| Leaving A Legacy |
Do you have what it takes to homeschool?When people find out that I have six children and homeschool, after they get up off the floor and readjust the position of their jaw and eyelids, nine times out of ten the next words out of their mouths are, "I could never do that! I'm not ________ enough!" In the blank you can insert "patient," "organized," "disciplined," or whatever your favorite flaw of the day is. I usually laugh and say, "Neither am I!" If I had a dime for every time I've heard one of these excuses, I'd hire a nanny, maid, or tutor to get in here and help me out a little!
What does God think? He's given people tough jobs before . . .
"Then Moses said to the Lord, 'Please, Lord, I have never been eloquent, neither recently nor in time past, nor since Thou hast spoken to Thy servant' (gotta love it!) 'for I am slow of speech and slow of tongue." Ex. 4:10.
Hmmm . . .sounds familiar! I fell into this trap, myself, yesterday (okay, so maybe it's been for the past year and a half)--saying to the Lord, "I cannot do this!" I know I should, and it's the best thing for my kids, but I literally CAN'T do it. The proof is all around me, in my messy house and the kids incomplete portfolios, bills that need to be paid and aren't, piles of laundry in need of washing or folding, the list of ministry and personal calls that go unmade.
Yet He says to me as He did to Moses in reply to *his* excuses:
"Who has made man's mouth? Or who makes him dumb or deaf, or seeing or blind? Is it not I, the Lord? Now then go, and I, even I, will be with your mouth, and teach you what you are to say."
God was angry because Moses was calling Him, "Lord, Lord" which translates from the Hebrew word Adonai, meaning "lord and master," but not trusting and submitting to God as Lord and Master. Note the parallel in Matthew 7:21.
Even after this strong rebuke from the Lord, Moses continues to argue . . .
"Please, Lord, now send the message by whomever Thou wilt."
Keep in mind that this argument didn't even begin until God had already revealed to Moses His covenant name (I AM), told him that the Israelites would eventually leave Egypt laden with treasure, and shown him a neat little trick he could do with his staff. And God had already told him that he, Moses, was the "whomever" that He wanted the message to be sent by. After this final hedge, what is frightening to me is God's response;
"The anger of the Lord burned against Moses."
Yikes. We know the end of the story. God gives Moses an out; says He'll send Aaron along with Moses to be his mouthpiece. The overall good was accomplished; the Israelites got out of Egypt. But this wasn't God's original intention. It's not the way He wanted it done. At what cost to Moses was the change made? What blessing did he miss because of shirking off this part of his job? What did the Israelites miss?
Sometimes I find myself having the big yellow schoolbus dream. My kids could go to a private school; there's a nice one about seven minutes up the road. Easier still (not to mention cheaper,) they could attend the public school two miles from here. They've just built a brand new building and every year they're rated A by the state. There are well-organized, well-disciplined, paid people there who'd be more than willing to accept responsibility for the training of my children for several hours each day. There are even janitors and lunch ladies! There are no crying babies, no barking dogs there. There are no interruptions from the UPS man or the phone or lost textbooks.
And there's no mom.
If I argued with the Lord, He might give in. He might even give me the money to send my kids to private school, and I could say, "Well, He must have wanted me to do that!"
But I'd know the truth.
This is my calling.
And so the answer to the question, "Do you have what it takes to homeschool?" is a neat trick I read about in a book recently. Tonight, when it gets dark, tiptoe very quietly into every room in the house. If you find children there, *you* are qualified to homeschool. And if God has called you to it, check out Exodus 4:12. . .
"I, even I, will be with your mouth, and teach you what you are to say."
5:03 PM - Oct. 14, 2005 - post comment
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 Misty Krasawski is the overly-blessed mom of eight children whom she homeschools in sunshine-y Florida. She has been clinging ferociously to the hand of her Lord since she was knee-high to a grasshopper, homeschooling for the past thirteen years, and has eighteen more years ahead of her with the children who are glad she will have done most of her experimenting on those who went before. Her wonderful husband Rob has much treasure laid up for him in heaven for having been called to such a daunting task. Home User Profile Archives Recent Entries - How to Emergency Quick Clean Your House! - Being "frugal" or . . . not - On Turning Forty - Day at the Corn Maze - Permission Slips for Moms--at Heart of the Matter! 
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