These are our children, and yes, I DO know what caused them to be conceived!
Sometimes, when I tell people how many children we have (5), and they realize we are expecting another (#6), those words pop out of their mouths: “Do you know what causes that?” I never know how to respond, but the last time my husband was asked that question, he came back with, “Yes, I do, and I like it!” Well, I would never be brave enough to answer in that way! But he, apparently, has no sense of shame. 🙂
Seriously, that question implies that if we were using our intelligence, we would NEVER be dumb enough to allow ourselves to conceive even more children (beyond the standard 1 to 3)–because that would just be irresponsible, right? So, we must not know the basics of life. Isn’t that condescending?
We are VERY aware of how children are conceived. It is a beautiful biological process which begins with sex, but which is overseen by the sovereignty of God. We sometimes THINK we’re in control of this process, but we must acknowledge that in the end, a newly conceived human being exists only because God ALLOWS it to exist. This new human being has the “breath of life” breathed into it by the Spirit of God Himself, and then “[becomes] a living being.” God is in control of life. We, no matter how smart we think we are, are not.
Even in cases of rape, the child who is conceived is there because God ALLOWED it to begin growing, and He has a plan for that child’s life. No matter how ANYONE is conceived–whether through rape, incest, drunkenness, in a test tube, or in the context of marriage but by “accident”– God has a plan and a purpose for that person’s life, sketched out ahead of time in God’s book (Psalm 139:13-16). NOBODY is an accident!
And, neither are our children.
We have done THE MOST RESPONSIBLE thing anyone can do: we have placed our trust in the CREATOR OF THE WHOLE UNIVERSE to be the One Who decides our family size. We don’t try to get in His way, because, yes, He does give us free will, and He will sometimes allow us to go our own stubborn way, if we insist. Though He is sovereign, He also gives us the ability to choose for ourselves which path we will take. Better to let Him have the final choice, and simply leave it in HIS hands, since we have no way of knowing the future for sure, and no way of knowing the true importance of One . . . Single . . . Human . . . Life.
So, really, the answer to “Do you know what causes that?” is that GOD causes that! If we keep having more children, it’s HIS FAULT–take it up with HIM! 🙂
truthathome.wordpress.com 
Jessica, I admire your trust in the Lord. You have such an amazing faith.
I am looking for work related to my educational experience. Hopefully I will get something soon.
Below is my latest post about resource management and money saving.
http://blessedbeyondbordersbeyondboundaries.blogspot.ca/2015/12/the-environmental-role.html
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Dear Irina,
Thank you for your sweet words!
I do trust in the Lord, but my faith still has much growing to do! It’s definitely a process, where God is teaching me more about Himself through experiences that He guides me through, and through His word.
I hope all the best for you as you look for work!
And I thought your post was great, and recommend that others read it, as well!
Jessica
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Maybe people know too much about tragedic situation of big family who cannot afford needs of their kids,I think.Like gypsy family forcing their kids to do illegal things to get money which Kinuko pointed out on her former comment. Without staying in God truly,this kind of situation may easily happens,as you said before.
I also know contrasting stories of Japanese big familes.
One family was tragedic.Husband and one of his grown-up son comitted a crime,got prisoned.His wife devorced him soon after that,left many kids.
All other kids were taken of to the christian orphanage.
(I know one of their kids who believed Jesus at the orphanage.Now I do’nt have opportunity to see her,but hope her to stay in Him,be happy.)
Other was one pastor’s family.In Japan,pastors cannot earn big money.One time I have seen his 5 kids at church, I was impressed that they seemed to be so happy together. Surely they were not rich.But God supplies their needs.
Big family living in godly value may be living testimoniy of how God supplies,I think. God bless you and your family!
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Dear Sanae,
Thank you for your reply!
I do think that you are right, that sometimes the comments people make are motivated by their concern that it will be hard to provide for a large family, and that the family may suffer. I shouldn’t automatically assume that they are criticizing us out of a desire to show how “smart” they are. However, I still feel that they should be more careful in their choice of words! And, especially as Christians, we should be ENCOURAGING each other to trust in God, instead of giving in to negativity (falsely called “being responsible,” and “being realistic”). We should be inspiring each other to “live by faith and not by sight” in our walk with God, not just in a few selected areas, but in ALL areas of life!
The story of the man who was imprisoned, and whose wife consequently divorced him, is very sad. Yes, when we walk a path of making sinful decisions, EVERYBODY our life touches is negatively affected, especially our children. However, as you also pointed out, when we walk a path of making good decisions, God honors and blesses us, as shown in the life of the Japanese pastor with 5 happy children. This is true of every part of life, I think, and not just that of family size.
In Leviticus 26, God tells us that He will pour out His blessings, including provision of food and the blessing of FERTILITY to those who obey Him. On the other hand, God’s blessings will be withheld from those who disobey Him, so that they do not have enough food, and they are INFERTILE. These are generalizations, of course, since in Matthew 5:45, Jesus describes how “your Father in heaven…makes His sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the just and on the unjust,” suggesting that God sometimes sends His gifts even on the undeserving, perhaps in an attempt to show them how much He loves them, and by so doing, draw them to Himself. Many people are unappreciative of those good gifts from God, however. Also, we know from the stories of Abraham and Sarah, Isaac and Rebecca, the parents of Samson, Elkanah and Hannah, Zacharias and Elizabeth, that some godly people are barren, at least for awhile, perhaps as a test of their faith. Interestingly, God caused those who were barren to conceive in His OWN timing, since God is sovereign over conception, like I pointed out in my post!
Thank you, again, for your thought-provoking comment, Sanae!
Jessica
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Dear Jessica,
I was struck of the following phrase; ,,which is overseen by the sovereignty of God.
That’s because I have been meditating on the very same thing, (“the Sovereignty of God”) lately and was impressed how we are in the same thinking process!!
I believe that if children are under the care of the parents who firnly believe that they were born under the sovereighty of God, they will grow with a deep sense of security and peace,,,(which I can clearly see this on your childrens’ shining face on the picture above!)
Actually, the testimony which you shared wih us is going to be all the more valuable, as the time goes and the world starts to impose us the ideology of gender-mainstreaming and “gender justice.”
We will continue to pray for your (and your baby’s) health.
In Christ,
Kinuko
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Thank you, Kinuko, for your thoughtful comment, and for your prayers!
I wonder, what IS gender mainstreaming and gender justice?
Jessica
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Jessica, I read a portion where the Christian author explains about the gender mainstreaming and I am going to quote it here;
“,,The long term consequence is that sin and hell become taboo subjects. So far we have been free to opt for such tactics, but increasingly they are being imposed on us. A “gender mainstreaming programme,” promoted by the UNO and supported by numerous NGOs, is being enforced-without democratic legitimization-by means of “top-down” strategy.
The unclear terinology is a deliberate part of the strategy. The aim is to introduce “gender-justice”, overthrowing established gender roles and opening the possibility of further options. In simpler terms, “gender mainstreaming” means that the differences that by nature distinguish man and woman, father and mother, are now considered negotiable.
Gender identity is a matter of personal perception. The ultimate objective is to put same sex partnerships on a par with traditional marriage and families, with the same legal privileges. No matter how tolerant the arguments sound, the hidden agenda is the breakdown of the family unit. The end result will be the breakdown of the nation.
This constitutes a further step towards the legalization of sin. Speaking of sin is on the way to becoming a punishable offence. After all, it involves a value judgment. ”
from Kinuko
P.S. Another reason why I value the home-schooling is that we can protect innocent children from twisted gender education which is becoming more and more influential in public schools.
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Thank you, Kinuko, for explaining that to me! Now I understand what you meant by “gender mainstreaming.” And yes, it is another step in a VERY WRONG direction, and we all need to be aware of how serious the situation is. People aren’t happy with how God made them (a girl or a boy). They reject God’s design and try to be something different. The end result of this can only be chaos.
Jessica
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Oh, sorry!
the above quotation was from;
Joela Kruger, The Cross in the Crossfire, Tough decisions for Christians, p.12-13
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