As I look around, everyone is talking about their homeschool picks for the upcoming school year. While I am still praying about exactly which final choices we will be making, there are certainly a few things the Lord has laid on my heart for this next year and I’d like to share them with you.
Christian homeschooling should not be about academics, but rather submission to whatever the Lord is asking you to do, which may differ each and every year. I don’t know what my children are called to do, but it is my job to equip them in the ways the Lord is asking me to. One way to equip them is to submit our curriculum choices to Him.
The beginning of each year is the perfect time for each family to consider their goal in homeschooling. Our goal in homeschooling is to raise our children in the ways we believe God is calling us to – and the things God is calling us to do is not necessarily the same thing God is calling you to do.
With all of that being said, I’d like to share the things that God has put on my heart about our curriculum for the coming year. I will trust Him to continue to fill in the blanks as we get closer to starting our next homeschool year.
Missionary Read Alouds
A few weeks ago, I started feeling compelled to begin teaching my children about missionaries. We typically teach those types of things through biographies, so I began searching for books about missionaries. In my search a particular book series kept coming up- Christian Heroes Then and Now.
At first, I just noticed they were these little reddish-brown books that seemed to be just what I was looking for. Then I started getting advertisements from a curriculum company I follow about this book set, started seeing them being recommended in Facebook groups, and then even got offered the opportunity to borrow one from a good friend!
I thought, “Okay, God, I can take a hint!” and decided to ask to borrow one of the books from my friend so we could start right away. Best. Decision. Ever. The books are engaging and work perfectly as family read alouds. I might just be sensitive, but my children are always teasing me about trying not to cry when I’m reading it!
It is exactly the thing I believed I was being called to do- read engaging stories about missionaries that we can enjoy as a family. He is so faithful to give us everything we need!
Hymns & Songs of Worship
Over the last 6 months of our school time, I felt impressed to begin teaching my children hymns. I had previously bought a hymnal and we had done little with it. I have been drawn to hymns and placed in many situations which have left me wishing I knew some of the older hymns. I believe He placed this desire in my heart and that it has grown so that I would not only be prepared for this moment, but even excited and humbled.
This was the first and most important thing the Lord impressed on my heart when I began to pray, pen and paper in-hand, over our coming homeschool year: Exalt Me with hymns and songs before you begin each day. I felt these words so deeply in my Spirit- it was as clear as a bell.
Before it was impressed on my heart to begin our days in this way, I had recently come across an article that talked about all of the benefits of praising and worshipping. The article quotes a ton of scripture and it truly compelled me to really consider the importance of worship from a Biblical perspective, which I truly appreciate.
There’s something that’s so special about having that intimate time with just your immediate family. Just like having your personal prayer time becomes a special time and place, I’m learning that having this time with just my children and the Lord has been so intimate and special, too. It reminds me of Matthew 6:6, which promises that if we pray in private we are rewarded openly.
There’s nothing more beautiful than hearing your 4 year old singing, “God is so good,” repeatedly as he is playing with his Legos at the coffee table. Even when going to church regularly… even while only playing KLOVE and other Christian stations on the radio and at home… my children never sang worship songs the way they have started to do now… not until we began doing it together as a family.
To me, this speaks volumes about the impact our home has on our children. Even with the best Sunday school teachers and outside influences, nothing is more important than the love and example of a Christian parent.
Bible Reading
In the past, I’ve typically chosen to get up early so that I can have that alone time with God before my children get up. There’s nothing wrong with this… I had my prayer and Bible time and they had theirs. This year, however, God has placed on my heart, very simply, to just read the Bible with my children.
I love reading books about God. I love reading Bible studies and doing devotionals that are led by someone else. Some of my favorite Bible studies are written by Beth Moore, Kelly Minter, and Priscilla Shirer.
But it seems I’ve forgotten about the power of personal revelation while you’re reading His word for yourself- without the interference of someone else’s thoughts. Don’t get me wrong, it’s great to dig deeper with the leading of other people. I LOVE it, actually.
I’ve done this for so long, though, that I couldn’t even tell you when the last time I read through most books of the Bible was. I *NEED* to be in the Word, verse by verse, letting His fresh revelation fall on me every day… and I need to share what this looks like with my children, too.
God is able to reveal to me everything I need to know to follow Him through His word. Even if I sometimes enjoy help, doesn’t mean I need help; He doesn’t need help. Somewhere along the way I’ve allowed this to become a crutch in my walk with Him… and it’s time to restore it.
Time to Get Personal
I share these things with you to encourage you to set all of your feelings of inadequacy aside and surrender the next homeschool year to God. Stop thinking about all of the curriculum options and allowing anxiety to consume you about all of the options.
Let’s go back to the basics and start with a clean slate- no expectations or preconceived notions (to the best of our ability)- and just ask Him what things He considers the most important for you and your children this coming school year.
Get personal with God. Get out your pen and paper, ask His opinion, and prayerfully consider what it is you believe He is speaking to your heart over the next year. It may not be words, or curriculum- at the end of the day, the curriculum you choose may not be the highest priority this year.
Let Him speak to your heart. Let Him show you His desire for your home and homeschool. Then let Him show you how. Just like He showed me what to do with the books about missionaries I talked about before, He will be faithful to show you which direction to go and what steps to take, too, if you let Him.
Piece by piece you can build your homeschool together with Christ – one idea… one fresh revelation at a time.
“Therefore everyone who hears these words of mine and puts them into practice is like a wise man who built his house on the rock. The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house; yet it did not fall, because it had its foundation on the rock. But everyone who hears these words of mine and does not put them into practice is like a foolish man who built his house on sand. The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house, and it fell with a great crash.”
-Matthew 7:24-27, NIV
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