People tend to see the public schools as the enemy instead of a place where the enemy lives. It needs to be enveloped with the love of Christ. It is a battlefield and Christ does not call us, as adults, to withdraw into our Christian circles but to be warriors in an eternal battle for the souls of these children and their parents. At the same time, being examples of a fearless parent to our children, willing to advance the kingdom through discipleship and obedience on the battlefields of our home and our culture.

Are We Wasting What We've Been Given?

I have read articles and books about people in other countries and times in history and how they have suffered, and wondered why God put me in America in this time period. It just didn't seem "fair" that I would have it so well, while others suffered so horribly. These people used those horrible circumstances to bring glory to God and to give thanks in all things.
Joni Earekson Tada, a quadraplegic, says in her article for Answers Magazine, " I'm convinced my response to my wheelchair has a direct bearing on my capacity for joy,worship, and service in heaven. Of all the things I may waste here on earth, I do not want to waste my quadriplegia!" John Piper writes in his article "Don't Waste Your Cancer" on http://www.desiringgod.org/, about 10 ways to waste your cancer, to not utilize the crisis that God has put in your life for His glory.
I don't have any of those problems. Isn't it even more evident that I should not waste being an American? Having the liberty to share the gospel freely and in the public arena, including the schools? And taking advantage of opportunities that lay themselves at my feet?
God has put me in America in the 21st century to NOT waste what he has given me. He did not put me in America during the Civil War to be a part of the underground railroad, or in Berlin during World War II to hide Jews. But he has asked me to adopt a sibling group of five children, to share the gospel in the public schools and to trust Him more in ALL circumstances. I see everyday how I have wasted opportunities, my money and my time on things that just don't matter. Ellen Vaughn in Time Peace, tells us that "God gives us enough time each day to do His will for that day." We all are here in America for "such a time as this". How much of your time,which is given to you by God, are you wasting?


This blog is about ways that God has shown me to NOT waste the opportunities which have been given to us in America.



Tuesday, January 19, 2010

Weight of Responsibility

If you are a parent, it doesn't matter in what school your kids are registered nor what church you attend. It is NOT the school's nor church's responsibility to train up your child in the way they should go. We are to be the ones impressing God's principles on their hearts: to talk about it at home, when you walk along the road,when you lie down and get up. (Deuteronomy 6:6-7) Do not depend on the church or a Christian school, to do your duty. As Voddie Baucham says in his book Family Driven Faith, Ephesians 4:11-12 says that the job of the church is to equip the saints to do their jobs, not to do it for them. Parents, and especially fathers, are responsible before God, to raise their children with a biblical worldview. We need to be knowledgeable ourselves and our kids need to see it applied to our lives first. Our worldview should not just be effecting what church we go to, but our views on interacting with our neighbors, our closest friendships, how we spend our money and time, and our interactions with the world. Are we acting out our beliefs so that we are being doers of the Word or are our actions confusing our kids because they aren't matching what they may know of God? I pray that our actions will be a reinforcement of what we are teaching them and implant the seed of His righteousness deep in their hearts.

I think the most difficult part of this responsibility is finding the time to do it. I guarantee this will be something that you will want to give up on within the first week of doing it, because it has now become a spiritual battle that is being fought over your family. We had decided that in the morning was going to be the primary learning time before school (we did other spiritual activities after school and in the evening.) I cannot even tell you how many fights erupted during our time together over ridiculous things. I seriously considered giving up, in fact, there were some days that I was emotionally unable to lead because I was so upset with them. But, we pushed through, and now it is such a part of our daily routine that it really isn't even that much of an issue. I cannot imagine NOT doing it! You will be amazed at how much can be accomplished in a short amount of time. I want to encourage you that you can do it! It doesn't have to be in the morning but YOU MUST DO IT! You must be persistent and never give up, every day is a new day to try again. If there are only a few things that you are determined about, let this be it!

I feel that we need to look at our families as not just "us" but as future generations. Everything we do now, is going to effect our children and how they raise their children and how our grandchildren raise their children and pass on God's faithfulness from generation to generation....

When God was instructing the Israelites in the Book of Deuteronomy about how they were to behave and act in a pagan culture, he repeatedly told them to teach their children His ways, in all areas and at all times and to keep His laws... "that it may go well with you AND your children after you and that you may live long in the land the Lord your God gives you for all time." (Deut 4:40) God warned that if they did not do that, the land would be taken from them. Do you not think this applies to us today? You must think generationally to keep the message of Christ continuing within your family or it will not go well with you or your children after you.

The very first thing we need to be doing with our kids is reading and memorizing God's Word with them. Start by just literally reading His Word with them and allowing God's Spirit to show you what His intention was for those verses, not make an interpretation of our own. Kids need to know that the stories in the Bible are true! Start with simple verses to memorize, that concentrate on salvation and sin and then move into the attributes of God.

We are blessed with an incredible amount of resources available to advance the message to our kids even further. One of the best resources is to sign up for homeschooling newsletters. They are a great wealth of information. All my kids were in public school and I received numerous homeschooling newsletters that helped me pick and choose what I wanted to spend my time teaching my kids. Here are a few to get you started:
http://www.currclick.com/ -this is a curriculum site that provides ebooks for free and at a cost-I love this site!
http://www.homeschoolfreebieoftheday.com/ -you never know what download you will be able to get for free!
http://www.homeschoolenrichment.com/homeschoolenrichment.com/- look at the advertisements!
http://www.thehomeschoolmagazine.com/- look at the advertisements and sign up for their newsletters-they will send you all sorts of resources.

http://www.answersingenesis.org/ -this resource site did more to supercharge our faith in Our Creator God than any other website.

Next time, I'll share some other incredible resources that our family has used.

Don't forget that our life is a race. Make sure we're heading our family and ourselves forward towards the rewards God has for us and not backwards towards Satan's desires for our family. There is no such thing as standing still. Every decision we make is a move in one of two directions. Press on towards the prize~think generationally.

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