And he will [himself] go before Him in the spirit and power of Elijah, to turn back the hearts of the fathers to the children, and the disobedient and incredulous and unpersuadable to the wisdom of the upright [which is the knowledge and holy love of the will of God]—in order to make ready for the Lord a people [perfectly] prepared [in spirit, adjusted and disposed and placed in the right moral state]. Luke 1:17 (AMP)

(WNS) — For the first time in American history, more than half of all births to American women under 30 are occurring outside of marriage.

That’s what Child Trends, analyzing data from the National Center for Health Statistics, found out. The New York Times reported this news with an apt lead: “It used to be called illegitimacy. Now it is the new normal.”

This is more important than a trend, because trends are easy to reverse. This is an ooze, a sociological horror film that could be titled The Blob That Ate America. Ask no more why the lives of the next generation, on average, are likely to be more difficult economically (and in many other ways) than that of the baby boomers.

As Bowling Green State University researcher Susan L. Brown (and many others) have found, children born to married couples, on average, “experience better education, social, cognitive and behavioral outcomes” than others.

Many single moms try hard and are overwhelmed. The Times article ends with a vignette about one of them, Lisa Mercado, who is taking a nursing course and working an all-night job at a gas station, so she rarely sees her 6-year-old: “I want to do things with her, but I end up falling asleep.”

The sins of the fathers affect their children. The Times, explaining why some women don’t get married, noted, “Some unwed mothers cite the failures of their parents’ marriages as reasons to wait. Brittany Kidd was 13 when her father ran off with one of her mother’s friends, plunging her mother into depression and leaving the family financially unstable.

“Our family life was pretty perfect: a nice house, two cars, a dog and a cat,” she told the Times. “That stability just got knocked out like a window; it shattered.” Kidd, 21, added that she wouldn’t think of marrying her son’s father, who she said she loves: “I don’t want to wind up like my mom.”

Marvin Olasky is editor-in-chief of WORLD Magazine.

The Lord warns us in Malachi 4:6: And he will turn The hearts of the fathers to the children, And the hearts of the children to their fathers, Lest I come and strike the earth with a curse.” (NKJV).  Many problems are associated with a broken home as we heard Brittany Kidd say ‘stability just got knocked out like a window, it shattered.’ The families fanancial security, and emotional stability where shattered in an instant leaving the children to bear the heaviest burden. What did Brittany learn from her experience? She swore she would not end up like her mother and yet she is living as a single mom the exact state her mother was left in.

Father’s and mothers your actions have consequences. As parents you are entrusted by God with the responsibilities that come with bearing children. I do not think it is any stretch to say the increase in out-of wedlock births and abortions are connected. As parents become more and more irresponsible with their own behavior, their children will suffer because of it. Our failure to live as Godly parents leaves behind a wake of ruined lives and shame.

Making abortions mainstream and removing the stigma of single-parent households does not make for a sound society. despite the ever-increasing social safety net spread beneath the single-parent household, reports show children of married parents do better, on average, in all societal issues, educationally, financially, emotionally, and socially. Granted there are exceptions but the chances are far better for children raised in a stable home with two loving God honoring parents.

The gospel writer Luke tells us that John the baptist would go before the coming of Christ to prepare a people who will be placed in the right moral state. The failure of the family is a crack in the foundation of our society which over time will cause it to crumble. There will come a point of no return and our society will be left in tatters much like Brittany’s family. As a society, and as parents, we need to examine our motives and attitudes towards children and learn to make Godly choices. Failure to do right by our children will in the end bring about our own destruction as a nation.

Just another view from the nest.

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• Fatherless Boys More Prone to Delinquency (fellowshipofminds.wordpress.com)
• Why Marriage is Crucial for Our Children, Our Country and Ourselves! (erasetheneed.wordpress.com)
• Number of single parents raising children continues to increase (newsok.com)