My husband and I have 4 children and have begun to question whether or not our family is complete. Like all parents, we worry about providing for our children and making sure we have enough time for everyone! If nothing else, we feel that with a young baby still, we would like to postpone expanding our family. What seemed to be a simple answer of contraception, for some reason now just did not seem right. We once prayed to have children. It felt wrong to say, "Okay, that is enough now." It was during this time of deciding what to do that we noticed a pattern of "gentle hints" coming our way.

It started when a friend told me about Natural Family Planning because she was using it to help her conceive. We had many discussions on how the Church did not support contraception. I then remembered hearing Father tell us about the new Catholic radio station 740 AM during mass one Sunday. No matter when I listened, the topic was marriage and family. My husband began to hear the same. Contraception was often discussed, explaining that in many cases "contraceptive" also meant "abortive." That was a very strong message. Not long after that, I received my Catholic Telegraph and found a box that advertised for the Couple to Couple League and listed a contact for NFP classes. I made the phone call just to see what they had to say - I figured I had been given enough "gentle hints."

We are now newly practicing NFP. When we had made the decision, it felt as though a weight had been lifted. I knew that if we had done something permanent, that I would have been very sad. And, I realized that I always felt that there was something wrong with contraception, but I never took the time to think it through. NFP is a safe, reliable method of which God can be a part. Being new to NFP, we have our anxieties, but it feels great to thank God for our children by trusting Him with our future. I can only say that I wish it had always been a part of our life. And if you too are considering NFP and feel that there is little support, keep looking. It is out there!

By Martha

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