The Desire of Parents III

The selfish want for children can be specifically driven by different things. The most usually and probably the most inclusive reason is that a couple wants’ to be responsible for another. We are made to be caring, giving, and compassionate people, and we find joy in giving to others. Children who people to us are our responsibility alone, and they cannot live without us. Humans want the joy that a child brings, even aside from the parent-dependent relationship, especially when the child is a product of us and the one person we love the most. Obviously that love will spill over. These are all good things, but they are still initially self-centered.

Other times, whether these are for good or bad reasons for having children, they are probably more subconscious than anything in most situations. Those would include wanting to have control over a life in order to manipulate it in a way that the person themselves were or were not in the past, but have the ambition to place authority over in the life of someone else. That could include things which were disappointments or points of shame or guilt that one may seek to set in correct motion in a new life where the mistake can be prevented from reoccurrence before it becomes a history. Even if these are not the motive of potential parents, they could become the intent of parents. These things can certainly be for the benefit of the child in themselves, but they can easily be for the conscience of the parent.

God’s design of the family is very amazing. Despite the intentions and desires of our early nature, whether or not those be the majority of the incentive for a family with children, God uses us through the selfless-selfish love humans have for their blood, flesh, and imitation images. The Lord will use us to bring up the people that He wants in His plan.

That brings me to the counter which I didn’t completely explore which is what it would be to desire and have children out of selflessness. If we are living for the plan of the Creator, we will desire only what is for the kingdom of God. I believe it would be the will of God for us to adopt those children who already have life but do not have parents to take care of them. Because we are all children of God, it could be considered selfish to have children of our own just because we want them to have our genes. Selfless parents would be willing to parent any child of God. Even still, He delights in all children and His will will be done either way.