HOMESCHOOLING BEGINS WITH HOME

OVERVIEW

Relate to the Lord:
His Burden is Light ~ Is Yours?

Homeschooling Articles Series Themes:

1. Relationship
   • Relate to the Lord
   • Relate to Your Particular Child
   • Relate to the Whole Person (two parts)
   • Relate to Your Own Education
2. Stewardship
3. Scholarship
4. Easy Recordkeeping

Moms new to homeschooling as well as seasoned veterans often experience some sort of burden because of the responsibility they have undertaken.

• Idealistic and responsible beginners want to do everything right and so they can become somewhat burdened with finding the “right” things to do for their children.

• Those who struggle with organization and/or lack consistency may shrug off responsibility but be burdened with the nagging thought, “I should be doing more.”

• Seasoned veterans’ idealism can begin to fade because what they expected clashes with the reality of what actually is actually happening in their homes and in the lives of their children and themselves.

I hope this article will inspire each of you to examine your hearts and minds so that you will choose to begin a walk by faith rather than fear as you learn to cooperate with the Lord as He works in your child’s life—and your own.

Before answering this question, disillusioned veterans may brace themselves, breathe deeply, and hold in a discouraged sigh—but try to smile—because they know that they have tried various curricula over time which have added to their burden. They don’t want to quell the enthusiasm of a newbie by expounding upon their perceived failures, and so they name the most current curriculum they are using and explain why, so far, it is the best one.

Both these moms are allowing the school aspect of homeschooling to engulf the home aspect. Their school focus, like a smothering blanket, stifles—or perhaps suffocates—their home life. They envision their children completing a publisher’s scope-and-sequence cheerfully because the child wants that homeschool diploma at the end of her academic high school career.

But… (there’s always a “but,” isn’t there?)... when children don’t mesh with the scope-and-sequence offered by curriculum providers or required by the school system and mom pushes and coerces her children to complete what someone else says they should do, relationships suffer (to say the least) and the home becomes a desert of chaos rather than an oasis of refreshment. And school? Well, school becomes a heavy burden for the children and for mom.

Yoke with Christ. His burden is light.

When mom begins to cooperate with the Lord in the work He wants to do in her life, she will change as her mind is renewed. As her renewed mindset reaches her heart and she obeys the Lord, she will prioritize her daily home routine differently.

Am I an advocate of tossing out curricula and just letting your children learn what they want when they want? Not at all! Curricula have their place… as tools, not masters. I am, however, an advocate of discerning what is your responsibility, what is your child’s, and what is the Lord’s.

Whether you are a newbie or a seasoned veteran or lack organizational skills and consistency, when you yoke with Christ on a faith journey the burden of homeSCHOOLing will become lighter as your mind is renewed to HOMEschooling.

As you abide, Christ’s love overflowing from your heart will reach your children and His light will guide you as you learn to discern His Voice. He will teach you how to meet your children’s true needs as He meets your own.

He is waiting for you!

I can testify from experience that He will teach you to hearken to His Voice alone while making relationship, stewardship, and scholarship decisions for your children and for yourself.

If the Lord is speaking to your heart right now—perhaps emotions are welling up because you are that disillusioned, disorganized, and/or inconsistent mom who wants so much more from your homeschooling journey or perhaps you are the newbie who is so fearful of the system—let me address you personally:

As you begin to create margin in your own life and the lives of your children as well as to develop the tool of home, real life will become your curriculum for developing all aspects of your child’s growth, as well as your own.

As you learn to savor real life because you have made room for real life, you will gain a fresh perspective about the important—not dominant—place of academics in the overall routines of your daily home life.

However, the academic or intellectual aspect of education will not loom over you like a dark cloud that keeps you running for cover and exhausts you.

Rather, you will begin to exercise authority over your child’s academic development as well as your own. When you no longer fear the system or your perceived failures to meet system requirements, you will begin to discover your child’s true needs and minister to him as a person.

Rather than trying to fit him into a curriculum, at the appropriate season of his life you will find curricula that fit him. Why?

Instead of using scope-and-sequence as the means to the end of a K-12 education, you will discover that a scope-and-sequence will become a tool for the more mature child who has developed the skills and motivation to pursue his own learning with mom as guide rather than as teacher.

Your burden will be lifted
because you are yoked with Christ!

Praise His Name!

Let Him teach you how to lay the sure foundation upon which your children can build as you take the next step in this faith walk called homeschooling: relate to your particular child.

My dear sister-in-the-Lord,

The renewing of the mind is such a struggle—a worthwhile struggle. Pray that His Spirit will help you to put academics in its appropriate place in your own mind.

• If academics is too important and runs your life, become the master of your academic choices as you make room for real life.

• If academics is not important enough because you are fearful you are not smart enough, not organized enough, not consistent enough, become the master of your academic choices through your own self-education as you come alongside your children.

As you pray, the Lord will ask you to release the fear that binds you so you can be filled with His love to overflowing. Perfect or mature love drives out fear. Will you let His love drive out your fears?

When the fear of academics no longer rules your mind and His love flows from your abiding heart, you will then be released to minister to your beloved child’s body, soul (intellect [this is where academics fits in], will, and emotions], and spirit.

Throughout this process of renewing your mind, you will become a purified vessel the Spirit uses to release your children to become all they were created to be. You need not be perfect throughout this process, just willing and obedient, as you live a genuine Christian life before your children.

Instead of fearing the system, fear the Lord (Isaiah 8:13) and become all He created you to be as you are released to love while ministering to your children through homeschooling.

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