Recently I became aware that there are some in our church that are adamantly against homeschooling because they feel strongly that Christian parents should send their children to the public school in order to be salt and light there. They believe that homeschooling is the wrong thing to do and have been very vocal about their opinion that our conviction (and other's convictions in our community) to homeschool our children is wrong.
I've been thinking about that a lot and asking God to give me some insight and reassurance about what we are doing. I just wanted to share some thoughts with you. So, this is just me unloading a little.
If a parent sends their children to Public School in order for their children to be salt and light, how are they preparing that child to do work that many adults find daunting? Some thoughts:
A child gets sent to school starting at age 5 or 6.
They spend 8 - 10 hours at school each day (if we count riding the bus and any after school activities). Sometimes more if they are teens.
After school, they spend 2 - 4 hours on school related homework (depending upon their grade).
If the parents work, they don't even see their child again until after 5 p.m. (maybe later depending upon the job).
This leaves the parents about 1 hour per day of time with their child. Hopefully they spend it around the dinner table or interacting in some way and not watching TV.
Usually this hour is spent in asking such things as: How was school today? Did you get your homework done? Do you need help with homework? Where are you going? When will you be back? When is the next school event? etc. I venture to suggest that this hour is NOT spent in the Word of God or talking about spiritual things.
However, there may be some time in passing or in occasional conversations that the parent is able to impart some important values or talk about spiritual matters. Let's say that that time might be 2 hours per week.
Then, if the child goes to Wed. night church, Sunday morning Sunday School and then Church; they get about 3 hours of spiritual training -- by the pastor or youth leader, NOT the parents.
So, in total, this means that the opportunity for spiritual training during the week for that child might be:
5 hours per week by 4 different adults (assuming that the child has 2 parents and we count the youth leader and pastor)
However:
They spend 40 - 50 hours per week at school where God is not even a part of the curriculum or teaching. In fact, the curriculum and teaching go AGAINST the Word of God most of the time.
They spend another 10 - 20 hours per week doing other school related homework or activities; most of which is secular humanist and anti-God in nature.
They have 8 - 16 (depending on grade) other adults who are mandated NOT to talk or teach about God or His Word at all in the school unless the child brings up the subject. In addition, many times these teachers are NOT Christians and will actively teach secular humanist and anti-God views in the classroom.
In addition, they have the influence of their peers, who are often NOT Christians (or if they are Christians, they are in the same boat) and are constantly pressuring the child to do things that are immoral -- whether that is lying, not completing assignments or having sex and doing drugs.
In conclusion:
On the Spiritual Training side of a Public Schooled child we have:
4 adults and 5 hours per week.
On the Secular Humanist, anti-God training side of a Public Schooled child we have: 8 - 16 adults and 40 - 50 hours per week.
A child has to be super human in order to counteract the influence of school and be any kind of salt and light at all. How many adults could stand up under this pressure? Many cannot and do not.
If any child is to be salt and light in any public school, his parents must be PURPOSEFUL and CONSISTENT in training him spiritually. In my mind, this would take many more hours than 1 or 2 per day. I would venture to say that many Christian parents do not even have a daily devotion with their families let alone purposefully train their children to evangelize or influence their school.
In light of the above, the statistics about Christian kids leaving the church after high school or college make total sense. So, in my opinion, to say that Christian kids should be sent to public school in order to be salt and light there is a totally ridiculous, irresponsible, and unreasonable expectation.
Also, consider:
20 years ago we knew about 4 VDs; today we have identified 26, 4 of which are fatal.
20 years ago homosexuality was a taboo subject that most teachers avoided; today kindergartners are being taught about Tommy and his 2 mommies or Sally and her 2 daddies and teens are being approached during lunch by members of the Gay Rights community offering to counsel them on their sexuality issues.
20 years ago students got suspended if they had a fight during school recess; today policemen are hired to protect teachers from their students, metal detectors are being used to detect weapons before kids enter the front doors and bomb threats are common place -- not to mention incidents like Columbine.
20 years ago if a student got drunk it was a bit of a scandal; today kids are considered "nerds" or "gay" if they don't have sex before their senior year, get drunk or high with their buddies on the weekends and "smoking pot" is fashionable.
20 years ago if a student back-talked a teacher or showed disrespect in the classroom, they were disciplined; today teachers and coaches don't think twice before cussing out a student or team member, foul language and disrespect in the classroom are commonplace and many students and teachers don't have any respect for the authority placed over them.
The Word of God tells parents that we are to raise our children in "the nurture and admonition of the Lord". If we send them into that kind of environment, are we being obedient?
If a relationship with the Lord and godly character are the most important things in my child's education, we would be irresponsible Christian parents if we allowed the influence of the public school to be more than our own influence over our children for the Lord. May God continue to bless our efforts to instill these two important "subjects" into our children through homeschooling.
Based on the above and on my conversations with Terence (when he is around and I can talk to him), I regret allowing him to go to Van Horn High. However, he really wants to stick it out and he is trying to make a difference with several of his friends. Please be in prayer for him. The LEAST of his challenges is academics.
Thursday, February 14, 2008
Monday, September 24, 2007
Everything Changes...But God...
Everything Changes…
Buildings rise..
…fall into disrepair
…get built anew
…or are torn down.
Stone and mortar…
…crumble and crack
…are filled and stacked again
…or wash away with the rain.
But God never changes.
Everything changes…
People come…
…gather together
…move away
…come back.
People change…
…the young grow to adult
…adults have children
…the old pass away.
But God never changes.
Everything changes…
Towns begin…
…business springs up
…it booms and thrives
…then it declines and sleeps.
Corporate vision…
…gets moved along
…great things happen
…or leaders change and the vision dies.
But God never changes.
Everything changes…
Christians…
…cling to the vision of Christ
…press in and grow
…become discouraged and distracted.
Families…
…come to know Christ
…teach their children
…or forget and children suffer and wander
…then return when they hear God calling them.
Because God never changes.
God is always…
…loving us
…forgiving us
…calling us
…hearing us…
God is the same…
…yesterday
…today
…forever.
Everything changes…
…Kingdoms rise and fall
…Churches are built and crumble
…People are born and die
…Faith waxes and wanes.
But God…
…Never changes.
By Sheila Gilmore
@2007
Buildings rise..
…fall into disrepair
…get built anew
…or are torn down.
Stone and mortar…
…crumble and crack
…are filled and stacked again
…or wash away with the rain.
But God never changes.
Everything changes…
People come…
…gather together
…move away
…come back.
People change…
…the young grow to adult
…adults have children
…the old pass away.
But God never changes.
Everything changes…
Towns begin…
…business springs up
…it booms and thrives
…then it declines and sleeps.
Corporate vision…
…gets moved along
…great things happen
…or leaders change and the vision dies.
But God never changes.
Everything changes…
Christians…
…cling to the vision of Christ
…press in and grow
…become discouraged and distracted.
Families…
…come to know Christ
…teach their children
…or forget and children suffer and wander
…then return when they hear God calling them.
Because God never changes.
God is always…
…loving us
…forgiving us
…calling us
…hearing us…
God is the same…
…yesterday
…today
…forever.
Everything changes…
…Kingdoms rise and fall
…Churches are built and crumble
…People are born and die
…Faith waxes and wanes.
But God…
…Never changes.
By Sheila Gilmore
@2007
Never Too Old to Learn
Never Too Late to Learn
“Let self-education be an integral part of the education of your students.”
Andrew Campbell
The Latin Centered Curriculum
We’ve started another school year in the Gilmore house; and, like each preceding year, this one is different from the last. It seems like each time we start up again, we are starting a whole new routine.
Deanna sat at her desk pouring over her three books laid out on the top. Her pencil was going furiously as she copied, translated and diagramed the Latin sentences from her book. I noticed a couple of new index cards with grammar rules written on them next to the Latin grammar book.
Mikayla was also sitting at her desk with pencil in hand writing figures on her white-board slate. We had just finished our Latin recitation and she was trying to finish up her Math before we did History. Area and Volume were the item of the day and she was thrilled that she was getting it all down pat.
Leilani was hunched over her work space right across from me working on something. When I looked over, I realized that it was a drawing on her Math slate and that she was not doing her Math page as she should have been. She looked up and caught my eye. I gave her one of those what-are-you-doing- looks and she erased her board and went back to her Math.
It was about 10 a.m. and Terence had left for school at the local high school. I’d been up since 7 a.m. so that I could pray with him before he left. I’m still having a hard time with him being at the high school instead of at home. But, there have been some benefits: for instance, he likes his Math teacher and has had an improved attitude about Math recently. We’ll see how it goes and Ralph and I continue to pray that God will protect him in that place.
Adrian is living in Illinois with his mother, Anita, and going to school at a public school there. We keep in touch on MySpace and e-mail and he seems to be doing pretty well. He just told us today that his Video Technology teacher is a Christian and the friends that he has are Christians, too. We can see that God is working to bless him and we’re so thankful. So, he isn’t at home either.
Math papers were done and we did our History timeline recitation and talked a little bit about the first colonies started in the United States and how some of the explorers and colonists were Christians and wanted to win the “Indians” to Christ. Deanna worked busily on her Math as we did our lesson. Occasionally, she would interrupt with a question about the algebra equation she was working.
We took a break and Mikayla and Leilani helped me with our Postcard Wall. We have been putting up all of the postcards that we have collected over the years. They frame a map of the world on which we have stuck pins - different colors to indicate who has been where: blue for Dad, green for Grandma, red for the whole family, etc. It is really interesting to see the pins marking all of the states we’ve visited. This is really a Geography lesson but I’m not going to tell the girls that because they wanted a break from “school”.
We usually do our lessons in Greek earlier, but today they came later because we’d started with Latin instead. Deanna had already been halfway into her Latin exercises when we’d finished breakfast. It’s been really fun learning the Greek alphabet because we can transliterate English words using the Greek letters and it looks like code. We’ve all been having fun getting used to the sounds that way. So, we reviewed our letters and diphthongs and then set about learning some vocabulary and the first verb conjugation. We’re all amazed at how similar it is to Latin.
At lunch time, I set the girls to doing their kitchen chores while I re-heated leftovers from the night before and made a salad. The dogs sat at the edge of the carpet just outside the kitchen and watched us expectantly, hoping to get a few morsels thrown their way. When there is no food involved, they sit under my desk and generally get in the way.
After lunch, we sat on the sofa and I read aloud - the Iliad - while Deanna followed along in her book and the others listened. Agamemnon had just suffered huge losses in his battle with the Trojans and Achilles has refused to fight because Agamemnon had taken Breseis away from him. It’s an exciting story, but a bit difficult to read aloud so I am challenged. Deanna corrects me every now and then when my eyes get faster than my mouth.
Now, it is copy work and recitation from the Bible. Each of them are memorizing a chapter over the next two months - so they have to use their chapter for copying and read it over every day.
When each of them have read some of their verses to me, I open up the computer and select the song that we are learning from the Library. It’s one of my favorites and the girls are really enjoying it, too: Dona Nobis Pacem (Grant us peace). They are learning to sing it in a round and it sounds great.
As so often happens, the day passes by too quickly to get to everything. So, I put the History of Rome and Greek Mythology on the list for tomorrow and send them off to practice their piano. Deanna gets out her Logic and we go over the next lesson and discuss it -- she thinks it is the most boring subject of all.
This year is the most structured of all of our years home schooling. Instead of 5 or 6, I only have 3 at home all day. For me it is quite a change and it is easier to be a bit more structured. However, it is also a testament to what I’ve learned over the years: how to take each subject a little at a time and integrate it with the other subjects. It is amazing the way we get to grow, learn and change with our children and I’ve loved every minute of it.
We’re learning Greek because I want to learn Greek. We are delving into Roman History because I’ve always wanted to learn more about it. We are reading Greek and Roman Mythology because I want to really understand John Milton’s Paradise Lost. We are singing Latin songs because I love learning the music. We’re reading the Illiad because I want to read it (especially after seeing the movie Troy). We will probably do a lot of other things this year because I’ve wanted to do them myself.
I had a very wise friend once tell me “As you learn, bring what you learn to your children. You will learn it even better and they can see that you are learning, too.” I’ve tried to take that to heart and have benefited greatly from it.
Our greatest blessing this year has been that Dad has taken up the call to “teach what you learn and learn what you teach” as well. He read the book Epic by John Eldridge and enjoyed it so much that he read it aloud to us during our family worship times. Even though it was a little over the heads of the younger ones (as is the Illiad), we all enjoyed his reading aloud and it was a welcome change from Mom. We’re looking forward to more teaching of the Word from Dad as we go through this year.
I’m learning more and more that I don’t have to know it all to teach. I just have to have a desire to learn it. As long as I understand it just a little bit more than my children, there is success and we all learn.
Above all, God is blessing us every day with a desire to see things through His eyes. If I can learn anything more, I want to learn to see things the way that He sees them and then teach my children to do that, too.
“Let self-education be an integral part of the education of your students.”
Andrew Campbell
The Latin Centered Curriculum
We’ve started another school year in the Gilmore house; and, like each preceding year, this one is different from the last. It seems like each time we start up again, we are starting a whole new routine.
Deanna sat at her desk pouring over her three books laid out on the top. Her pencil was going furiously as she copied, translated and diagramed the Latin sentences from her book. I noticed a couple of new index cards with grammar rules written on them next to the Latin grammar book.
Mikayla was also sitting at her desk with pencil in hand writing figures on her white-board slate. We had just finished our Latin recitation and she was trying to finish up her Math before we did History. Area and Volume were the item of the day and she was thrilled that she was getting it all down pat.
Leilani was hunched over her work space right across from me working on something. When I looked over, I realized that it was a drawing on her Math slate and that she was not doing her Math page as she should have been. She looked up and caught my eye. I gave her one of those what-are-you-doing- looks and she erased her board and went back to her Math.
It was about 10 a.m. and Terence had left for school at the local high school. I’d been up since 7 a.m. so that I could pray with him before he left. I’m still having a hard time with him being at the high school instead of at home. But, there have been some benefits: for instance, he likes his Math teacher and has had an improved attitude about Math recently. We’ll see how it goes and Ralph and I continue to pray that God will protect him in that place.
Adrian is living in Illinois with his mother, Anita, and going to school at a public school there. We keep in touch on MySpace and e-mail and he seems to be doing pretty well. He just told us today that his Video Technology teacher is a Christian and the friends that he has are Christians, too. We can see that God is working to bless him and we’re so thankful. So, he isn’t at home either.
Math papers were done and we did our History timeline recitation and talked a little bit about the first colonies started in the United States and how some of the explorers and colonists were Christians and wanted to win the “Indians” to Christ. Deanna worked busily on her Math as we did our lesson. Occasionally, she would interrupt with a question about the algebra equation she was working.
We took a break and Mikayla and Leilani helped me with our Postcard Wall. We have been putting up all of the postcards that we have collected over the years. They frame a map of the world on which we have stuck pins - different colors to indicate who has been where: blue for Dad, green for Grandma, red for the whole family, etc. It is really interesting to see the pins marking all of the states we’ve visited. This is really a Geography lesson but I’m not going to tell the girls that because they wanted a break from “school”.
We usually do our lessons in Greek earlier, but today they came later because we’d started with Latin instead. Deanna had already been halfway into her Latin exercises when we’d finished breakfast. It’s been really fun learning the Greek alphabet because we can transliterate English words using the Greek letters and it looks like code. We’ve all been having fun getting used to the sounds that way. So, we reviewed our letters and diphthongs and then set about learning some vocabulary and the first verb conjugation. We’re all amazed at how similar it is to Latin.
At lunch time, I set the girls to doing their kitchen chores while I re-heated leftovers from the night before and made a salad. The dogs sat at the edge of the carpet just outside the kitchen and watched us expectantly, hoping to get a few morsels thrown their way. When there is no food involved, they sit under my desk and generally get in the way.
After lunch, we sat on the sofa and I read aloud - the Iliad - while Deanna followed along in her book and the others listened. Agamemnon had just suffered huge losses in his battle with the Trojans and Achilles has refused to fight because Agamemnon had taken Breseis away from him. It’s an exciting story, but a bit difficult to read aloud so I am challenged. Deanna corrects me every now and then when my eyes get faster than my mouth.
Now, it is copy work and recitation from the Bible. Each of them are memorizing a chapter over the next two months - so they have to use their chapter for copying and read it over every day.
When each of them have read some of their verses to me, I open up the computer and select the song that we are learning from the Library. It’s one of my favorites and the girls are really enjoying it, too: Dona Nobis Pacem (Grant us peace). They are learning to sing it in a round and it sounds great.
As so often happens, the day passes by too quickly to get to everything. So, I put the History of Rome and Greek Mythology on the list for tomorrow and send them off to practice their piano. Deanna gets out her Logic and we go over the next lesson and discuss it -- she thinks it is the most boring subject of all.
This year is the most structured of all of our years home schooling. Instead of 5 or 6, I only have 3 at home all day. For me it is quite a change and it is easier to be a bit more structured. However, it is also a testament to what I’ve learned over the years: how to take each subject a little at a time and integrate it with the other subjects. It is amazing the way we get to grow, learn and change with our children and I’ve loved every minute of it.
We’re learning Greek because I want to learn Greek. We are delving into Roman History because I’ve always wanted to learn more about it. We are reading Greek and Roman Mythology because I want to really understand John Milton’s Paradise Lost. We are singing Latin songs because I love learning the music. We’re reading the Illiad because I want to read it (especially after seeing the movie Troy). We will probably do a lot of other things this year because I’ve wanted to do them myself.
I had a very wise friend once tell me “As you learn, bring what you learn to your children. You will learn it even better and they can see that you are learning, too.” I’ve tried to take that to heart and have benefited greatly from it.
Our greatest blessing this year has been that Dad has taken up the call to “teach what you learn and learn what you teach” as well. He read the book Epic by John Eldridge and enjoyed it so much that he read it aloud to us during our family worship times. Even though it was a little over the heads of the younger ones (as is the Illiad), we all enjoyed his reading aloud and it was a welcome change from Mom. We’re looking forward to more teaching of the Word from Dad as we go through this year.
I’m learning more and more that I don’t have to know it all to teach. I just have to have a desire to learn it. As long as I understand it just a little bit more than my children, there is success and we all learn.
Above all, God is blessing us every day with a desire to see things through His eyes. If I can learn anything more, I want to learn to see things the way that He sees them and then teach my children to do that, too.
Sunday, July 15, 2007
Dreams vs. Divine Intervention
It’s funny how a glimpse back into our past can open the flood gates to so many memories. Recently, I ran into some old friends…friends I hadn’t seen in almost 20 years. Suddenly, I find myself reminiscing about that time in my life and feeling more glad every moment that I’m no longer that naïve, selfish, stupid, little girl.
Also, there is that feeling of being older and realizing how much time has gone by between dreaming about growing up and actually doing it. In the midst my feelings of relief at being a totally different person (thanks to the redemption of the Lord in my life), there is also a kind of grief, too… a grief at the loss of so many dreams that did not come to pass.
When I was a young adult, 17 - 20, I dreamed of being an opera singer or a Broadway star. I dreamed of being discovered by a talent scout and given a part in a popular play or movie. Then I dreamed of being a great Ballroom dancer/actor/singer. My life seemed to stretch into an endless panorama of promise and fame.
All of those dreams faded when I got pregnant and decided to keep the baby in the face of those who advised me to get an abortion. I owe my decision primarily to my parents who stood by me even when my husband at the time wanted me to get rid of the baby.
I held my ground, with my parent’s support, and had a beautiful baby boy -- then got post-partum depression, caught my husband in an affair, moved out of our apartment and filed for a divorce. The only thing that kept me going during that time was my darling baby. But, the casualties were my dreams, my hopes, my aspirations, which evaporated like so much smoke in the wind.
Now, looking back over that time, you’d think that I’d have so many regrets…and I do: regrets at not making better decisions about relationships, regrets about burning bridges because of my naiveté, regrets at not following through in the face of a few challenges. However, God, in His infinite mercy, gave me so much more.
Those years were not the end of my trials -- that refining fire that burns away what is wood, hay and stubble -- but only the beginning. I didn’t learn what I needed to learn at that time. I learned a lot, but not all that God had for me.
God is continually bringing people into my life who rock my very core and shape me into who He wants me to be: a church in California full of people who knew how to show God’s love; a mother of 6 who taught me the joys of allowing children to be who they are within our parental boundaries; a family of 4 who took us in when there was “no room at the inn”; a mother of 2 who offered to get a job and help support me during a tough time; a man who showed me true commitment where none had before; two young boys who taught me to love even what is not mine; a troubled teen who taught us to accept people no matter their background; three beautiful baby girls, who taught me the beauty of God’s creation; a family in Maine who taught us how to discipline in love, look to the Word for truth, accept accountability and aspire to excellence in all things; a father/pastor, who taught us to look beyond what we see; a pastor in Amarillo who taught me the true meaning of hypocrisy; some home school families who saw value in all relationships; another pastor and church who demonstrated the refuge and restoration we have in Christ; and I could go on and on.
There have been many others, who have loved, accepted, valued, cared, shaken, stirred and poured out over us according to God’s plan. We have benefited by drawing closer and closer to what God has purposed for us.
In the face of all of these experiences… in the face of all of the orchestration we see in God’s big Symphony, how can I regret that my dreams did not come to fruition? When I was willing to “delight myself in the Lord”, God was true to His promise to give me “the desires of my heart”. He put new dreams into my psyche and rewrote the pages of my longing soul to reflect the eternal purposes He had for my life.
How exciting it is to look ahead! Now, instead of my own dreams, I can say with confidence “God, what are Your dreams for me? What is Your purpose today and tomorrow? How are You going to use my talents next?”
Now, I don’t always remember His redemption and His direction; but, God always finds a way to point me toward the right path -- even if it hurts. I’m so glad that God always keeps His promises and, in particular, His promise to “never leave me nor forsake me”.
Our meeting with my old friends was great. We talked about some of the old times, but we talked more about where we are now. She has such a love for the Lord in her heart and God is really using her life and talents to bless families and couples who need a new interest in their lives. She and her husband have been married for over 18 years (I sang at their wedding), and just that fact blessed me.
Regrets? Yes, but only over how I have responded to God; not about where He has taken me. I’m so glad that I have the family and children that I do. I’m so glad that I have the friends and relationships that I have. I’m so glad that God has continually shown me mercy and grace where I merited none and given me His visions for my life.
Ps. 37:4 - Delight thyself also in the Lord; and He shall give thee the desires of thine heart.
Heb. 13:5 - …be content with such things as ye have; for he hath said “I will never leave thee nor forsake thee.”
May I continue to learn the lessons that He has and respond the way that He would have me. May I look ahead to the growing up that I still have to do and rejoice that He will do the “tending and watering”.
Also, there is that feeling of being older and realizing how much time has gone by between dreaming about growing up and actually doing it. In the midst my feelings of relief at being a totally different person (thanks to the redemption of the Lord in my life), there is also a kind of grief, too… a grief at the loss of so many dreams that did not come to pass.
When I was a young adult, 17 - 20, I dreamed of being an opera singer or a Broadway star. I dreamed of being discovered by a talent scout and given a part in a popular play or movie. Then I dreamed of being a great Ballroom dancer/actor/singer. My life seemed to stretch into an endless panorama of promise and fame.
All of those dreams faded when I got pregnant and decided to keep the baby in the face of those who advised me to get an abortion. I owe my decision primarily to my parents who stood by me even when my husband at the time wanted me to get rid of the baby.
I held my ground, with my parent’s support, and had a beautiful baby boy -- then got post-partum depression, caught my husband in an affair, moved out of our apartment and filed for a divorce. The only thing that kept me going during that time was my darling baby. But, the casualties were my dreams, my hopes, my aspirations, which evaporated like so much smoke in the wind.
Now, looking back over that time, you’d think that I’d have so many regrets…and I do: regrets at not making better decisions about relationships, regrets about burning bridges because of my naiveté, regrets at not following through in the face of a few challenges. However, God, in His infinite mercy, gave me so much more.
Those years were not the end of my trials -- that refining fire that burns away what is wood, hay and stubble -- but only the beginning. I didn’t learn what I needed to learn at that time. I learned a lot, but not all that God had for me.
God is continually bringing people into my life who rock my very core and shape me into who He wants me to be: a church in California full of people who knew how to show God’s love; a mother of 6 who taught me the joys of allowing children to be who they are within our parental boundaries; a family of 4 who took us in when there was “no room at the inn”; a mother of 2 who offered to get a job and help support me during a tough time; a man who showed me true commitment where none had before; two young boys who taught me to love even what is not mine; a troubled teen who taught us to accept people no matter their background; three beautiful baby girls, who taught me the beauty of God’s creation; a family in Maine who taught us how to discipline in love, look to the Word for truth, accept accountability and aspire to excellence in all things; a father/pastor, who taught us to look beyond what we see; a pastor in Amarillo who taught me the true meaning of hypocrisy; some home school families who saw value in all relationships; another pastor and church who demonstrated the refuge and restoration we have in Christ; and I could go on and on.
There have been many others, who have loved, accepted, valued, cared, shaken, stirred and poured out over us according to God’s plan. We have benefited by drawing closer and closer to what God has purposed for us.
In the face of all of these experiences… in the face of all of the orchestration we see in God’s big Symphony, how can I regret that my dreams did not come to fruition? When I was willing to “delight myself in the Lord”, God was true to His promise to give me “the desires of my heart”. He put new dreams into my psyche and rewrote the pages of my longing soul to reflect the eternal purposes He had for my life.
How exciting it is to look ahead! Now, instead of my own dreams, I can say with confidence “God, what are Your dreams for me? What is Your purpose today and tomorrow? How are You going to use my talents next?”
Now, I don’t always remember His redemption and His direction; but, God always finds a way to point me toward the right path -- even if it hurts. I’m so glad that God always keeps His promises and, in particular, His promise to “never leave me nor forsake me”.
Our meeting with my old friends was great. We talked about some of the old times, but we talked more about where we are now. She has such a love for the Lord in her heart and God is really using her life and talents to bless families and couples who need a new interest in their lives. She and her husband have been married for over 18 years (I sang at their wedding), and just that fact blessed me.
Regrets? Yes, but only over how I have responded to God; not about where He has taken me. I’m so glad that I have the family and children that I do. I’m so glad that I have the friends and relationships that I have. I’m so glad that God has continually shown me mercy and grace where I merited none and given me His visions for my life.
Ps. 37:4 - Delight thyself also in the Lord; and He shall give thee the desires of thine heart.
Heb. 13:5 - …be content with such things as ye have; for he hath said “I will never leave thee nor forsake thee.”
May I continue to learn the lessons that He has and respond the way that He would have me. May I look ahead to the growing up that I still have to do and rejoice that He will do the “tending and watering”.
Thursday, July 12, 2007
Super Woman
I aspire to be Super Woman. Really! I do. I suppose that is why I’m such a Superman fan. I’ve seen all of the episodes of Smallville, all the Superman Movies (including Superman Returns) and a couple of seasons of Lois & Clark. I love how the handsome hero saves the world in every episode and still manages to be a great guy.
I want to do great things and be the best at all of the things that are in my heart to do. I want to be the best wife and mother, the best writer, the best photographer, the best chef, the best teacher, etc. Of course, like most of us, I fail miserably a lot of the time; however, as I heard recently in Meet the Robinsons, “You learn from your failures; successes -- not so much!”
Of course, there are certain things that I don’t even attempt to be the best at -- like house keeping. I’ll never have a Better Homes and Gardens home (at least not until the children have homes of their own). I’ll never be the best at auto mechanics -- I’m lucky I know how to fill the gas tank. I’m sure that there are a host of other things that I’ll never attempt to be the best at; because God did not put them in my heart to do.
Recently, I learned a lot about being Super Woman. Perhaps it was not so much from my own failure, but it sure felt like it. It is times like this that I realize that I’m only Super Woman if I’m allowing God to be in control. Without Him, I am nothing and without His hand on my life, I cannot accomplish much.
Terence called me just as I woke on Saturday morning. My plan was to read my book for a couple of hours and then wake everyone else for breakfast and Saturday chores.
“Hey, bud. What’s up?” I asked casually. I knew he’d been with one of his friends all night and was a bit surprised to hear from him so early.
“Nothin’ much.” he said and then added, “I’m in the hospital.”
“What?!” no longer casual, I could feel myself begin to panic as I imagined all kinds of horrible things. “What happened?”
“Here’s BJ.” he gave as a reply and handed the phone off to his friend, who was with him.
BJ explained that they had been hanging out at the parking lot across from the Dollar General. They’d been skate boarding and messing around and it was about 5:30 a.m. Nothing serious. Just being boys.
Then Terence and his friend, Josue, began wrestling. They were playing around and Josue threw Terence over his shoulder. Terence landed really hard, hit his head on the pavement and blacked out for a few minutes.
BJ stretched him out and made sure that he was breathing and talked to him as he came to. He was able to get up and get some water. He was really dazed, but seemed to be okay -- that is, until a few minutes later when his friends realized that he’d asked the same questions over and over. He wasn’t remembering what they’d told him. They thought Terence was just messing with them and were getting annoyed that he kept asking what happened and why his shoulder hurt so bad.
They drove him home and were planning to just leave him on our porch and let us deal with him. BJ, however, decided to stick around and make sure that he was okay. It was a good thing that he did, too. Terence went in the house and came out almost immediately, shirtless and talking on the phone. He began to just wander down the street.
BJ realized that he wasn’t going to just get better and that something more serious could be wrong. So, he loaded him into his car and took him to the emergency room.
That’s when we got the call. I woke Ralph and we both got dressed to go to the hospital. A few minutes later, Terence called me again. He couldn’t remember if he’d called. Now, I was beginning to panic.
When we got to the ER, we signed the paperwork for a couple of CT scans and consulted with Dr. Jackson. We haven’t seen the inside of a hospital this many times since the kids were little.
Meanwhile, BJ stayed with Terence and patiently answered his questions -- the same ones over and over again. He even recorded Terence’s questions and his answers on his phone so that he could play it back and show Terence what was happening.
Terence kept saying things like “I hope I didn’t forget how to skate board” and “Thanks for sticking with me, BJ” over and over again. It was totally obvious what was important to him. He also kept saying “Did I pick a fight with someone?” and “We were just playing, right?” We could tell that he was concerned that he may have hurt someone or that one of his friends was mad at him. BJ, Ralph and I kept reassuring him over and over again.
Dr. Jackson told us that he had a stage 2 concussion and a torn ACL (one of the muscles that attaches his arm to his shoulder socket). He assured us that Terence’s memory would return, but he might not ever remember the actual accident. He also said that we shouldn’t let him out of the house for at least a week.
On our way home, Terence asked what happened at least 4 times and couldn’t remember even being at the hospital. In a way, it was funny; but it was also very scary. I kept wondering what would happen if he didn’t get any better.
We put him to bed and set a timer for 2 hours so that we could wake him up and check on him. Dr. Jackson said that we had to do that for the next 24 hours and that he needed to come to the clinic in 2 weeks for a check up.
By that evening, thank God, Terence was doing much better. He was remembering what we told him and remembered seeing some of the pictures that we had shown him a couple of hours before. He was still in lots of pain with his shoulder and was not quite himself.
The next day, he was a lot better and we took him to church with us. Of course, Ralph was continually cracking jokes about his memory loss and making him smile. I was just relieved that he was going to be okay.
When things calmed down and I had time to think, my first thought was “Why did I let him stay out with his buddies?” I should have known something might happen. Am I a failure as a parent because he got hurt?
Fortunately, I have a wonderful husband who helps me to see the truth about things sometimes. This was one of those times that I had to give the circumstances over to the Lord. There was nothing I could have done -- no way to have prevented it, no way to have minimized it, no way to have predicted it. There was no way I could have changed into my Super Suit and rescued him.
Again, I was reminded that “with God, all things are possible”, but only with God. I can’t be anything special without His help -- I can’t even be what He has called me to be with out Him.
Phillipians 4:13 -- I can do all things through Christ, which strengthens me.
May I learn to give myself over to Him and allow Him to be the Super Man in my life.
I want to do great things and be the best at all of the things that are in my heart to do. I want to be the best wife and mother, the best writer, the best photographer, the best chef, the best teacher, etc. Of course, like most of us, I fail miserably a lot of the time; however, as I heard recently in Meet the Robinsons, “You learn from your failures; successes -- not so much!”
Of course, there are certain things that I don’t even attempt to be the best at -- like house keeping. I’ll never have a Better Homes and Gardens home (at least not until the children have homes of their own). I’ll never be the best at auto mechanics -- I’m lucky I know how to fill the gas tank. I’m sure that there are a host of other things that I’ll never attempt to be the best at; because God did not put them in my heart to do.
Recently, I learned a lot about being Super Woman. Perhaps it was not so much from my own failure, but it sure felt like it. It is times like this that I realize that I’m only Super Woman if I’m allowing God to be in control. Without Him, I am nothing and without His hand on my life, I cannot accomplish much.
Terence called me just as I woke on Saturday morning. My plan was to read my book for a couple of hours and then wake everyone else for breakfast and Saturday chores.
“Hey, bud. What’s up?” I asked casually. I knew he’d been with one of his friends all night and was a bit surprised to hear from him so early.
“Nothin’ much.” he said and then added, “I’m in the hospital.”
“What?!” no longer casual, I could feel myself begin to panic as I imagined all kinds of horrible things. “What happened?”
“Here’s BJ.” he gave as a reply and handed the phone off to his friend, who was with him.
BJ explained that they had been hanging out at the parking lot across from the Dollar General. They’d been skate boarding and messing around and it was about 5:30 a.m. Nothing serious. Just being boys.
Then Terence and his friend, Josue, began wrestling. They were playing around and Josue threw Terence over his shoulder. Terence landed really hard, hit his head on the pavement and blacked out for a few minutes.
BJ stretched him out and made sure that he was breathing and talked to him as he came to. He was able to get up and get some water. He was really dazed, but seemed to be okay -- that is, until a few minutes later when his friends realized that he’d asked the same questions over and over. He wasn’t remembering what they’d told him. They thought Terence was just messing with them and were getting annoyed that he kept asking what happened and why his shoulder hurt so bad.
They drove him home and were planning to just leave him on our porch and let us deal with him. BJ, however, decided to stick around and make sure that he was okay. It was a good thing that he did, too. Terence went in the house and came out almost immediately, shirtless and talking on the phone. He began to just wander down the street.
BJ realized that he wasn’t going to just get better and that something more serious could be wrong. So, he loaded him into his car and took him to the emergency room.
That’s when we got the call. I woke Ralph and we both got dressed to go to the hospital. A few minutes later, Terence called me again. He couldn’t remember if he’d called. Now, I was beginning to panic.
When we got to the ER, we signed the paperwork for a couple of CT scans and consulted with Dr. Jackson. We haven’t seen the inside of a hospital this many times since the kids were little.
Meanwhile, BJ stayed with Terence and patiently answered his questions -- the same ones over and over again. He even recorded Terence’s questions and his answers on his phone so that he could play it back and show Terence what was happening.
Terence kept saying things like “I hope I didn’t forget how to skate board” and “Thanks for sticking with me, BJ” over and over again. It was totally obvious what was important to him. He also kept saying “Did I pick a fight with someone?” and “We were just playing, right?” We could tell that he was concerned that he may have hurt someone or that one of his friends was mad at him. BJ, Ralph and I kept reassuring him over and over again.
Dr. Jackson told us that he had a stage 2 concussion and a torn ACL (one of the muscles that attaches his arm to his shoulder socket). He assured us that Terence’s memory would return, but he might not ever remember the actual accident. He also said that we shouldn’t let him out of the house for at least a week.
On our way home, Terence asked what happened at least 4 times and couldn’t remember even being at the hospital. In a way, it was funny; but it was also very scary. I kept wondering what would happen if he didn’t get any better.
We put him to bed and set a timer for 2 hours so that we could wake him up and check on him. Dr. Jackson said that we had to do that for the next 24 hours and that he needed to come to the clinic in 2 weeks for a check up.
By that evening, thank God, Terence was doing much better. He was remembering what we told him and remembered seeing some of the pictures that we had shown him a couple of hours before. He was still in lots of pain with his shoulder and was not quite himself.
The next day, he was a lot better and we took him to church with us. Of course, Ralph was continually cracking jokes about his memory loss and making him smile. I was just relieved that he was going to be okay.
When things calmed down and I had time to think, my first thought was “Why did I let him stay out with his buddies?” I should have known something might happen. Am I a failure as a parent because he got hurt?
Fortunately, I have a wonderful husband who helps me to see the truth about things sometimes. This was one of those times that I had to give the circumstances over to the Lord. There was nothing I could have done -- no way to have prevented it, no way to have minimized it, no way to have predicted it. There was no way I could have changed into my Super Suit and rescued him.
Again, I was reminded that “with God, all things are possible”, but only with God. I can’t be anything special without His help -- I can’t even be what He has called me to be with out Him.
Phillipians 4:13 -- I can do all things through Christ, which strengthens me.
May I learn to give myself over to Him and allow Him to be the Super Man in my life.
Thursday, May 24, 2007
Curriculum or Learning
This year has been a tough year. New house, new town, new friends, new church, new vehicle, and new challenges had all taken their toll on our routine. Sitting at my desk, going over papers and tests, I was frustrated. What had my kids really accomplished this year?! I was trying to do an honest assessment so that I would have a starting point for planning the curriculum that I would use next year. I’m sure you’ve been there. It’s that time of year.
Our West Texas Wildlife project had fizzled and died after my computer crashed and we lost all of the pictures we’d taken. We’d only gotten half way through our Astronomy because we needed more work in Math. The Rosetta Stone Spanish got abandoned in January when my computer crashed again! The kids have been told that they will be doing Math through the Summer in order to get back on track.
The more I worked the more discouraged I became. What had happened?! Why couldn’t I follow through?! I had visions of them being 21 before graduating high school.
I came up for air to look around for the suspiciously quiet ladies and gentlemen in question. Adrian was on his computer working on yet another logo in Adobe Photoshop to go with his skateboarding video he was working on in Windows Movie Maker. Terence was out cleaning out his car that he’d bought and fixed up with the local mechanic. Deanna was at the sewing machine making a purse for her sister out of an old pair of jeans, decorating it with scraps of fabric she’d found in my stash. Mikayla was in the art center up to her eyeballs in acrylics, painting a beautiful picture of summer fantasy flowers. Leilani was at the stove in the kitchen making herself a scrambled egg burrito and salad.
Gradually, I began to relax. So, we didn’t get through all of the curriculum I had planned. Life had happened! Opportunities had arisen that we had seized as they came across our path. The children had gravitated toward learning those things which were important to them, which is good. Besides, we did complete their 2nd year of Latin all the way through with straight As and the kids had all made new friends.
Now, that doesn’t mean that we won’t do Math through the summer, but it does mean that I’ll quit stressing over the curriculum that we didn’t get to this year. There will be time for Astronomy and Spanish next year.
I remembered the baby birds that the kids had been keeping an eye on in the beams of our carport and the horny toad that the boys caught so that the girls could examine him. We’d taken field trips to the Guadalupe Mountains, the Davis Mountains, Balmorea and Las Cruces. Just because we hadn’t finished our photography journal, didn’t mean that we hadn’t learned anything -- it just meant that we didn’t get all of the paper work done.
When the opportunity arose for the girls to do a play with some other home schoolers in Alpine, we took it and they learned the 8 parts of speech in a totally new way. When Terence got the opportunity to work with a mechanic and learn about his own car, he took it and learned a lot. When the boys were given the opportunity to clean out the abandoned pool in front of our house and use it as a makeshift skate park, they took and had a blast. When the girls were given the opportunity to take piano lessons, we jumped in with both feet and they all did well.
What am I stressing about?! Isn’t this what home schooling is all about? Of course, it is! We home school so that we can have flexibility and not be tied to any one curriculum or one subject just for the sake of the “points”. Learning, living, laughing, and loving each other are the real goals.
As I went back to my “assessments”, I was looking at them from a different perspective. The curriculum had been only a starting point toward our real goals and we’d done pretty well with those. There were some places for improvement -- attitudes, responsibility, follow through, showing love to one another -- but those were things that needed more practice that any curriculum could provide.
I began writing down what my children DID learn this year and by the time I’d finished I was surprised at the list. Wow!! Learning had been happening in spite of the paperwork! Yea! Success!! I now had so many ideas for next year that I had to tell myself to slow down. After all, there are only so many hours in a day.
So, as we do Math and Reading through the Summer, I’ll relax and tell my children how proud I am of them and what they have accomplished this past year. I’ll take some time to read aloud to them and plan summer trips and outings. Most of all, I’ll take the time to hug them, discover with them and play with them. That’s what it’s really all about.
Our West Texas Wildlife project had fizzled and died after my computer crashed and we lost all of the pictures we’d taken. We’d only gotten half way through our Astronomy because we needed more work in Math. The Rosetta Stone Spanish got abandoned in January when my computer crashed again! The kids have been told that they will be doing Math through the Summer in order to get back on track.
The more I worked the more discouraged I became. What had happened?! Why couldn’t I follow through?! I had visions of them being 21 before graduating high school.
I came up for air to look around for the suspiciously quiet ladies and gentlemen in question. Adrian was on his computer working on yet another logo in Adobe Photoshop to go with his skateboarding video he was working on in Windows Movie Maker. Terence was out cleaning out his car that he’d bought and fixed up with the local mechanic. Deanna was at the sewing machine making a purse for her sister out of an old pair of jeans, decorating it with scraps of fabric she’d found in my stash. Mikayla was in the art center up to her eyeballs in acrylics, painting a beautiful picture of summer fantasy flowers. Leilani was at the stove in the kitchen making herself a scrambled egg burrito and salad.
Gradually, I began to relax. So, we didn’t get through all of the curriculum I had planned. Life had happened! Opportunities had arisen that we had seized as they came across our path. The children had gravitated toward learning those things which were important to them, which is good. Besides, we did complete their 2nd year of Latin all the way through with straight As and the kids had all made new friends.
Now, that doesn’t mean that we won’t do Math through the summer, but it does mean that I’ll quit stressing over the curriculum that we didn’t get to this year. There will be time for Astronomy and Spanish next year.
I remembered the baby birds that the kids had been keeping an eye on in the beams of our carport and the horny toad that the boys caught so that the girls could examine him. We’d taken field trips to the Guadalupe Mountains, the Davis Mountains, Balmorea and Las Cruces. Just because we hadn’t finished our photography journal, didn’t mean that we hadn’t learned anything -- it just meant that we didn’t get all of the paper work done.
When the opportunity arose for the girls to do a play with some other home schoolers in Alpine, we took it and they learned the 8 parts of speech in a totally new way. When Terence got the opportunity to work with a mechanic and learn about his own car, he took it and learned a lot. When the boys were given the opportunity to clean out the abandoned pool in front of our house and use it as a makeshift skate park, they took and had a blast. When the girls were given the opportunity to take piano lessons, we jumped in with both feet and they all did well.
What am I stressing about?! Isn’t this what home schooling is all about? Of course, it is! We home school so that we can have flexibility and not be tied to any one curriculum or one subject just for the sake of the “points”. Learning, living, laughing, and loving each other are the real goals.
As I went back to my “assessments”, I was looking at them from a different perspective. The curriculum had been only a starting point toward our real goals and we’d done pretty well with those. There were some places for improvement -- attitudes, responsibility, follow through, showing love to one another -- but those were things that needed more practice that any curriculum could provide.
I began writing down what my children DID learn this year and by the time I’d finished I was surprised at the list. Wow!! Learning had been happening in spite of the paperwork! Yea! Success!! I now had so many ideas for next year that I had to tell myself to slow down. After all, there are only so many hours in a day.
So, as we do Math and Reading through the Summer, I’ll relax and tell my children how proud I am of them and what they have accomplished this past year. I’ll take some time to read aloud to them and plan summer trips and outings. Most of all, I’ll take the time to hug them, discover with them and play with them. That’s what it’s really all about.
Summer's End
At Summer’s end, sylvan comrades plan
Their Autumn Rainbow Ball again.
Each Maple dons her glorious gown,
And Pines, their floor of green lay down.
As Autumn noon shines cool and clear,
The height of celebration near,
And so this happy, leafy bower
Splendidly arrayed from toe to tower,
Waves red, orange, gold and green,
And dances in a yellow sheen,
To say farewell to Summer’s heat,
And lay their treasures at Winter’s feet.
Their Autumn Rainbow Ball again.
Each Maple dons her glorious gown,
And Pines, their floor of green lay down.
As Autumn noon shines cool and clear,
The height of celebration near,
And so this happy, leafy bower
Splendidly arrayed from toe to tower,
Waves red, orange, gold and green,
And dances in a yellow sheen,
To say farewell to Summer’s heat,
And lay their treasures at Winter’s feet.
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