Arrows

Christian parents have the tremendous responsibility before God to model the presence of Christ.  All of us are called to set a tangible example for years to come. Psalm 78 states:
5 For He established a testimony in Jacob, And appointed a law in Israel, Which He commanded our fathers, That they should make them known to their children;
6 That the generation to come might know them, The children who would be born, That they may arise and declare them to their children,
7 That they may set their hope in God, And not forget the works of God, But keep His commandments...

We can think about the "testimony" that God has established in our own lives and be challenged to make that testimony visible. If Christ lives in our hearts, then we are responsible to allow His life to flow outward, from our changed hearts, into a changed lifestyle, into transformed behavior. If we have professed to know Him, then we can show it by honoring Him, sharing His love, and reflecting His principles, so that a mark is made for the future.

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In Psalm 127, we can read this passage of Scripture which speaks to how we can regard our children - 
as gifts from the Lord.
3 Behold, children are a heritage from the Lord, The fruit of the womb is a reward.
4 Like arrows in the hand of a warrior, So are the children of one's youth.
5 Happy is the man who has his quiver full of them; They shall not be ashamed, But shall speak with their enemies in the gate.

There is certainly a fascination with large families.  I assume more people, more children, result in more storylines.  Witness the visibility and success of shows such as Jon and Kate Plus 8, which sort of ended up as a train wreck, (Blank) Kids and Counting, featuring the Duggar family, which I believe may have topped out at 19, or Bringing Up Bates, which also features a 19-child family.

Well, the Derrico family is perhaps next in line - they have 14 children, according to a CBN.com story, which relates:

Karen and Deon Derrico and their kids are the stars of TLC's reality series "Doubling Down with the Derricos." The Derricos are the natural parents of quintuplets, triplets, two sets of twins, and singletons.

The Derricos are an African-American family, and in a Fox News interview referenced in the article, Karen said, "It was actually not a number, per se, that we had. It wasn't like a set, like, 'We're going to have only 14 children," adding, "It was nothing like that. He asked me and I was like, 'I just wanted as many children as God blessed me to have,' and that left it open. So here we are now. We're thankful and grateful there's 14." Deon said, "We want this. This is a blessing for us. This is not your view of it. It's a blessing to us..."

Their journey has not been without pain, such as the loss of one of three triplets, about which Deon posted to Instagram in 2018: "These two little precious jewels are the last two born of the #DERRICO crew!! Triplins are what we call them, because they were born #Triplet boys, but one of them went to Jesus."

In that Fox interview, Deon also said, "Faith is also our core value," adding, "That's who we are… It's constantly shown in our deliverance and the way we do things naturally. We want to help others. This is just a blessing to be able to give the kind of help that we give and move our family. We want to help other families do the same with their households."

As for the Duggars, the second generation continues to appear on the series, Counting On, and just this week, the Entertainment Tonight website gave an update on the family.  The original show was cancelled five years ago, just after revelations of moral failure by the oldest brother, Josh, but other siblings continue to live their lives, most in a public fashion. and even make headlines. Josh Duggar, by the way, is still married to Anna and they now have six kids, according to the Entertainment Tonight story, which reports, "Led by parents Jim Bob and Michelle, the Duggar family now consists of 19 kids, eight sons- and daughters-in-law, and 17 grandchildren -- and counting!"

The family still continues to fascinate and unfortunately becomes tabloid fodder, but the reality show family does reflect its own reality. Consider a recent story on The Christian Post website featuring Jessa Duggar Seewald, which states, regarding a recent YouTube video: 

In the “Counting On” star’s video on Sunday, she revealed that she did not really take her faith seriously until she was a young adult.

“If anybody was ever the problem child in the family, I probably could claim that title. I always joke that I probably gave my parents more gray hairs than any of the rest of them combined,” Seewald said.

She explained how growing up as one of 19 children was tough and admitted that her siblings' relationship with God made her doubt her own faith. The reality star confessed to being “self-seeking,” “selfish” and “living in a pattern of sin.” From the ages of 12 to 16, she was not bearing the fruit of the Holy Spirit.

She was able to overcome what she termed "spiritual depression."

I can't even imagine what it would be like to live in a bubble, where people are watching your lives unfold.  And, people are continuing to do so, perhaps in a much larger way, because you have various Duggar children who are telling their own stories, through not only Counting On, but through online media and social media.  

But, in a sense, we can remember that all of us are being viewed, to some degree - Greg Laurie says life is like a movie, which is incredibly true, but I would contend that life is like a reality show, as well.  As believers, we can choose to embrace our reality or deny what God is trying to teach us through real-life experience; but like it or not, our lives are under the authority and scrutiny of Almighty God. He sees all, and we are challenged to live publicly as His ambassadors. 

The Duggars, while unusual in the fact that they have raised 19 children, homeschooled them all, and are a legendary TV reality show family, are to a certain extent just like you and me. We are all unique, and we are all flawed.  And, the storms of life have not avoided that home in Arkansas. There is an incredible seed of faith in Christ that appears to have helped to sustain them, collectively speaking, through difficulty.

So, we can consider what kind of story we are all writing. Jim Bob and Michelle have been releasing children into the world fairly systematically for quite a few years, and those children have now gone on to have children. Many of their stories are unfolding on the screen week after week.  They are leaving a family legacy, and that is a consideration we can all have.  Our devotion to our Christian faith can influence generations to come.