Psalm 79 and Andy Griffith

Sometimes it's hard to know if I'm on the right path. Sometimes homeschooling doesn't look like I think it should, or the way I imagine others are getting it done. And sometimes *shhhh* I wonder if my best begins to compare with even the worst that could be made available to the girls in an institutionalized setting.

And then the Lord gives me a confirmation.

A quiet confirmation. It's not splashy. It doesn't come with ribbons or trophies. It doesn't look like a test score or a place in the finals of a learning bee.

It comes in the form of a moment -- a simple moment. It's a conversation around the kitchen table when my eldest would otherwise be exchanging inappropriate notes with a boy at the locker area, or trying too hard to negotiate the soul-destroying social labyrinth of girls g@ne wild at the middle school down the way.

It comes in the form of a child connecting the dots and wanting to share her idea. And it's precious. Absolutely precious to me.

After reading Psalm 79 aloud from the KJV this morning, I turned to the girls and asked if they understood what it was about. Fifi spoke up that it was a Psalm asking the Lord to destroy the unGodly -- the enemy of the Psalmist.

We discussed if that was a good prayer? Was it a selfish prayer?

She said, "no." The prayer was made to prove God. The wicked were mocking the faithful, wondering where their God was? The Psalmist wanted the Lord to stop them for His Name's Sake.

I asked Fifi, "Why do you think we do that? Why do we feel compelled to defend God, Who certainly doesn't need our defense? Isn't that something?"

(I'm just asking at this point...I'm not teaching.)

Fifi piped up with the cutest comparison...

After apologizing in advance for bringing a sitcom scenario into our bible study, she began narrating a scene from an Andy Griffith episode in which Barney deputizes Gomer and Otis to act as bodyguards, giving an extra measure of protection to Andy who is braving certain revenge to meet with a released convict. After Barney swears them in, Otis suggests a hypothetical in which, "We come face to face with the bad guy and bang! bang! bang! Then what do we do, Barney?"

To this, Barney scoffs impatiently and replies, "You fool! Andy will be there the whole time -- he'll take care us!"

It took me a second, but, yes...it's a lot like that! Barney, Gomer and Otis aren't nearly as capable of protecting Andy, as is Andy himself. They all know it, but love him so much that they feel compelled to try anyway.

These are the moments that cut right through the homeschool fog and let me know that He is ordering our steps, and all that He means to get done -- all that really matters -- is getting done.