Then God blessed Noah and his sons, saying to them, “Be fruitful and increase in number and fill the earth.”

--Parallel verses:
‭‭Genesis‬ ‭35‬:‭11‬
And God said to him, “I am God Almighty; be fruitful and increase in number. A nation and a community of nations will come from you, and kings will be among your descendants.”

What I find is interesting is that our world has trained us to react to a home full of children as excessive, and for people to view having kids as something they have to prepare a long time for. We have five kids, and many people think we are a bit nuts, I think. (Today is my oldest son's birthday, he was almost a leap day baby! Happy birthday, Jeremiah!)

God told both Noah and Isaac in the above verses to be fruitful and increase in number. He told them that they would have many descendants, and he said this to confer a blessing upon them.

Children are a blessing to those who have them. They are those who carry on the lineage, those who in turn give us grandkids, and they bring joy to our hearts.

They are a responsibility too, we are to raise them up in the knowledge of and in obedience to God. We are to teach them to obey and respect us first, so they can obey and respect God and his ordained authorities later. And finally, children show us the simplicity of faith we need to interact with God.

There is a telling passage of how much children mattered to Jesus in ‭‭Matthew‬ ‭19‬:‭13‬-‭15‬: “Then people brought little children to Jesus for him to place his hands on them and pray for them. But the disciples rebuked them. Jesus said, ‘Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of heaven belongs to such as these.’ When he had placed his hands on them, he went on from there.”

Children keep us interested in the little everyday blessings God gives us. They keep us active. And they motivate us to model best behavior, for they are watching.

Lord, thank you for giving us the blessing of children! You, in your wisdom, knew we would thrive raising kids and that we would be eternally blessed. Teach me to never lose sight of the benefits of having childlike faith and joy!