This post is the start of a short series I wanted to do around how our school is functioning this year.I had originally intended to post about how we are doing preschool first but that will come next.I was convicted this morning that this topic needed to come first.
This year I am starting the 5th year of our homeschool journey.It’s not a lot of time consider there are so many who have been doing this much longer.But for me, 5 years is a long time and I have gained a bit of wisdom from the experience so for.And considering that I am pregnant with our 6th and final child, I will have many more ahead of me.But this year has been a bit different in that I have had many people asking ME for advice.I have also been given the tremendous privilege to join a great friend and a veteran homeschooler in mentoring new homeschoolers.As I have been placed in these situation I have learned just how much I have learned over the past several years.
The Spirit convicted me this morning in how I am handling all this in my heart.I have made honest but feeble attempts to be humble with inquiries and in giving advice.And it’s very possible that on the outside it looks like I have been humble.But I know that deep in my heart I really haven’t been.I am enjoying the attention.(Ouch!!!That hurt to admit.)
The Lord brought me low this morning though.He reminded me that I am simply dust.
“For he knows our frame;
he remembers that we are dust.”
Psalm 103:14
There is nothing I do in all my life that is not done without His grace in my life.I have no room to become prideful any area of my life.Shamefully, I spent a good portion of my young motherhood NOT truly seeking the Lord.I spent a lot of that time seeking outside parenting advice from “Christian” author (mostly chock full of psycho-babble.)And I really wasn’t a very good mother.I used man-made wisdom to guide God-made children.I would say I had a similar situation with my early homeschooling years.Although I was doing a “quiet time” everyday, there was no meat in it.I was either reading homeschooling books that would inspire my day and make me “feel” good or I was journaling about a bunch of nothing.
In my own personal walk recently, I have been asking the Father to build in me a love of the Word.My favorite person online is Laine from Laine’s Letters.I stand in awe of her Bible knowledge and in the workings of the Father in her heart.I understand that she is fallible.We all are.But I consider her a tremendous Titus 2 mentor and the Spirit has used her to inspire me to greater things.God has also been gracious to provide some AWESOME in the flesh Titus 2 women from my church.I have learned so much from watching, listening, and learning from these seasoned women.Their knowledge of the Word amazes me.Most important, the knowledge and application of the gospel is something I have never experienced until recently.God is lifting the veil over my eyes to see the true meaning of His gospel and how it applies to my life.
It is these women in my life whom have led me to seek the Father in ways I never have.I am digging deeper into the Word.My prayers have become more purposeful and meaningful.They are full of His will and not my own.I still ask for the things that I need and desire but they are all with the vision of His will in my sight.It’s in this seeking and the Lord work in my life that I have realized that all I have accomplished this year (and much before this) is not of my own doing.All that I do successfully is made possible because of gifts God has given me AND is fuel by His grace in my life. I have done NOTHING worthy of boasting.All boasting MUST be in the Lord.And it’s should cause me to do nothing but bring honor and glory to Lord to realize just how much He has blessed me.
So it is in this frame of mind and heart that I start my series of blogs. . .with a boasting in the Lord.For all that I publish this week and next will be evidence of His grace in my life and in the life of my children.I hope that some of the lessons I share will be something that will encourage you.I hope that perhaps you might be able to walk away with a few good ideas.
Well said! I think most of us have a problem with humility. I think it's so important to remember that humility isn't just thinking badly about ourselves; it's thinking rightly about ourselves. Some people think being humble means talking ourselves down to nothing, but it's really remembering our true worth and that that worth lies in the Father who created us, the Son who saved us, and the Spirit that dwells within us. I look forward to the rest of your series!
Jennifer
I love having a place on the web to simply write out my thoughts. I am a wife and mother to 5 very special blessings ages 19 months to 9 yod and our "Finale" due in November '08. As I am growing through this season of my life, I hope to share how the Lord is teaching me to live by His daily grace and not by my own strength.
