"Except the LORD build the house, they labour in vain that build it..."And my aim was to encourage you that if you will trust in the Lord with all your heart and in all your ways acknowledge Him then He will direct your paths, and that He will not lead you to a place where His grace cannot keep you. He will provide you with the means to do it - what ever you need, wisdom, strength, finance - That is 'The LORD building the house' - not you... but the flip side to that is You building the house, not the Lord - i.e. If you try to do something for God in your own ability and understanding instead of being led by His Holy Spirit and working in His power and strength which He gives to you by grace through faith, then you will more than likely not manage it, and burn out, and more than that it will be a fruitless building of wood, hay and straw, that will one day be burned away. How much better to do it the way He suggests - when we humble ourselves to do it His way, we end up building with precious stones which last for ever.
The second key I wanted to highlight is this,
2."Lo children are an heritage of the LORD; and the fruit of the womb is His reward." Psalm 127
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| We all leave an impression - but none so important as that which we leave in our children - it determines the one they in turn will make on the world. |
It comes down to how I view my children,( and also how I define education but that is for another time).
Not trusting my own take on things I would much rather see how God views this. Here He is saying that children are a BLESSING and a REWARD. (Really? those little terrors that sap all my energy, don't do as they're told, need to be told 3 times before they listen etc etc etc, are a blessing? YES!)
Our children are a gift from God.
That's right, they are HIS creation and He gives them to us for a while.What a privilege! Each one is skillfully and wonderfully made in secret and then given to us, entrusted to us, for a short time...Why? To love, nourish, nurture and train them up in the way they should go, equipping them for service (hopefully in the plan God has for them - but that is their decision when they are old enough to make it).
Parenting is a job with huge responsibility and your employer is God! ( Going back to point 1 : God isn't going to give you a job without the tools to do it!) Yes it is hard work at times, but God says in His word that children are a blessing, and they really are.
Look at your child, see who he is inside, see his potential, remember the joy of the babe in your arms. We have them for such a short time, why would I want to leave them with other people for 5 days a week, being influenced by people i don't know, their characters being trained by peers in the playground, and being taught things in class that I may or may not agree with. For example - do I really want my primary school child being taught about sex education by a teacher or by his friends in the playground? Do I want them to know at 5, 6 or 7 yrs of age about the gay lifestyle how to have sex, etc? If you don't think this is happening look at this report released March last year which lists the councils (including Devon County Council) and what materials they have for use in sex education in primary schools Click here and then on the word 'report' at the beginning of the 2nd paragraph to see the actual list of councils and their materials. once made compulsory (if it isn't already - i haven't been keeping up with government legislature since i removed the boys from school)- you will not be allowed to have your child removed from the lesson.
We teach them from when they are 1 day old till 3yrs and then put them into nursery and then school, and each step of the way I feel like we lose a little bit more of them, then we wonder why the teen age years arrive and we don't know them anymore? - these young informative years are brief and what they are exposed to now, determines who they become later. I would much rather my children get their sense of who they are, from a loving family environment, so they are free to learn and enjoy learning, instead of worrying about fitting in and keeping up (socially in the playground and academically in the class room), I want to keep getting to know my boys as they grow up, as they change, as they develop into young men, because it won't be long and the boys will be men, striding out into the world to make their mark. What sort of men will they be? Only God knows - hence it's a good idea to keep seeking Him as to the best way to teach and raise them!
Whilst there were a few reasons for us chosing to homeschool what i have discussed today was the main drive behind it - I believe it is the best for our children - that doesn't mean I think everyone should do it - I believe we are all responsible for our own walk through this life - and as I said last time we are all individuals and God deals with us as such.
What do you think.....Any thoughts?
Any comments or questions are gratefully received - if you disagree with anything I have written please remember this is my opinion or belief and I am entitled to it, as you are to yours - you may comment but please be polite - or the comment will be removed. Opinions are like noses - we all have one, but they are all different, with a couple of holes in!
