When they bring a child into the world, parents must be prepared to take on a big responsibility and adjust accordingly. They are embarking on a 20-year feeding, clothing, health-care, and education program, with the end result unpredictable.

Responsible Fatherhood

6. What question should Christian husbands ask themselves?

⁶ All Christian husbands, whether they have congregational responsibilities or not, should also consider the effect that taking care of young children could have on their wife’s spirituality. If a wife is not spiritually strong, how will a baby, or a number of babies, affect her personal study and opportunities to share in the preaching work?

7. What has happened to some Christian wives, and what is often the cause of this situation?

⁷ Do husbands always realize that taking care of a baby or a young child often prevents their wives from getting full benefit from the Congregation Book Study, Kingdom Hall meetings, circuit assemblies, and district conventions? Such a situation can last for months, and even years, when baby follows baby. It is in the nature of things that the load, in this respect, falls mainly on the mother, rather than on the father. It has sometimes been observed that whereas some Christian men progress spiritually, even to the point of being assigned privileges in the congregation, their wives become spiritually weak. Why? Often it is because their young children prevent the wives from concentrating at meetings, doing deep Bible study, or sharing in a large measure in the witnessing work. Can fatherhood be called responsible if it permits such situations to develop?

8. How do many fathers share the load of looking after the children, with what benefit to their wives?

⁸ Fortunately, this is not always the case. Many Christian fathers do their utmost to share the load of looking after the children. They take their full share in seeing that their children remain quiet during congregation meetings. If their baby starts to cry, or their child becomes boisterous, they in their turn will take it outside for appropriate discipline. Why should mother always be the one to lose parts of the meetings? At home, considerate husbands help their wives with the chores and in getting the children to bed so that husband and wife can sit down to concentrate quietly on spiritual matters.