I remember looking back almost four years ago when I decided to homeschool my children. I had experienced a compelling sense of fear. This felt much like dread and anxiousness of impending failure. After speaking with many parents who have raised home school children, I know this is an all too common emotion that all parents feel as they begin this journey. Even now, in my encounters with brand new homeschool moms that are just entering the battlefield, deciding to homeschool their children. I want to encourage you to know God’s Word to help you overcome this fear.
So, what do we do with these thoughts of fear, anxiety, and the “what ifs”? We give them to the Lord and allow Him to filter out these lies! We read in 2 Corinthians 10:5, “We are destroying speculations, and every lofty thing raised up against the knowledge of God, and we are taking every thought captive to the obedience of Christ.” So now we can see that this fear is not from the Lord, but instead, it is a distraction from what the Lord is calling us. As a parent, you’ve been called to teach your children, and In Christ, it is possible. Philippians 4:13 says, “I can do all things through Him who strengthens me.” The Lord is faithful and will equip you to train up your children. He equips us for the work He calls us to do. As Paul puts it in 2 Corinthians 9:8, “God is able to make all grace abound to you, so that having all sufficiency in all things at all times, you may abound in every good work.” God doesn’t call us to something, only to leave us to fend for ourselves. He is with us, provides for us, and enables us to finish what He calls us to do.
Think about it this way; your children are a gift from God, on loan to you to raise to bring Glory to the Lord. Proverbs 22:6 says, “Train up a child in the way he should go, even when he is old, he will not depart from it.” The Lord is the one who uniquely created and gives your children spiritual gifts and knows where they will be 30 years from now. He knows exactly how your children learn best and how and what you should teach them. As children of the Lord, we have His endless source of wisdom to teach our children. James 1:5 says, “But if any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask of God, who gives to all generously and without reproach, and it will be given to him.”
So how can we confidently teach our children? The answer is In Christ! We must be in God’s Word daily and in prayer. We must have a “God-parent” conference with the Lord every morning to start our day. We must be synced up with the Lord and be walking in the Spirit so our children can experience the blessings of having a relationship with the Lord by witnessing our relationship with Him. When our children see our dependency on the Lord and the tangible relationship that we have with Him, they, too, will desire to have one. When we live in the Spirit, our children will see the fruit of the Spirit in our lives, and they will be stirred to find the source. Our goal should be to impact our children’s hearts through how we live so they, too, will desire a relationship with the Lord.
Let me encourage you to start today and be a parent after God’s heart. Commit to growing your relationship with the Lord by reading His Word, praying, and fellowshipping with other believers. Our hope as parents is that our children become disciples of Christ, and for us to be effective teachers to our children, we must first be disciples ourselves. May God Bless you and your family as you lay aside your fear, walk in faith, and grow together in Him.
In Christ,
Lisa Durant
Homeschool Mom