As we begin a new calendar year of homeschooling (we’ve been homeschooling since 2006), my family continues to have the same struggles that most home-school families go through. We worry over schedules, completed assignments, whether our kids have made adequate progress in their studies, and whether they will be prepared for college if they choose to go.
All of these issues are important to manage in the short term. But the most pressing question we ask ourselves every year is, “Is our home-school helping our children to fulfill their purpose and destiny in life?”
As if that were an easy question to answer.
Even though my wife and I are tempted to focus on the ‘what, when and where’ of educating our children, the focus must be continue to be on the ‘why.’ Why is it that they need to be able to discern truth and beauty, and why is their spiritual growth even more important than their intellectual growth? It’s because we believe they are not just preparing for a career, but for a calling.
The skills our children gain through studies of various subjects will help them to succeed in the workplace and in our modern culture. But the development of their character and their God-given gifts will provide the foundation for their divine purpose. I can’t determine the success of our home-school by their acceptance to a college, or when they are hired for their first job. These things are just tools that their Father will use as they pursue their true calling – to glorify Him through a selfless and joy-filled life dedicated to serving others in whatever capacity He designed for them.
Of course we have educational milestones we’d like our kids to reach, and we’ll continue to challenge them intellectually. However, if at the end of this year, our children are closer to God and more confident in utilizing the gifts that He blessed them with, then we will have achieved our primary goal for 2015. If we seek the Kingdom first in our home-school, then, as Matthew 6:33 promises, all these ‘things’ we often worry about will be added in due time.
Comments welcome: What goals have you set for your family this year? How do you plan to achieve them?
Monica says
Wow, what a blessing and an inspiration your family is….11th, 12th and college. I am just a Kindergarten homeschool mom right now….boy do I have a long way to go. Be blessed.
Allen P. says
Thanks so much Monica! Trust me, it doesn’t feel that long ago that we had just taken our first and second graders out of public school. Although homeschooling gives us much more time with our kids, it doesn’t mean that time doesn’t fly by. I hope you’re enjoying these early years!