Be fruitful and multiply

 Having children is arguably the first commandment from God to mankind. 
As I age I am seeing more clearly the value, beauty and joy in children. Yes they are our future. 
God planned them. It was and is the mechanism of bringing creation into fullness and fulfillment. 
It is more than interesting that; 1, after the fall, the spiritual death (so to speak) of Adam and Eve did not prevent procreation, and 2, it was through procreation that Satan and death would be defeated (the seed of woman would crush the serpents head).
Had Adam and Eve decided not to have children, there would have been no seed to crush Satan. 
Children are a gift not just to those of us who are parents and grandparents, aunties and uncles. They are a gift from God to all creation. Creation actually groans for the children of God to be revealed!
Without children the world cannot function. Countries with lower birth rates are aware of the damage this causes. 
We can suffer from the “small picture” of our own family units and our own family tree with the three or so generations above and below that we travel through as we age, and simply being satisfied that our family line is doing well. We cherish our loved ones and appreciate the constancy of the communities we are part of. 

But the big picture is of the sand of the sea or the stars in the sky. (Genesis 22:17)  This has always been Gods plan. It’s what he promised Abraham. It certainly goes well beyond 144000 in number.
Why God wants a vast number of children is well beyond my understanding, but it is a wonderful truth to ponder, and adds good hope to our prayer for revival.
Does the current western attitude of small, planned, "economically viable" families cost society more than we realize? 
And what of our acceptance of the vast number of unwanted pregnancies?
As Christian’s we honour God and our parents by honouring marriage. But marriage must have the fruit of children as one of its goals, if not the main goal.
This is my opinion. 

Families need children, churches need children, communities need children, nations need children. Jesus loves children. God has given us the blessing of childhood, and children.