With three children and a fourth expected to be born later this year, Vice President JD Vance’s strong endorsement of parenthood is a matter of personal conviction.
Speaking with the popular podcaster and commentator Benny Johnson last week, the former senator and current vice president acknowledged his only regret was not having more children than he and his wife, Second Lady Usha Vance, currently have.
“I wish that we had started early and had more, because it’s the most rewarding, it’s the coolest thing,” he said. “Now that our kids are at the ages 8, 6, and 4, where they’ve got their own little personalities, and they’re so quirky and fun. They’re all into different sports, and it’s just an amazing thing.”
Vice President Vance and Mrs. Vance met while students at Yale Law School. Usha Vance was an editor of the Yale Law Journal. They were friends before beginning their courtship. Born in Ohio and raised by his grandparents in Kentucky, JD served in the Marines before attending and graduating from Ohio State University.
During last week’s sit-down interview with the vice president, Johnson asked him for his best advice to young Christian men regarding fatherhood.
“My advice to young men who are thinking about becoming fathers, who are about to have babies, is: you’re never ready,” replied VP Vance. “There’s no point at which you can sort of get all your little ducks in a row and get all your financial situation in a row. Whenever you have a baby, whatever stage of life, it will be shocking, it will be crazy. It will be the most difficult and the most rewarding thing that you’ve ever done.”
The vice president went on to relay a story about a friend who confided in him that it was only after seeing the sleep-deprived Vances in the aftermath of their first child that the friend realized he and his wife could do it, too.
“Example is not the main thing in influencing others,” wrote Albert Schweitzer. “It is the only thing.”
It would be impossible to overestimate the powerful witness that married Christian couples with large families can make to a younger generation that ignores, is unsure, or is otherwise intimidated by the prospect of having children. Couples may not be motivated to have lots of kids to make a cultural point – but that’s an effective benefit and outgrowth of a big family.
“I think our society tells young men that you only have kids after everything in your life is perfect,” observed VP Vance. “And I think that’s a ridiculous attitude. You have kids, you figure it out. They’re the thing that perfects life.”
Delaying children until you have the degree or a certain amount in a retirement account belies the reality of the way the Lord often blesses His people. He uses our struggles to teach, instruct, inspire and draw us closer to Him. The tragic risk of waiting until all the pieces are in place before marrying and having children is that you might just wait until it’s too late.
One of the great lies of modern life is that men and women are in control. It’s the fantasy that we can call our own shots, right down to the number of children, the month they’re born, and sometimes even their sex and color of their eyes. The Lord does give us some agency, but He is sovereign and always has the final say.
If you’re young and married, take VP Vance’s wise advice: Ask the Lord to bless you with children. Lots of them. With His help, you and your spouse will figure it out.
