“Conscious Co-parenting”?
Does the makeup of a family really matter?
Our culture says the makeup of a family doesn’t matter. Children can be raised by one parent, two parents (two moms, two dads, or a mom and a dad), three or more parents—it doesn’t matter, as long as the parents love (however they decide what love means) the kids. This kind of thinking has led to a growing trend: co-parenting.
After the COVID lockdown, I got clear that I wanted another kid. I discovered that my friend Noemi also wanted a baby. So we decided to join forces and become conscious co-parents . . . It’s a concept that I hope more people will explore and consider.
Should more people who aren’t married but want kids “explore and consider” this new parenting style? No! You see, family isn’t a human invention that we can just reinvent as we see fit, to fulfill whatever desires (even good desires, like wanting a child) that we have.
Family isn’t a human invention that we can just reinvent as we see fit, to fulfill whatever desires (even good desires, like wanting a child) that we have.
God created the family when he created marriage and told Adam and Eve to be fruitful and multiply (Genesis 1:27–28, 2:24). And God’s design for the family is clear: one man (a male!) and one woman (a female!) who have “become one flesh” through the covenant of marriage, a lifelong union, and their children. That’s God’s definition of the family, and it isn’t just arbitrary to be rearranged and discarded according to human whims. And God gives specific roles to the father and mother.
Now, we live in a sin-cursed and fallen world where divorce and parent-lessness are a sad reality for various reasons. But that reflects the brokenness of our world, not God’s original “very good” design.
And science confirms that God’s design is what is best for kids!
Children don’t thrive under just any family structure, as long as they are “loved.” Study after study (here’s just one example) confirms that there’s nothing better for children than living in the home of their biological father and mother, who are married to each other. That’s the very best family design—because the all-knowing Creator designed family to function that way! Granted, in this fallen world, there are situations where this is not possible, but adoption into a stable Christian home where there is a committed mother and father, for example, is a godly option that also reminds us of God’s loving adoption of us into his family.
Reminder to Pray for Ukraine
We lit the Ark Encounter in blue and yellow as a reminder to pray for the people of Ukraine and pray for the church in that country because of the sad situation there. Also, pray for Russia and its leadership, that God will intercede with them.
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