I know it's been a while since the last post, but I thought I'd throw my two cents into the ring.
I am 33 years old and I haven’t wanted children for about six or seven years. I felt immensely guilty about it for a long time. Still do, sometimes.
We love God and want to keep his commandments. But I also know that He wants us to be happy – “men are that they might have joy.” If you don’t feel like you want children – now or maybe ever – it’s okay. If you remain close to the Gospel, do your best to keep the commandments and covenants you’ve made, and you still don’t want children, then it likely wasn’t God’s plan for you to have them in this life.
I was lucky enough to find a husband who also doesn’t want children (for different reasons than me). I have a long-term type of kidney disease that would make it dangerous for me to have children – perhaps God changed my heart NOT to want children long ago because He knew that it would be best if I didn’t. There are other ways He will help me to grow and become the person I need to be.
Most importantly, as has been said, do not have children out of guilt or obligation. It won’t be good for anyone, and God doesn’t want that. There is no one-fits-all prescription for having children - what works for someone else will not automatically be right for you.
Stay close to the Spirit – if your heart is supposed to change, it will. Otherwise, feel at peace knowing you are still doing what God wants for your life. There are other ways to feel “fulfilled.” Only you and God can make you whole – children aren’t given to us to fill OUR needs or make US feel whole.
