Ready for School? Spiritually?

So, it's time for school to start again (or continue, if you start early or home school year round). The store shelves are piled high with notebooks, pencils, erasers, calculators and backpacks. You're purchasing your curriculum, making sure your schedules are arranged just right, paperwork done, the lunches made... You're all ready to start school, right?

As I was doing all this to get ready to start school with my kindergartner and first grader, I had to stop for a minute. I was more or less ready with the academics, but was I ready... spiritually? I have been catching myself snapping at my kids, losing my temper and sounding annoyed at them lately. Life has thrown us some challenges over the past 6 months and it's been difficult at times not to take my stress and frustration out on them.

So, I paused in my lesson plan preparation and library book searches to search my heart. More importantly, to ask God to search my heart and bring to light what was hidden there. I need Him to take my frustrations, my stress, uncertainty and all the other junk and toss it. Call it spiritual de-cluttering! As I educate my kids at home, I want them to learn more than history, math and science. I want them to learn godly ways to deal with stress, how to treat others and how it's OK to take a break to calm your temper before it spills over onto someone else. I guess I need to learn those lessons a little better myself!

Even though we started school today, I still need daily searching and cleansing to assure that I'm as prepared spiritually as I can be to be the Mom and teacher that He wants me to be. My time alone with Him in the morning before the kids get up is now even more important than it was before.

How about you? What do you do to be spiritually prepared to home school your kids?

Contentment in the Now

This is Freddie, our pet guinea pig. Give him hay, food, water and some fruit and he's content. Unless, of course, you're trying to catch him or trim his nails. But otherwise, he seems like a content, happy little guy.

I, on the other hand, tend to always be looking to the next thing. What's the next stage my kids will reach? When will I get the time to keep the house clean? When will I have time to write without the interruption of kids? When will I be mature enough to feel confident of what my writing platform should be? When?

I'm very much someone who lives in the future, but recent circumstances in my life have made me take a step back and be more HERE, NOW. How can I love and encourage my kids where they're at now? How can I find joy and contentment in THIS season of life? My kids are young and I homeschool them. Do I have time and energy for much else? NO! I love homeschooling and don't question that decision at all. But, do I sometimes envy the moms that suddenly have tons of time on their hands every fall to pursue other things? Sure! Just give me a few more days in every week... I'll find a way to do it all!

The reality is that God gave us the time He gave us - no more. Perhaps it's an overused cliche, but there really are seasons in life. As Ecclesiastes says, there is a season for everything. Now is my season to invest heavily in my kids and their education. I won't have another chance to do that. Doing lots of other ministry, writing, crafts, etc, will wait. They will be there when this season changes.

I still find outlets for ministry and writing and other "me" stuff, but it's squeezed in around what my seasonal priorities are. I'm trying to BE HERE NOW. I still like to look ahead to what the future may bring, but I will choose to settle myself into the now and rejoice in what it brings.

Be the Cool House in the Neighborhood

Problem: You want to keep an eye on your kids,but they want to play with the neighbors. You’re not sure what kind of values other parents have and don’t want to expose your kids to things you find inappropriate. You also want to keep them safe. And, how can you be a Christian witness to your neighbors?

Solution: Be the cool house in the neighborhood that the other kids want to hang out at! That way, your kids are where you can keep tabs on them, you control what influences they’re around, you know they’re safe and you can be an example to those who live nearby.

How? Have cool kid stuff that you make available. In the summer, we have a rocket sprinkler that is a HUGE kid draw. My kids start playing with it and we suddenly have 5 other kids in our yard laughing and getting soaked. Make a slip and slide out of a tarp. In the winter, make a sledding ramp and track out of snow. Make your home and yard a fun place for kids to play. What it looks like will depend on the ages of your kids. My husband builds plastic models and flies R/C airplanes – kids love that stuff! Have kid-friendly snacks and drinks to offer. Make home-made cookies. Be June Cleaver (just kidding). Seriously, your house doesn’t have to be immaculate – just fun and available.

Keep it under control… As you have other kids in your home and yard, remember that it’s your house and you set the rules. Being the cool house doesn’t mean you have to allow the kids to do whatever they want. Be clear and firm in your boundaries. I’ve had to tell a 6 year old neighbor that if he continued to use bad language at my house, that he would not be allowed to play there. And, that if he touched our car again, he would be sent home (this was after he was politely instructed a couple times). His 8 year old sister pushed the boundaries as well, and I firmly told her that if she could not listen to me while at my house, that she wouldn’t be allowed to play there. Don’t be afraid to send them all outside on a nice day or simply turn them away if you’re not up for company. It’s your house – take charge. Most kids will respond very well to polite but firm boundaries. Others may test you. Pass the test and you will win their respect. Fail the test and they will walk all over you and drive you crazy.

Witness… You can use the opportunity to let them see you pray before you eat and to teach them how Christians treat each other. You can also gently explain that at our house we honor God and don’t use His name lightly if frequent uses of “Oh my…” abound. Invite them to church, get to know their parents, the opportunities are endless!