Bible reading for 40.Day 2026 | Psalm 127:3 

Pastor Debbie Ng: In Singapore’s fast-paced society, many of us feel the pressure to succeed. We juggle work, responsibilities and expectations. As a result, the thought of having and raising children can feel overwhelming.

Pastor Norman Ng: The statistics reflect this. Singapore’s Total Fertility Rate has fallen to an all-time low of 0.87. Even in the Church, we see a similar pattern. If national trends continue, the number of children in our churches is likely to decline as well.

Ps Debbie: These numbers tell a larger story. They may actually be revealing how deeply the pressures of our culture have shaped the way we think about children, even in the Church.

Ps Norman: In many ways, that was our story too. I did not desire children. My childhood was challenging, and I was not excited about being a father. Life was comfortable. We were newly married, with dual-income, and free to live, travel, and sleep uninterrupted. We were not exactly in a hurry to change that.

But over time, God turned my heart toward children by giving me a glimpse of my capacity to love them. I never felt completely ready, but I had just enough in me to take a step of faith. What surprised me was that when I was willing, Debbie wasn’t.

Ps Debbie: It wasn’t that I was not willing, but I was in my dream job, and I wanted to give my best at work. I truly desired children. I just did not feel it was the right time.

When I finally brought this before God in prayer, He gently showed me that while I had been pursuing my plans, I had actually forgotten to ask about His plans. I surrendered my preferences to Him, and He slowly began to shift my heart. By His grace, today we are grateful for our three children.

Ps Norman: Having children changed the way we live. They have stretched us, shaped us and brought us so much joy. They revealed a part of our hearts that we never knew was capable of loving like that. Most of all, in loving them, we have come to experience our Heavenly Father’s heart more deeply than we could have ever imagined.

Ps Debbie: Through this journey, we have come to see that children are first and foremost a blessing to receive, not a burden to carry. What they bring far outweighs what the world says we must give up.

Today, it is increasingly common to hear of Christian couples who want to get married, and that’s great! But some of them say that they don’t want to have children. Some say: “Life is already so exhausting.” Others say: “The world is too broken.” Still others say: “I’m happy to help take care of yours, but not have my own.” 

These feelings and experiences are real. But as followers of Jesus, our view of children must ultimately be shaped by the Word of God.

Ps Norman: From the beginning, God blesses the man and woman and says: “Be fruitful and multiply.” (Genesis 1:28) Fruitfulness and generations are part of His good design.

And this is not confined to Eden. Even in exile, amid uncertainty and hardship, God instructed His people to marry, have sons and daughters, and multiply there. (Jeremiah 29:6)

The Psalmist makes this clear: Children are a heritage from the Lord, a reward from Him.

Some see the call to have children as a mandate. And there is a very strong theological case for that. Others see it more as a blessing. But whichever way we frame it, when we look through the Father’s lens, we see that His design for marriage points towards fruitfulness and children. And if that is so, the deeper question is: What is shaping our hearts?

Ps Debbie: Culture often teaches us to count the cost of children before we consider their place in God’s design. It trains us to prioritise what works best for our lives over God’s heart for fruitfulness. While wisdom and responsibility are important, we can unintentionally let our concerns shape our decisions more than the voice of God.

Ps Norman: This does not mean every married couple’s journey will look the same. But it does mean that discerning whether to have children or when to have them is not simply a cost-benefit analysis, but a matter of calling, discipleship and trust in God’s design. Our decisions should not only be made on what is practical. They should be made as we desire and pursue what is on the Father’s heart.

Ps Debbie: We also want to speak to those who deeply desire children but have not been able to conceive, as well as those who are waiting, praying or walking the path of fostering or adoption. We too were on a similar journey. We see you, we honour you and we stand with you in prayer.

Ps Norman: Scripture also makes space for those who are called to remain single. As Jesus and the Apostle Paul modelled, singlehood is not a lesser path, but a holy and fruitful calling in God’s Kingdom. And you may still play a significant role in raising the young generation.

Ps Debbie: We often say: “It takes a village to raise a child.” And it’s true! For God’s people, that village can be the Church.

Grandparents, friends, youths, cell group members, adults – we all have a part to play. 

Children are a gift from the Lord, not only to parents but to the whole community. So as we care for them together, God will shape us to love sacrificially and become more like Jesus.

Ps Debbie: Parents are not meant to do this alone. As the Church, let’s support one another with practical care and even financial help, where possible. 

May we receive children as God’s blessing, trust His heart above our own plans and cultural norms, and become the Church that raises the next generation together.

Let’s pray.

Father, we come before You in humility and repentance. Lord, forgive us for the times we have placed our plans, our preferences, and our fears above Your heart and Your ways. Forgive us, Lord, for conforming to the world’s way of thinking – for thinking of children more as a cost and a burden than as a blessing and gift from You. Restore in us a confidence in Your goodness and in Your design.

Father, today we pray for an outpouring of love and joy over every family. For married couples discerning Your will, give wisdom, peace, and may their hearts be open to Your leading. For those who long for children, we ask for Your mercy and Your grace. Lord, comfort and strengthen those who are waiting and hurting. 

And Father we ask, where there are concerns with infertility, we ask for Your power to bring forth life.

We pray for us as a Church, that we would truly be a family to one another. Teach us to carry one another’s burdens, and to become the kind of Church where children are truly honoured and valued.

So let one generation commend Your works to another, and declare Your mighty acts. (Psalm 145:4) Together, may we raise a generation to know You, love You and praise Your name.

In Jesus’ name, Amen. 

Reflect:

1. Is our view of children shaped by the Word of God, or have we adopted the world’s view of children as a cost and burden?
2. Will we make decisions, not only led by what is practical, but as we seek what is on God’s heart? 
3. How has having children or ministering to children blessed us?

Pray:

1. That as believers, we will choose to believe and uphold God’s Word above the world’s values and beliefs about children.
2. That the Lord will multiply the children in our churches.
3. That the Church will joyfully be the “village” that raises the children God brings to us, valuing them as Jesus did.

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