A great post that touched my heart

I copied this post from a blogger friend's blog... Storing Up Treasures in Heaven. It is exactly what I have been thinking about lately, now that we are almost at 5 children!!

How many is too many?

How many children is too many? Certainly many people would say we already have too many. I, of course do not think so. In fact, I think my family size is just right for us. The funny thing is, I don't ever think we have *too* many kids. It all just seems so normal to me. I love every minute of it.

I think the answer to this question is very personal. I think it needs to be between God and the couple to decide how many children is the right amount for that family. I never imagined 10 would be our number. NEVER. In fact, if you had told me 13 years ago I would someday have 10 kids, I probably would have laughed. Shannon, you always told me we would have 8 , you were pretty darn close. *wink*.

I think the thing that is hardest for us, is that there seems to be this undisclosed rule about family size in our society today. I remember when I was pregnant with our third child, we started getting some snarky reactions. By the time number four was on his way, it was almost constant. Now, people have stopped reacting. We have officially reached the "brink of insanity" and nothing really shocks people anymore.

I often think that had we listened to those around us that we would not have half of our children that we do today. If we had listened to the world, we would most likely have two children. There is nothing wrong at all about that. Children are a blessing, whether you have one, two, or ten. But, for us, I am just really glad we didn't listen. I am really happy that we reached "the brink of insanity". I just cannot imagine my life any other way.

So often we seem to weigh out whether or not another child can fit into our lives. We wonder how much another one will cost. Can we afford it? Do we have enough room in our house? Can I handle another child? What about college? There is nothing wrong with asking these questions. Although had I really worried about all of these things, most of my kids would not be here.

But, what about the most important question of all? The one we rarely ask when it comes to this issue.

*God, what is your desire for our family?

Time and time again I have had conversations with Christians who tell me they have decided what size their family will be. Why do we think this is our choice to make? What would happen if God blatantly asked us to change our plans? Would we be willing? Would we even hear His voice over all of the other voices talking at us? What if He asked you to adopt? Or told you He wanted you to have another baby? Would you weigh out all of the pros and cons? Or would you have faith to believe that God had a plan that was greater than your own?

The saddest conversations to me are the ones that start out like this......
"I always wanted more.... BUT.... *fill in the blanks*.
Often their reasons are worldly. And in their eyes I see emptiness and regret. My heart breaks as I think about these women. They were lured by the world into thinking that children are a burden, not a blessing. Often these women are past child bearing years, some even elderly.

As I sit here looking around at my bustling home, I have to stop and thank God for each one of my blessings. Thank you God for making us "insane" enough to trust you. Life would just not be the same without all of my precious little people.