Page 65

Page 65 telling you a story. I have known two couples in my life that made the same decisions, but the results were drastically different. We will call the first couple Don and Deb. The other couple we will call Jim and Jen. Don and Deb both graduated college at the same time. They married shortly afterward. Don has a good-paying job. Deb chose to be a housewife. Both are highly educated and love children. Don and Deb come from large families and both have dreamed of having large families all their lives. So after looking at their long-term financial situation, and after judging what would be spiritually advantageous to them–weighing the costs and the benefits practically–they made the decision to not use birth control. As a result, the couple ended up having more than five children. They own a large home with five bedrooms. After doing a great deal of research and soul-searching, they also decided that Deb would homeschool the children. I’ve watched this family firsthand. The children are all very well disciplined. Deb is very educated, and she does a great job homeschooling. The kids are more mature than most children of the same age who attend public school. And they are more advanced intellectually. What is more, Don and Deb are highly skilled parents. They had great role models growing up, and they are avid readers on parenting. They have a wealth of patience and possess the emotional resources to take on their army of little ones. Now let’s shift the scene to Jim and Jen. After they married, Jim