Mere Homeschooling

Every pastor I know has a unique calling under the banner of Christ. Some are especially evangelistic, having a deep heart for reaching the unsaved. Others are especially burdened to see their people have a deep sense of theology and spend much of their pulpit time in an intellectual pursuit of God. Others have a real heart to serve their fellow man and manifest this by passing out meals, clothes, etc.

My personal heart is that Christians learn to implement the word of God in their daily lives. This winter, my children and I are going through Mere Christianity as a family. It has been a rich and rewarding time. Even after we disconnect from Zoom, the ones that still live at home often sit around the table and talk for another hour on the topic at hand.

C.S. Lewis makes the point that cars are made to run on gasoline. If the driver puts something other than gas in the tank, the car either will not run at all or it will run rough and inefficient. Of course, he makes the connection that man is made the same way. When we align ourselves with the principles of scripture, we tend to run at peak performance. This doesn’t mean we escape problems, but rather we have the spiritual horsepower to pull through the things that come our way.

When I take an honest, unbiased look at scripture, it seems to me that homeschooling is the biblical normative; it is the way we are meant to educate our children. I do not mean to upset any non-homeschooler with this assessment but am simply trying to be honest with scriptural precedent and patterns. (I would also remind each reader that I used to preach against homeschooling when I reached the pinnacle of all wisdom as a Sr. Pastor at the age of 24.) I just don’t see where we are encouraged to remove our children out of our home at five or six years of age and hand them over to others to raise, spending seven to eight of the best hours of the day away from home. Multiply this when children are sent to a secular institution that is expressly anti-God. It simply makes no sense to me

Homeschooling itself is no silver bullet. We must seek to implement the scriptures in all aspects of daily life. How we talk. How we think. How we act. How we relate to others. How we take care of our bodies. How we work. There is no end to this list. Of course, we will never do everything in this life that we should, nor will we do any of them perfectly. The reality is, the more areas will bring under obedience or direction of the Spirit, the better our home will run.

One scripture that God laid on my wife’s heart years ago is Job 5:24-27:

You will know that your tent is secure; you will take stock of your property and find nothing missing. 25 You will know that your children will be many, and your descendants like the grass of the earth. 26 You will come to the grave in full vigor, like sheaves gathered in season.27 “We have examined this, and it is true. So hear it and apply it to yourself.”
—Job 5:24-27

Whenever there is peace inside the home, the easier it is to fight problems outside the home. Far too many professing Christian see God’s rules as burdensome. (1 John 5:3) Add to this the misunderstanding of grace which produces a misapplication of liberty and we can understand why many struggle with the Christian life. Nevertheless, don’t miss the point. God’s principles teach us how to live life. When we seek God with our whole heart, we will be surprised at the areas of life where He will touch us with His grace.

As we finish out the last half of the school year, let us pray for the following:

1. Pray that God will give us the biblical lifestyles we should have, not just in a general sense but in an individual sense as each homeschooling household is different.
   1. Therefore, my beloved, as you have always obeyed, so now, not only as in my presence but much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling, –Phil. 2:12
   2. Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect. — Romans 12:2
2. Pray that God will enable us to find a healthy and well-balanced schedule that will serve us well over the long haul. May our schedules be our servant and not our master.
   1. Let my lord pass on ahead of his servant, and I will lead on slowly, at the pace of the livestock that are ahead of me and at the pace of the children, until I come to my lord in Seir.” –Gen. 33:14
3. Pray that God will help us to adjust to any challenging or intense seasons with grace and patience.
   1. For everything there is a season, and a time for every matter under heaven: –Ecc. 3:1
   2. No man shall be able to stand before you all the days of your life. Just as I was with Moses, so I will be with you. I will not leave you or forsake you. –Joshua 1:5
4. Pray that our lifestyles will produce a spirit of peace and joy in our homes.
   1. I have said these things to you, that in me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation. But take heart; I have overcome the world.” –John 16:33
   2. May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, so that by the power of the Holy Spirit you may abound in hope. –Romans 15:13
5. Pray that God will give us grace and wisdom in handling family and friends who do not understand our lifestyle choices and who may even be hostile to them.
   1. When they deliver you over, do not be anxious how you are to speak or what you are to say, for what you are to say will be given to you in that hour. –Matthew 10:19
   2. As soon as they entered Samaria, Elisha said, “O Lord, open the eyes of these men, that they may see.” So the Lord opened their eyes and they saw, and behold, they were in the midst of Samaria. –2 Kings 6:20
6. Pray that God will especially give us grace with our tongues, causing words of encouragement and kindness to radiate in our homes and words of harshness and sarcasm to leave.
   1. She opens her mouth with wisdom, and the teaching of kindness is on her tongue. –Proverbs 31:26
   2. May the God of endurance and encouragement grant you to live in such harmony with one another, in accord with Christ Jesus, –Romans 15:5
7. May God give parents the desire, wisdom, and discipline to teach their children God’s word in the midst of their homeschooling experience.
   1. You shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, and when you walk by the way, and when you lie down, and when you rise. –Deut. 6:7
   2. Come, O children, listen to me; I will teach you the fear of the Lord. –Psalms 34:11
8. Pray that God will give fathers insight in how to be a valuable part of the homeschool experience and how to support their wives who often have the bulk of responsibility in the actual daily schoolwork.
   1. He established a testimony in Jacob and appointed a law in Israel, which he commanded our fathers to teach to their children, –Psalms 78:5
   2. Therefore encourage one another and build one another up, just as you are doing. –1 Thes. 5:11
9. Pray that parents will have the ability and insight to know how to teach and provide opportunities for the different personalities and giftings in their homes, so they can be empowered to be who God made them to be.
   1. I praise you, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made. Wonderful are your works; my soul knows it very well. –Psalms 139:14
   2. So if the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed. –John 8:36
10. Pray that God will give us the vision, self-control, energy, and understanding to make the necessary changes in our home that would glorify Him and make our home more like Him.
    1. But he gives more grace. Therefore it says, “God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble.”–James 4:6
    2. But from there you will seek the Lord your God and you will find him, if you search after him with all your heart and with all your soul. –Deut 4:29