3.       NATURAL CONTRACEPTION.

“Just a minute," I hear you say. "I know many women who have conceived while breastfeeding!" Yes, I agree with you. But it depends how they were breastfeeding. If we do it God's way, we will have natural child spacing.

Well, what is God's way of breastfeeding? As a young mother I was confused. Over thirty years ago, rigid four-hourly scheduling influenced me. This limited amount of nursing was not enough to stimulate milk supply and by three months I had sadly weaned my baby. I nursed twins for six months, but it was not until my fourth baby that I found the successful way of nursing my baby.

Oh, why wasn't there some older woman around to teach me? I found that to ensure an ample milk supply, that I needed to feed my baby more frequently, in fact, not just when he/she was hungry, but when he/she was miserable and needed comforting. But then I felt guilty as accusing voices spoke, "Oh you will spoil the baby if you feed him whenever he wants a feed."

Now what should I do? I so wanted to do it God's way. Then God showed me through His Word. Every answer is in the Word of God, isn't it?

In Isaiah 66:10-13 God is talking about Jerusalem and likening her to a nursing mother. So when we read what He says, we get God's understanding of a nursing mother. As you read this passage you will see no mention of food. What do you see?

"That ye may suck, and be satisfied with the breasts of her consolations: that ye may milk out, and be delighted with the abundance  For thus saith the Lord, Behold, I will extend peace to her like a river, and the Gentiles like a flowing stream: then shall ye suck, ye shall be borne upon her sides, and be dandled upon her knees. As one whom his mother comforteth, so will I comfort you; and ye shall be comforted in Jerusalem." of her glory.

Did you notice the words -  "satisfy, console, delight, comfort?" We see here that nursing is not an alternative way to feed a baby, e.g. bottle feeding versus breastfeeding. No, it is total mothering to meet every need of the child. So the breast is used, not just to satisfy hunger, but also to satisfy, delight, console and comfort.

When a mother nurses her baby this way, she will be nursing many times a day and even in the night. This amount of sucking stimulation will hold back ovulation and therefore she won't conceive. They have made a study of mothers who nurse this way.

The average return of menstruation for these mothers is 14.6 months, which means they would have their babies about two years apart. However, some don't commence menstruation until 2.5 years while some will start at 6 months. It is also usual for the first period or even the first two to be sterile. In Hosea 1:8 it tells us that after Gomer weaned she conceived and bore a son.

It is interesting that this passage in Isaiah 66 it also hints at the hormone, oxytocin. It says that as she gives suck, she will have peace flowing over her like a river.

THAT WHICH IS ENOUGH

We have already talked about the understanding of God, El Shaddai. Let's look a little closer at this word, shaddai. 

'Sha' means 'that which is or he who is'

'Dai' means 'enough'

Therefore the meaning for breast is 'that which is enough'!

Isn't that wonderful? The breast is total provision for the little babe as he/she nurses. When nursing a baby, we don't have to give supplement bottles, we don't have to give solids, we don't have to give pacifiers - the breast is enough to satisfy the physical and emotional hunger of our baby. God's understanding of the breast is that it is enough!

Now I must reiterate that this natural contraception, which is God’s plan, requires total mothering. You will need to:

a) Nurse your baby for emotional as well as physical needs. Yes, you'll be nursing more frequently. But don't worry! Just put your feet up and have another rest and don't fret! Remember, you are doing a great job! You are nurturing a precious life. There is nothing more important that God wants you to do at this moment!

Psalm 71:3 says, "Be thou my strong habitation, whereunto I may continually resort." Even as a grown man, David looks to the Lord for a habitation, to where he can come at any time. I think he is subconsciously thinking back to his early nursing days with his mother, when he could come to her at any time.

She was totally available as he constantly resorted to her for sustenance. It is a picture of a true nursing mother, isn't it? In fact, have you ever watched the little lambs or calves feed from their mothers out in the fields? They have total access to their mothers. They will drink a little and leave it, and then go back and drink again whenever they need.

b) Satisfy the sucking need of your baby. I am surprised to see so many babies with pacifiers in their mouths. A pacifier is a mother substitute. Babies are born with an incredible sucking need, which must be satisfied. God intends the mother to satisfy that need. Not only does this increase the bond of mother and baby, but also it holds back ovulation. If your baby uses a pacifier, it will be likely that you could still conceive during breastfeeding.

My first three babies were scheduled. Two sucked their thumbs and one sucked her bottom lip. My last three babies were totally nursed. None of them sucked any substitute or needed anything else (even a ‘cuddly’) to satisfy them. They were totally satisfied and nurtured by the breast.

c) Don't start solid food until six months. There is absolutely no necessity to do this before this time. Some babies won't be ready until nine months. You are only substituting an inferior food for the most perfect food God intends for your baby. And if you do, it will also limit your nursing and thus hasten the onset of ovulation. In fact, babies don't need extra food until they have teeth and can masticate.

d) Don't use a bottle. Don't give water in a bottle or orange juice. It is totally unnecessary. If your baby is thirsty, nurse from your breast again. Don't ever give a supplement.

If you think your baby is not getting enough, increase the nursing. Increased nursing will always build up a dwindling milk supply. It is the sucking stimulation that increases your milk. It is impossible to run out of milk if you feed your baby frequently enough. Babies will often have a hunger spurt at about six weeks and again around three months. They fuss and cry and want to feed more frequently.

The mother may think she is running out of milk, but what is happening is that the baby is saying, "I need a bigger supply now," and so he fusses so he can feed more frequently to build up the supply again. So the law of supply and demand always works. Of course, there are always exceptions to the rule, and if you notice that your little baby has continual dry diapers, you’ll know that something is wrong and you must take action.

e)  Nurse during the night. The goal of modern mothers it to get their baby to sleep through the night. A 'good' baby is determined by whether he sleeps through the night or not. But night nursing is necessary for holding back ovulation, which means that this is God's intention.

Even Paul, when describing himself as a nursing mother toward the Thessalonian new Christians, talks about "laboring night and day." (1 Thessalonians 1:7-9) Night feeding is not so bad, especially if you take the baby to bed with you. In fact, it is a very precious experience. 

A word of caution. Breastfeeding should not be used for the primary purpose of contraception. It is an added blessing that comes with breastfeeding. Ultimately our trust must be in the Sovereign Lord who opens and closes the womb. If a mother conceives sooner than expected, it is God’s will to bless her with another gift from Himself. Every conception is a blessing, even if the timing may not seem right to us.

Another note. It seems that in our modern day that there is a minority of women whose periods return very quickly even though they nurse night and day and don’t use pacifiers or solids. Some statistics say it is about 5 per cent and that these are women who have higher estrogen levels. I have also wondered if our high intake of meat (that is injected with growth hormones, chemicals and drugs) could be responsible. However, this is only my thought, not documented fact.

Biblical Understanding of Nursing:

We have discussed Isaiah 66:10-13. Let’s look at 1 Thessalonians 2:7-9. Here we notice how Paul uses a number of similarities with a nursing mother....

Gentle                  "we were gentle among you."

Nourishing           the word "nurse" means "nourisher" in the Greek.

Cherishing           "cherishing her children."

Loving                  "affectionately desirous of you."

Available              "we were willing..."

Sacrificing            "we were willing to have imparted unto you, not the gospel of God only, but also our own lives..."

Night nursing       "laboring night and day."

 

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