Each of our children is unique, each created with different gifts, talents, abilities, interests, passions, dislikes and preferences. All of these make them the wonderful child of God that the Lord intended them to be.
Isn't it amazing that each of our children were chosen by God before the foundations of the world (Ephesians 1:4)?It fills me with wonder and awe that each was created for a particular purpose, which God ordained in advance that they should pursue (Ephesians 2:10).
If God is for them, who or what could possibly stand against them? They are His! They are marked out, God's chosen, beloved children.
We can rest in God's plan and purpose for our children.
We need not strive, stress and worry.
And the LORD will continually guide you, And satisfy your desire in scorched places, And give strength to your bones; And you will be like a watered garden, And like a spring of water whose waters do not fail.
Isaiah 58:11
I will instruct thee and teach thee in the way which thou shalt go: I will guide thee with mine eye.
Psalm 32:8
Thus says the LORD, your Redeemer, the Holy One of Israel, "I am the LORD your God, who teaches you to profit, Who leads you in the way you should go."
Isaiah 46:17
God promises to guide and direct us. He promises that He will lead us. If He has a purpose for these children (which He does) why should we ever wring our hands in anxiousness over the decisions and choices that affect them....God isn't going to leave us to figure it out on our own!
Believe God. Trust His gentle counsel. Don't doubt the direction He gives. God is your leader. Let Him lead.
______________
We began school this week and I was tempted to think I should add a great deal more to our schedule (the kids were completing their assignments rather effortlessly). I was tempted to make it more rigorous, and increase the reading, writing and subjects. The peace I felt when planning was replaced by an anxiousness that I should do more, add more, challenge more, shoot higher and put more pressure on them. I knew they could handle it, I believed it wouldn't hurt to add a few more things to the schedule.
I felt pressure to work on that schedule and refine it. I began to get frustrated with my time constraints. I wanted to fix the schedules.
Then, I had an unexpected quiet time (you know, those special quiet times that come in the middle of the day or evening when you find yourself unexpectedly alone for an hour or so). During that time, I prayed, worshipped and felt a renewal of peace and a restored calm to my heart. Then, I knew. I knew that I should not doubt what I felt led to do with our schedule. I should not change it because my natural mind could not understand what God designed for our school day. I realized that our current schedule was perfect for achieving our specific goals for my children. The revised schedule would have hindered those goals by distracting us into a lot of extra learning that would not have truly profited us in the end.
God is so good. Don't neglect time with Him. He has so much to teach us and show us. He is our wonderful counselor!
Wednesday, August 13, 2008
Friday, August 8, 2008
Four Years
The thought has been constantly with me lately that I only have four more years of homeschooling my oldest - actually, less than that because she plans to start college early (however, I'll still be overseeing her education for four more years).
Four more years! Can you imagine? After it's all said and done, what will have been the most important thing I did as a homeschool mother? What will benefit her the most? Will it be completing every course with an A+? That's not a bad thing,but will the effort be the best use of her time? Will it be scoring top honors on the PSAT or the SAT? That's a nice thought, but will the preparation for perfect scores be the best use of our precious hours over the next four years? What is our goal with this child with whom God has so mercifully blessed us? What is His goal for this child?
I know that nurturing her walk with God must be number one. We must be the kind of parents that she can trust, parents that respect her and treat her the way all teenagers hope to be treated; this will increase her receptive heart towards the things of God.
Without neglecting academics, but not allowing them to interfere with our relationship or dominate every moment of her time, these years should be focused on leading her into a closer walk with God, a genuine dependence on the guidance and direction of the Holy Spirit. This should be more important than academics. For only the Lord knows what her path will be - Her whole life is written in His book - every day. If she learns to genuinely walk with Him, she will stay on His perfect, narrow path. She will not make drastic mistakes. Without a true walk with God - if straight A's were her focus, instead of the Lord - life can be very difficult. For, an Ivy League university, nor a PhD cannot promise you all that God promises you.
When a young man proposes to her, how will she know if this is the right person? Only if she has developed a lifestyle of walking closely in the counsel of God, will she know how to discern His will for her life. I want her to learn to recognize the Holy Spirit; I dont want to be her Holy Spirit. If I spend these next four taking the place of the Holy Spirit, she's in danger of mistaking His voice for mine, thinking it's my voice in her head nagging at her! She is a Christian, after all, and the same Spirit dwells in her that dwells in me. He is capable of leading her just a certainly as He is capable of leading me. Before she leaves this house, nothing will benefit her more (not perfect grades or SAT scores), nothing can compare to knowing how to be led by the Spirit.
I might have a temptation to worry about my own lack of sanctification, or fear that I've not done all that I should have done, been all that I should have been, said and taught all that I should have taught. I could easily fall into the well of despair, considering all my regrets and what I've done wrong over the years. Honestly, I don't want to spend these next four years wallowing in that pit.
If I give in to worry, dwelling on the hypotheticals, listening to the terrifying catastrophic voice of fear, it will drive me to spend these next four years in angst, striving with her over uncompleted assignments, messy rooms and undone chores. Instead of dealing with the inevitable attitudes with grace, mercy and loving talks (and sometimes gently instituted consequences) I might explode with angry words and harsh penalties; love always produces better fruit than a fear-based reaction. With fear as my guide, I would find myself rapidly fast-forwarding into the future, visualizing the ultimate destruction that every imperfection and unsanctified character trait could possibly bring. Fear has a tendency to show us worst possible case scenarios and insist they will happen. Faith tells us differently. No. I do not want to waste these last four years walking with a spirit of fear, I so desire to walk with the Spirit of Truth.
If I, as her mother, walk in the Spirit, staying close to God - not forsaking a genuine relationship with Him in favor of principles, philosphies, teachings and guidelines, listening to His still, small voice in my heart, quieting my soul, allowing Him to impart a gentleness, mercy and hope unknown to my fleshly nature, He will guide me as I guide her; He will give me fruitful wisdom with my words and decisions; He will show me how to deal with the issues that will occur with merciful discernment.
If I stay close to Jesus, abiding in the vine, gathering manna daily, tuning my heart to the Shepherd who gently leads those who have young, I know for certain that I will spend these next four years without regret. Oh! may it be so!
Four more years! Can you imagine? After it's all said and done, what will have been the most important thing I did as a homeschool mother? What will benefit her the most? Will it be completing every course with an A+? That's not a bad thing,but will the effort be the best use of her time? Will it be scoring top honors on the PSAT or the SAT? That's a nice thought, but will the preparation for perfect scores be the best use of our precious hours over the next four years? What is our goal with this child with whom God has so mercifully blessed us? What is His goal for this child?
I know that nurturing her walk with God must be number one. We must be the kind of parents that she can trust, parents that respect her and treat her the way all teenagers hope to be treated; this will increase her receptive heart towards the things of God.
Without neglecting academics, but not allowing them to interfere with our relationship or dominate every moment of her time, these years should be focused on leading her into a closer walk with God, a genuine dependence on the guidance and direction of the Holy Spirit. This should be more important than academics. For only the Lord knows what her path will be - Her whole life is written in His book - every day. If she learns to genuinely walk with Him, she will stay on His perfect, narrow path. She will not make drastic mistakes. Without a true walk with God - if straight A's were her focus, instead of the Lord - life can be very difficult. For, an Ivy League university, nor a PhD cannot promise you all that God promises you.
When a young man proposes to her, how will she know if this is the right person? Only if she has developed a lifestyle of walking closely in the counsel of God, will she know how to discern His will for her life. I want her to learn to recognize the Holy Spirit; I dont want to be her Holy Spirit. If I spend these next four taking the place of the Holy Spirit, she's in danger of mistaking His voice for mine, thinking it's my voice in her head nagging at her! She is a Christian, after all, and the same Spirit dwells in her that dwells in me. He is capable of leading her just a certainly as He is capable of leading me. Before she leaves this house, nothing will benefit her more (not perfect grades or SAT scores), nothing can compare to knowing how to be led by the Spirit.
I might have a temptation to worry about my own lack of sanctification, or fear that I've not done all that I should have done, been all that I should have been, said and taught all that I should have taught. I could easily fall into the well of despair, considering all my regrets and what I've done wrong over the years. Honestly, I don't want to spend these next four years wallowing in that pit.
If I give in to worry, dwelling on the hypotheticals, listening to the terrifying catastrophic voice of fear, it will drive me to spend these next four years in angst, striving with her over uncompleted assignments, messy rooms and undone chores. Instead of dealing with the inevitable attitudes with grace, mercy and loving talks (and sometimes gently instituted consequences) I might explode with angry words and harsh penalties; love always produces better fruit than a fear-based reaction. With fear as my guide, I would find myself rapidly fast-forwarding into the future, visualizing the ultimate destruction that every imperfection and unsanctified character trait could possibly bring. Fear has a tendency to show us worst possible case scenarios and insist they will happen. Faith tells us differently. No. I do not want to waste these last four years walking with a spirit of fear, I so desire to walk with the Spirit of Truth.
If I, as her mother, walk in the Spirit, staying close to God - not forsaking a genuine relationship with Him in favor of principles, philosphies, teachings and guidelines, listening to His still, small voice in my heart, quieting my soul, allowing Him to impart a gentleness, mercy and hope unknown to my fleshly nature, He will guide me as I guide her; He will give me fruitful wisdom with my words and decisions; He will show me how to deal with the issues that will occur with merciful discernment.
If I stay close to Jesus, abiding in the vine, gathering manna daily, tuning my heart to the Shepherd who gently leads those who have young, I know for certain that I will spend these next four years without regret. Oh! may it be so!
Now to Him who is able to keep you from stumbling, and to make you stand in the presence of His glory blameless with great joy, to the only God our Savior, through Jesus Christ our Lord, be glory, majesty, dominion and authority, before all time and now and forever. Amen.
Jude 1:24-25
"Not by might nor by power, but by My Spirit," says the LORD of hosts.
Zech 4:6
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