THE FLAMING SWORD

In 1980, my husband and I agreed that we did not want a large family. Two children would be enough for us. We thought they would be too expensive and too much work! We wanted the freedom to do other things with our lives!

When I was growing up in the sixties and seventies, it was becoming increasingly popular for women to be on the Pill and have their tubes tied. I remember that my mother was against both of these options. She believed that it caused the breakdown of the family because it made having an affair easier, and she felt that it was bad for a woman’s health.

When I was getting married she persuaded me not to go on the Pill, but my OB/GYN prescribed it anyway. Being only 18 years old and in college, I especially did not want to get pregnant. So in the beginning of our marriage, I reluctantly went on it. Thankfully it made me ill, and I stopped taking it several months later.

I remember how my mother was also very opposed to a woman getting her tubes tied. She thought that this, too, was wrong and went against God’s plan. She told me not to ever have my tubes tied because, “You never know if you might want to have more children someday and it is unscriptural for a person to make assumptions about their future.”

My mother often tried to talk her friends out of their decisions to have their tubes tied, but most of the time her suggestions fell on deaf ears. Every one of these women have now admitted to her that they regretted their decisions and are struggling to live with the consequences of their choices.Seeing these older women suffer influenced me to never want to have my tubes tied, but my husband felt differently about male sterilization.

He had been raised in a family with five children, and they did not have the luxuries that many families enjoy today. This caused him to desire a small family so that he could give them all the things that he had never enjoyed. After we had our son in 1983 (when I was 21 years old and he was 24 years old), he was content to have no more children. After a few years, I began yearning for a daughter and eventually convinced him to at least try for a little girl.

God blessed us with a daughter in 1988. We both felt that our family was now complete. Because we both feared pregnancy, we were extremely careful to always use contraceptive. Imagine our shock, when three years later, I found out I was pregnant! Both of us were upset, particularly my husband. We felt God had let us down. As the pregnancy progressed, we got used to the idea of having another child, and by the time she was born, the Lord had turned our hearts around.

My husband loved our new daughter from the moment he saw her, but he continued to be upset about the growing needs of our family. He was running his own business, and our finances were very unpredictable. When we experienced leaner months, he especially feared raising children that he could not afford.

The pressure increased greatly, when three years later, we experienced another birth control failure and I became pregnant again! We were both shocked. This time, it really upset my husband. He could not understand why God was bringing added responsibility and why his children might not be able to have all of the things that he had envisioned for them.

During this pregnancy, he talked about getting a vasectomy. The more that he talked about it, the more upset I became. I did not believe in sterilization and somehow knew that it was not the right thing to do. I was pregnant and emotional and was not sure if I wanted this child to be my last.

Our finances hit a big slump, even though my husband worked harder than ever. He felt the unbearable financial pressures closing in on him and called the vasectomy clinic to price the surgery.

As soon as I gave birth, he anxiously waited for my agreement, but I could not find any peace about it. We decided to seek counsel from our pastor. He told my husband that we must agree on this kind of decision. Since I could not agree, we were at a stalemate. This was when God supernaturally stepped in.

One night, when our new daughter was several months old, my husband had a dream. In the dream, an angel of the Lord appeared before him holding a flaming sword. He pointed it toward my husband,

in the direction of his male anatomy, and exclaimed, “Do not abort the plan of the Lord!” Christopher immediately woke up. He was freaked out, to say the least. He woke me up and told me that God had said that he should not have a vasectomy because it would abort God’s plan.

“Wow!" I replied. “Someone great is supposed to be coming through our family lineage for God to send an angel just to tell you not to have a vasectomy. This is wild and wonderful!”

Even after the angel dream he was still very concerned about how we were going to afford four children and maybe even more some day. The finances still did not improve greatly, but God was faithful and merciful to us. After that dream, Christopher would say that he would not mind raising a larger family if we at least had the money to do it. He switched careers and the Lord began to bless him in his new job. The more open he became, the more the Lord blessed him.    

We still continued to use birth control, but four years later, when we found ourselves expecting our fifth child, Christopher and I were in complete agreement. He was no longer upset at the thought of another child. In fact, he was very excited! During this pregnancy he liked telling people that his wife was pregnant with his fifth child, just to see their reaction. The negative responses and rude remarks did not even bother him. He no longer cared what they thought.

After Judah was born, the Lord really convicted our hearts about controllingour family planning. He placed a deep desire in both of us to give this area of our lives completely over to Him. We had never trusted the Lord with our family plan before. This was a big deal for us. But, the more we prayed about it, and the more we read the Word, the more the Lord convinced us to at least be open to Him to choose the size of our family.

As soon as Judah was born, the Lord financially prospered our family. We learned the secret to financial wealth when it comes to the argument of not having enough money for children. God never brings the increase until after the child is born. God’s Word says, “The children of the righteous will not have to beg for bread” (Psalm 37:25). He will provide for His children once they are born.

Within a year and a half of Judah’s birth, the Lord opened my womb again and surprised us with another child. Destiny was born in 1991. We had never had children this close together before, but it worked out fine. After making the decision to trust the Lord with our family planning, my husband’s salary doubled.

In 2002, He blessed us again with a little daughter that we named Haven. Our home and family have become our haven of rest, happiness, laughter, and joy. August 12^th of 2004, God surprised us again with the birth of another son, whom we called Leviticus.

I often wonder what I would be doing if the Lord had not blessed me with this many children. If it had been left up to me, I would have only had the first two. I would probably be working a full-time job in broadcasting or I might have pursued law school or psychology. Maybe I would have owned my own business or gone back to earn a few more college degrees.

Would I have been less busy if I had fewer children? Probably not. In fact, I might have even been busier had I chosen another kind of life. Would I have had more money? Maybe. But then again, I still might not be better off! It is just as easy to spend money when you are raising two children as it is when you are raising eight children!

I would not trade what I have today for all the wealth that I could accumulate in a million lifetimes! I thank the Lord every day for giving me children as my blessings.

This decision to trust God was not an easy one, but we know that it was the right one. It requires our faith to be renewed daily. It requires us to trust Him with all that we have, including our future. We know we are living in the last days and feel these are exciting times to be participating with God to bring the children to earth who will be part of God’s end time army.

My husband and I do not know how many more mighty warriors the Lord will allow to come through our loins, but we are open to welcome each and every one. We are excited as we anticipate who God may bring us next.

RACHEL SCOTT

Windermere, Florida, USA
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Rachel has written a very powerful book called:

BIRTHING GOD'S MIGHTY WARRIORS

This 355-page very exciting book reveals God’s incredible purpose for families to bring forth mighty warriors to advance His kingdom and spread His glory across the earth. Every page is filled with revelation that will excite you and give you purposeful vision for raising your family. This book is a “must” for every family, and those preparing for marriage.

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