The Lord sets his children a race. At this point in time, the race for many of us is to educate our children at home. The good athlete is always looking to improve his game and I believe that in the same manner, home educating mothers have the responsibility to strive for excellence, ensuring that we ‘lay aside every weight, and sin which clings so closely…’ (Heb 12:1)
Every once in a while, it pays to spend some time reflecting on whether there is anything that is hindering our task, slowing down our pace, holding back home education from being as good as it can be in our circumstances. I know which ‘weights’ threaten to drag me down and thus impact my calling (my family) and I wonder whether any of these might just ring true for you?
1. Self-Reliance
Self-reliance is a murky swamp. When a mother is really struggling, the first area to investigate is her walk with the Lord. Consider the description of the man who yields much fruit in season (Psalm 1). Where is his delight? It is ‘in the law of the LORD, and on his law he meditates day and night.’ (Ps 1:2) Please hear me, my brood of seven under 12 means that I spent much of the last decade fighting tiredness after all-nighters with the baby and early mornings with the toddler. Early morning quiet times were really not feasible for me. (They are now!). But there needs to be some intent about finding time when we can. I often played sermons whilst I was pottering about with little babies, snatching those crumbs of truth whilst feeding and changing nappies. I highly recommend Voddie Baucham’s sermons on family for giving much-needed perspective to a weary day.
Secondly, we need to be meeting with and in fellowship with other believers to worship God, even if they do not always agree with our educational choices. Home education is one part of my life and the entirely of who I am and what I do profits from close companionship with other believers. After all, ‘iron sharpens iron and one man sharpens another.’ (Proverbs 27:17)
2. Disorganisation
This is possibly a sensitive subject! I was not born organized. I am learning on the job. Maths and Science reveal to me that God is a God of order and I do not think that we are good witnesses to this aspect of his character when our homes and our lives are in chaos. We need some sort of order in our home and in our homeschool. My husband and I made the decision to classically educate our children and I quickly discovered that this could not be done effectively by winging it every single day! Children profit from knowing when work starts and when they get to play and for this reason we have a structure to our day. I am not continually moving the goalposts. I need time in the week to be able to plan. We also need some sort of routine by which meals are cleared away, toys are picked up, and the hoover meets the carpet on a regular basis!
3. Frustrations
At home mums are often professional ‘stewers’. The nature of life is that there is very often an exterior situation that troubles us and the fact that we may spend many hours caring for little children without adult conversation means that it can be difficult to break out of the cycle of sinful worried, angry or even bitter thoughts. It is all too easy to manifest internal worry and stress by outward frustration towards our loved ones. The walk of the faithful believer is fraught with difficult situations and more often than not there is very little that we can do to put them right. But there is a command that mothers would do well to memorize and take to heart, namely that ‘whatever is true, whatever is honourable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things.’ (Phil 4:8)
One of the reasons that I find the home educating life so exciting is that I become the eternal learner. Every task on my list, whether teaching Maths or cleaning toilets can be accomplished more excellently and in a manner that is increasingly glorifying to God. I look forward to heaven where I will work and worship perfectly, but until that day I keep my eyes on the goal, praying that I run the race with unwavering perseverance and laying aside every weight…
