B.Pharm. M.P.S. (A scientific look at the affects of various forms of hormonal birth control on women, with references, written by a pharmacist. Prepare to be alarmed.)
• This Is Your Brain on Birth Control: The Surprising Science of Women, Hormones, and the Law of Unintended Consequences, by Sarah E. Hill, PhD (An intriguing look at the way the Pill–and other hormonal types of birth control–actually work. This book analyzes the way the Pill changes our hormones, brain, different body functions not seemingly related to reproduction, others definitely related to reproduction, and even personality. Not from a Christian perspective (it’s from an atheistic, evolutionary perspective), but still worth reading. Beware that it does have some bad words.)

Websites / Blogs:

• Above Rubies — Nancy Campbell: Dedicated to “Encouraging other women in their high calling as wives, mothers, and homemakers”
• Courageous Mom — Angie Tolpin, author of Redeeming Childbirth (Biblical womanhood; includes homeschooling, counter cultural parenting, pregnancy + childbirth, surrendered womb, morning sickness, miscarriage, postpartum care, marriage.)
• The Pill Kills (Straight-to-the-point information on the health risks of the Birth Control Pill; historical timeline of its process toward becoming legalized.)
• American Life League (Strong pro-life organization; provides info on the dangers of contraception. Catholic. *NOTE* Hormonal contraceptives and barrier contraceptives are opposed, though NFP is supported. I do not endorse NFP.)
• Breast Cancer Prevention Institute (Information on how to prevent breast cancer, including facts and resources about the dangers of hormonal birth control.)
• LifeNews.com (Pro-life perspective on news.)
• LifeSiteNews.com (Pro-life perspective on news.)
• LiveAction.org (Pro-life persective on news.)

Magazines:

• Above Rubies — Nancy Campbell: Dedicated to “Encouraging other women in their high calling as wives, mothers, and homemakers”

Films:

• The Birth Control Movie Project (Two films are available on the website — Birth Control: How Did We Get Here? and Birth Control: Is it Up to Us?)