I recently heard someone pose the question to a homeschool mom, "Aren't you worried that when your children go out into the real world, they'll just fall apart?"
My question in return would be, "Is success in the "real world" the ability to survive the darkness and decadence, or does it rather lie in the wisdom to make choices to rise above it?"
Truly, to the perishing, what we know is foolishness, but I'm going to express it anyway. For the glory of God.
My girls know that God created everything from nothing and that He is a very big God. They know He loves them and has a place for them in His mansion if they want it. They know that the narrow path is lined with difficulties, sacrifice and beauty all at once. They know that His common grace must surely be upon us, or there would be no beauty and none of us would be able to make it safely through a day. They know that we must strive to keep our focus on eternity and that since He is for us, who can be against us?
And my girls are not ignorant to the sometimes ugly reality of this world. They know of war, and suffering. They understand a bit about famine and faith. They know the war that is waged between the spirit and the flesh in a believer. They know the war that is inevitable between Isaac and Ishmael. They know to expect selfishness and even injustice in the world.
They know that sometimes the earth opens up and swallows people whole.
My oldest even knows the devastation that adultery and murder brings upon a person. And that the devastation ripples.
None of my girls actually lived through any of this, I'm grateful to say. They are learning all these things about the "real world" from the only reliable source there is: the bible. And if one day they are called to walk though these circumstances, the Lord will get them through.
Truly, there is nothing new under the sun. And truly, there is no need to add to His wisdom to be wise for this world.
I need not make a defense for what I know, know, know to be true! The bible is the single best source to teach my girls what God says about Himself, and what He says about us -- and what He says that He's done about the fact that the two are in conflict.
My girls will be just fine in their real world. They'll be better than most -- of this I am sure. And it won't be because I'm an ever-present parent, or even because Husband is a wise leader. It will be because they were trained in the living, breathing truth of God's Word.
It will be because He gave them the faith to believe the Truth.
10 comments:
"My girls will be just fine in their real world. They'll be better than most -- of this I am sure. And it won't be because I'm an ever-present parent, or even because Husband is a wise leader. It will be because they were trained in the living, breathing truth of God's Word.
It will be because He gave them the faith to believe the Truth."
AMEN
I sometimes look at my grandchild and think about this. He's only 14 months old and his world is still very small. It makes me a little sad to wonder how he'll take it all in as he begins to learn about how the world around him really is.
You almost wish there was a way to protect them from the reality of it forever but of course you can't.
If I had known then what I know now, I would have chosen homeschooling for my girls. Yes, I survived public education, and I know they will too, but I also know that they are faced with many many more distractions and distortions of the truth than I was. The small-town life they know is different from the cities their dad and I grew up in. It seems safer and somehow more wholesome. We were lulled into complacency by this false sense of security. Maybe they are getting a better education in a better environment than we had, but it is in no way the best we could have done for them. Not by a long shot.
Well written. I love anyone who will actually have the courage to express the Truth is love. Thanks for sharing.
PS- Our daughter goes to a Christian school. I understand what you mean about her NOT falling apart one day. :>)
Wonderful post. So true. Whether they homeschool or go to school, the truth is we can't shield them from the real world. They will learn of its evils regardless. And the only thing that will sustain them is GOD'S WORD!
The headmaster at my dd’s 1st school explained that a good answer to the “how will they cope in the real world” people -- who absolutely believe a child must cope with public school to become well rounded adults-- and put it this away:
If you plant a seed in a pot in a green house, you keep that seed (then seedling inside) inside the safety of the greenhouse, until it is strong enough to handle the elements of “outside” {think real world}. But even when that seedling appears big enough to be outside of the greenhouse, you place it out just a bit at a time to let it gain stamina and don’t just through it outside come what may….
I know that I didn’t do his very eloquent answer justice but the visual always stuck with me and gave me strength when I decided to shield my children from things that our culture has accepted and decided is the “norm”.
I did go through public schools and learned a lot of good things but I also learned (at the hands of my peers) a lot of bad things and, ya know….I haven’t needed any of those lessons as an adult!
Be encouraged and make the decisions for your children that God lays upon your heart.
Thanks for the note about my "spam" comment. I will return later to read your post. I must go to bed, since I worked all night. Thanks for all your blog help.
Melissa
Thanks for your wonderful explanation! I agree completely and I share the same points you have with those who question me about homeschooling my kids!
Keep up the good work!
Belle-Ah...I love that analogy. Analogy? Or allegory? Or metaphor? There -- I've done it -- I've exposed myself as vocabularily-challenged. Vocabularily? There, I've done it again! lol.
Oh, yes, and I laugh at my own jokes. That's really bad.
But I appreciated the example nonetheless. Thanks for taking the time to share it here.
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