Homeschooling - with Joy!

 

  Some of you may have heard of Ann Voskamp’s best-selling book One Thousand Gifts.  In that book, she explores the secret to a joyful life.  Not surprisingly, she returns to a truth of Scripture : “in everything give thanks.” (I. Thess. 5:18) It is in gratitude that we learn the secret of joy.  As we begin to truly see the nature of life – that all good gifts are from God, and that there are so many gifts! – our orientation turns from grumbling and gloom to delight and joy.

  As the new year begins, finding joy in the aftermath of vacations and celebrations can be challenging.  Math, spelling, and grammar aren’t usually considered joyful endeavors for most of us.  While the year is still young, consider  folding in a new habit for your school focus – thanksgiving.    I’ve been challenged to take up Ann’s Joy Dare this year.  (www.aholyexperience.com)   She encourages me to look for three “gifts” each day and write them down while giving thanks.   Having that idea before me each morning turns the day into a treasure hunt!

   You can make this “gift hunt” as general or specific as you like.  You could just keep a tablet somewhere handy to your daily focal point (that’s the dining room at my house) and ask the kids at lunch or dinner time to name three “gifts” that they’ve seen that day.  Be sure you’re contributing as well!  If you need the guidance of a more specific approach, you could consider Charlotte Mason’s recommendations for daily organization.  She said that each day children need something or someone to love, something to do, and something to think about.  These can provide good categories for thanksgiving.  What evidences of love are you thankful for today?  What activity or job are you glad you got to do?  What idea, story, music, part of nature, or art was a gift or blessing today?  With these categories in place at the beginning of the morning, you’ll be more aware of the gifts that come your way each day.

  Ultimately, turning our hearts to thank God for these things creates deep and lasting joy.  As we get older, we begin to realize that even difficult things hold hidden blessings, and we learn to give thanks for those things as well.  The fact that we get to learn this supremely important lesson along with our children in our homeschool is a huge gift.  It’s at the top of my  thanksgiving list!

Only Human

"I'm only human" we'll say when we want to explain why we can't do something. And it's not a lame excuse - it's true! Oddly enough, though, most women I know may say this but not really accept it. We often carry a lot of guilty feelings about the things we can't do, like make everyone happy, stop our children from suffering disease and hurt, pray for all the needs we know about on a consistent basis, and so many other things. We even kick against our finitude when we are physically incapable of doing the ordinary tasks of life. How can we know contentment and glorify God in our "not doing"?

One of my favorite sonnets is by John Milton, the author of the incredible Paradise Lost. When he discovered that he was going blind, he was heartsick. He had a profound faith and had been sure that God had given him his talent for writing so that he could serve God with it. How could he do anything significant if he was blind? How could that gift be of any use at all if he couldn't see what his hand tried to produce? Before he was completely blind, he penned this great sonnet.

When I consider how my light is spent,
Ere half my days, in this dark world and wide,
And that one talent which is death to hide
Lodged with me useless, though my soul more bent
To serve therewith my maker, and present
My true account, lest he, returning, chide.
'Doth God exact day-labor, light denied?'
I fondly ask; but Patience, to prevent
That murmur, soon replies: 'God doth not need
Either man's work or his own gifts; who best
Bear his mild yoke, they serve him best; his state
Is kingly - thousands at his bidding speed
And post o'er land and ocean without rest;
They also serve who only stand and wait.

That last line always stops me in my tracks. While being busy may feel more productive to me, it isn't always my calling. There are seasons where I "stand and wait". This, too, is good.

For moms with so many responsibilities, learning to "wait" and "rest" is an extremely hard assignment. You can read an excellent meditation on that here.