I was thinking about the covenant names of God this evening when a thought occurred to me…do we really understand what covenant means? So I thought I would look it up:

cov·e·nant   n.

1. A binding agreement; a compact.
2. Law.
   1. A formal sealed agreement or contract.
   2. A suit to recover damages for violation of such a contract.
3. In the Bible, God's promise to the human race.

A covenant is a binding agreement. A covenant can be described as a law. A covenant is God’s promise to us. So we could safely say, a covenant is a binding law to those who are in Christ. In understanding that God’s covenant to us is binding, legal, and a promise let’s turn to the covenant names or the promising names, or the binding names of God:

Ø      Adonai-Jehovah -- The Lord our Sovereign

Ø      Jehovah-Eloheenu -- The Lord our God

Ø      Jehovah-Hoseenu -- The Lord our Maker

Ø      Jehovah-Rohi -- The Lord our Shepherd

Ø      Jehovah-Shammah -- The Lord is Present

Ø      Jehovah-Sabaoth -- The Lord of Hosts

Ø      Jehovah-Mekaddishkem -- The Lord our Sanctifier

Ø      Jehovah-Tsidkenu -- The Lord our Righteousness

Ø      Jehovah-Shalom -- The Lord our Peace

Ø      Jehovah-Ropheka -- The Lord our Healer

Ø      Jehovah-Nissi -- The Lord our Banner

Ø      Jehovah-Jireh -- The Lord our Provider

Ø      Jehovah-Elohim -- The Eternal Creator

Ø      El-Shaddai -- The God Who is Sufficient for the Needs of His People

Ø      El-Olam -- The Everlasting God

Ø      El-Elyon -- The Lord Most High

Now, if these are the promise names of God…who are you going to call upon when you have a need? He marches before us as our banner, declaring that He is Lord! He surrounds us with peace, He is there to heal our hearts, both emotional and physically. He is our Righteousness, praise God. He sanctifies us, He is always present with us, He is our Shepherd, leading us to lush fields and soothing water. He provides us with all our needs. He is the Lord Most High, declaring the wonders of His hands when He speaks life as our Creator and Maker! HE IS El-Shaddai…the God who is MORE THAN ENOUGH! Oh Hallelujah! Who can sing of the wonders of His hands and speak all that He is and all that He can do? Who can write a poem to describe Him? Who can speak of the fullness of His glory? Who can stand before Him? Who can defeat Him? Who can question the authority of His voice? Who can doubt Him? Who can question His love for His children?

H.G. and Anne Garlock were missionaries called to the wilds of Africa in 1921. No one knew what they could expect other than Malaria, Cannibalism and misery. What they found by following the obedience of the Lord's direction though, what a lifetime of friendship, love and the miraculous hand of God at work in their lives.

I read this story out loud to my children and we finished it in 3 days! Highly recommended to any family at any age of children. My kids were 13, 9 and 7 when I read this to them.

We decided to take the day off for my hubby's birthday today instead of having class. Hubby has officially declared all birthday's holidays and the kids thought that was so cool.

We had to take our car to the shop to get the transmission fixed today. It had finally gave up the ghost, so to speak. As I was walking into the house, my son approached me and said, "Mom, did you know I have a baseball with signatures on it from two of the greatest baseball players ever on it?" To which I replied, "No, let me see it." He gets this great big grin on his face and shows me his baseball. In my little boys handwriting is Babe Ruth on one side and his name on the other. I was so tickled to see that I had to tell hubby about it and suggested that later in the day they go outside and toss the ball around.

So after we dropped off the car, hubby takes his son outside and starts to show him the proper way to throw a baseball for a fast ball and for a curve ball. The kids ohhh and ahhh at how well he throws the ball around until the wind starts kicking up and they decide to go inside.

Well, hubby thought that he needed a bit more practice on tossing the ol' baseball and accidentally throws the ball through our garage window! I was in the bedroom and heard glass crash so I run outside to see what has been broken. There stands my husband, with a sheepish grin and blushing from the neck up! We all had a good laugh about it and it gave me the opportunity to lecture the kids on how bad of an idea it is to throw a baseball around the house!

This is the mini class/discussion we'll be having today in our studies and through the remainder of our unit. I'll also post some links to websites we'll be using as additional resources. Hope you enjoy and find some good info to help if you choose to teach along this topic!

Understanding stars

Stars were formed on the fourth day of creation. As we read and study the word of God, we can learn many things about the stars that are important to our daily lives. We know that there is a finite (countable) amount of stars in the sky, but can you count them all? Abram was told by God that his descendants would be as uncountable as the stars in the sky. Who can be counted among Abram descendants? Can you tell by looking at someone if they are one of Abram’s descendants? How often is that number changed or added to?

Some scientists estimate that there are at least 10 million trillion stars in the universe, but that number can only be an estimate because our equipment is not strong enough to see the end of the expanse of the universe. Scientists have discovered stars that cannot be seen using our most sophisticated equipment. These stars produce sounds, and by using mathematics and measuring gravitational force of stars, we can estimate where they would be located…but we cannot see them all.

Our nearest stars are so far away that if you traveled at the speed of light (7 miles per second) it would take you 115,000 years to reach them. We measure space distances in light years rather than miles, feet or inches. A light year is a unit of distance used to measure the space between stars. It is the distance traveled in one year by a pulse of light. One light year is 5.88 trillion miles. A jetliner traveling 500 mph would fly 1.34 million years to travel just one light year.

Alpha Centauri and Proxima Centauri are our nearest stars (Not counting the Sun). The three largest stars in our galaxy are: Mu Cephi (1500 times the sun), Betelgeuse (900 times the sun), and Antares (530 times the sun). These stars are so large, that they would more than fill the distance between the Sun and the Earth.

Stars are made of gases like Hydrogen and Helium. The temperatures in the middle of stars are so hot that nuclear reactions take place. This produces the light we see emanating from stars. The radiation produced by stars does not harm us because the atmosphere around the Earth filters out the harmful radiation produced by nearby stars, including the sun.

Astronomers use the evening and nighttime hours to study stars. Why? Stars are still in the same places during the daytime as they are at night. If you turn on a flashlight during the day while you are playing outside, can you see the light beam from the flashlight? It is the same with the stars. The light produced from the sun washes out the light produced by stars and makes it impossible to view during the daytime. Where you live can also play a factor in how well you can see stars. If you live in the city, you will have a harder time viewing dimmer stars than if you live in the country. A full moon may also make it difficult to view dim stars at night.

Depending on the time of the year, when you examine the night sky you will see different constellations, or groups of stars. If you live in North America and view the night sky, will you see the same constellations as your friend who lives in the Southern Hemisphere?  No, the tilt of the Earth depending on the season affects our ability to see all the constellations all the time.  Constellations exist in large groups, or families called galaxies. Our galaxy is the Milky Way. There are many other galaxies that have been discovered by astronomers.

Another job of an astronomer is cataloging stars that we already know exist. One way stars are cataloged is by magnitude or grade. First magnitude or first grade stars are the brightest. Here is a chart that shows how stars are classified:

1.       Very bright – First Magnitude

2.     Bright         -

3.     Fair            - Second Magnitude

4.     Medium       - Third Magnitude

5.     Faint           - Fourth Magnitude

6.     Very Faint   - Fifth Magnitude

My eldest daughter is a big Toby Mac fan. She subscribes to his mailing lists that tell where the next concerts are going to be, etc. We went to Winter Wonderslam in Lubbock, TX right before Christmas this last year and she absolutely loved it! So....he is having another concert in Amarillo along with the Newsboys and Newsong on March 4th. We've decided to go and make a mini-vacation out of it. Palo Duro Canyon is just outside of Amarillo so along with another family that is very close to us, we'll be taking a 3 day camping/concert trip! My kids are so excited about this as we've not had the ability to take a vacation for quite some time and they all love camping out under the stars. They all have calendars in their rooms and they've been counting down the days until they get to go. The other family is equally excited and the chatter has been ongoing about what it will be like, etc.

Our last camping trip we tried was a disaster! We had a great time at a Bird Santuary camp ground...until nightfall. We were caught in the worst lightning storm I've ever experienced! By the time the wind quit howling and we were completely soaked we decided that we wanted warm beds and soft pillows and drove home at 4am.

I was thinking that I would do some research on Palo Duro canyon and maybe make a homeschool mini unit about it. That might seem strange to the parents going with us (they don't homeschool), but why not take advantage of the great outdoors, the lack of textbooks and nature at our fingertips?

When we get back, I'll hopefully be able to post some pictures of our adventure as well as some interesting facts we learned while we were there.

Ah, the beauty of homeschooling and family time...don't you just love it?

Blessings all,

homeschoolmom

This seems to be a pretty hot topic as more and more parents are choosing to homeschool their children. Dissatisfaction with the Public School system at large, overcrowded classrooms, restricted religious viewpoints, and many more are just a few of the reasons why parents are "opting out" when it comes to the standard education system. Whatever the reason, it has some in the education community rattled. More and more often, we are seeing the right to homeschool challenged in the news. Legislation is being pushed through to give homeschoolers tax credit relief but in the fine print is the catch...in order to qualify, they want to know how you are teaching. This smacks of the devil getting his foot in the door. Give a little and you lose a lot!

The problem arises when you try to let another dictate what is and is not an acceptable teaching style. Eclectic, unschooling, classic approach, unit study, Charlotte Mason method and many more that could be named are just a few of the methods that many parents choose. Which is the correct way to teach and which is not? A parent that chooses the classic approach may disapprove of the unschooler, but does that mean that the unschooling child is not learning and thriving under the method chosen?

Accountability must come from the parent(s) involved and go no further. When we allow government, society, or an outside influence govern how and what we teach our children, we fall back into the same deadly trap we shunned when we pulled our children from public school. It is the parents' responsibility to ensure that our children get the proper nutrition and have clothing suitable for the child's needs, and education should not be any different.

If we really want to boil it down to the basics, lets compare a child who is not being homeschooled to their full potential and a typical public school student. The PS student goes to school, fidgets through class, brings home a load of homework they never finish and watch MTV all afternoon. On the weekends they spend their time at the park or at a friends house playing video games. The homeschool child that is not being schooled to his or her potential simply skips one step in the scenario. Both will have to make up for what they lost in not being educated properly on their own and either choose or lose in society.

Sounds harsh, but I was one of those children. I dropped out of school and left home at the age of 14. A product of a drug abusing parent, I had to choose to make it for myself or become what my mother had become. I educated myself, sought gainful employment and became a productive member of society. Education does start at home, but it ends with the individual.

For the christian homeschooling family our accountability comes from the Word of God. He tells us, You raise up your child in the way he should go. We have to get out of the thought process that someone else is more responsible, more knowledgeable, more understanding, more educated than we are. A tutor can be employed to help with subjects that we are not proficient in, such as higher math, but that does not mean that this person is better at making the decisions that are right for your child in his or her education. No one knows your child better than you, and in spite of the "village" concept so many have adopted lately, you CAN raise your child without getting the latest professional advice on wool vs cotton, wheaties or cheerios, nylon vs spandex!

Signing off,

homeschoolmom

Well, today was the last day of our unit study. I dislike it when we wrap up a unit in the middle of the week. I need to finish out this week's L/A and spelling planned, but other than that I think we'll have a mini "Grace Week".

A "Grace Week" is similar to an unschooling concept but with defined goals and projects. My 10 yo daughter needs to finish out her reading assignment and my son has found a new joy in cursive writing using this wipe off practice board I picked up for him on Ebay. I want to encourage him to have some fun with it! My oldest daughter still has a bit of paperwork to finish since I give her a more intense workload(She's in 8th grade). Typically I give her an outline of what her assignments are for the week and we go over them together if she has any questions. I will point out important due dates with her if she has a research paper due, but I allow her to set her study schedule.

Does anyone else homeschool a teen? How do you work their assignments with them? I would love to hear your tips and what your typical routine is like.

Blessings!

Deut 6:6-9
"These words, which I am commanding you today, shall be on your heart.
You shall teach them diligently to your sons and shall talk of them
when you sit in your house and when you walk by the way and when you
lie down and when you rise up. "You shall bind them as a sign on your
hand and they shall be as frontals on your forehead. "You shall write
them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates.


All of us have gone to the Christian bookstores and have seen the
beautiful works of art created out of scripture. I'm sure many of us
have at least one of them hanging in our home. I know I do. How many
of us can quote that scripture without looking at it? Do you stop
when passing it and reflect on what it means to us each time we see
it?

God is calling us to keep His word ever before us, to even go so far
as to hang them on our gates and the doorposts of our home and write
them on our hands! Why would we need to do this? I can tell you why I
need to...

I have had some difficulties in life and have found that unless I
listen carefully to the Spirit speaking, I will focus on the problem
rather than the promises. And how easy that is to do. I have purposed
in my heart that I will make it a point NOT to grieve the Holy Spirit
any longer by ignoring the words and teachings given to me to combat
the circumstances that come upon me. God does not promise us a
trouble free life, but He does promise victory in every turn.

Isaiah 30:21 says: Your ears will hear a word behind you, "This is
the way, walk in it," whenever you turn to the right or to the left.

Let us all purpose in our hearts to hang our own scriptures on the
walls, gates and doorposts of our home. Take time to read them as you
walk in and out of your home, room or yard everyday and see what
happens. God has promised us that if we diligently obey His
commandment that we will eat the best of the land! (Isa. 1:19)

Blessings,
Christine

My older daughter, age 13 is using a rather comprehensive program called High Way to English Grammar that I absolutely love! When I first purchased it, I wasn't sure if this program was going to provide a full language workup and wondered if I was going to need a supplement. After looking through the teacher's notebook and student text I discovered that this program will do all that is required for the next 2 years if worked by the schedule recommended. It uses diagramming to break down what a sentence is really saying. In doing this, the child learns all aspects of language, what the role of each word is in a sentence (adverb, preposition, conjunction, adjective, etc.).

Yesterday, I overheard a conversation between my oldest daughter and her friend who came over to spend the night. It went something like this:

d=daughter

f=friend

d: I can't believe you said that, that is an oxymoron if I ever heard one.

f: what is that?

d: You don't know what an oxymoron is?

f: No, what do you mean?

My daughter went on to explain it to her in typical teenage fashion.

For my oldest, this program has helped her to unlock her creative potential. She's started writing a book. At this point it is about 13 pages, front and back, on notebook paper. She writes poetry as well. She has her teenage moments of course, but overall I would have to say that she speaks very well and can articulate her thoughts both verbally and written.

She also wrote a wonderful report on J.J. Audobon for a class assignment that was wonderful! Perhaps I'll post it and share.

Blessings,

Homeschool mom

I have always struggled with the straight-forward concept of teaching children grammar using worksheets. I guess it just baffles me to treat a child like they know nothing of the english language since we've been teaching them to speak and voice their opinions since they were old enough to toddle! I guess this is why I've been kicking around the idea of teaching my kids the concept of how to put their thoughts down on paper and doing it successfully BEFORE they really need to fully understand the label of a preposition is and it's function or a conjunction.

We've always used a very wide vocabulary with our kids and they know if they don't understand what a word means that we look it up together and compare it's definition with synonyms that the kids are familiar with. In doing this since they were very young, our children have developed a rather impressive vocabulary...something that has not gone unnoticed by my MIL, a public school teacher.

I was appalled to find that my 3rd grade daughter, upon removal from PS (public school), had no idea how to formulate a paragraph. Punctuation wasn't present and the basic rules of spacing words and capitalization was completely absent. The same symptoms of neglect were apparent in my 1st grade son also, and worse yet, he felt so overwhelmed with the idea of writing that he flat refused to do it at first. Since then, I have completely rethought the idea of "grammar" and all it entails for success and have decided that using quiet reading, reading aloud, penmanship and creative writing we are going to give our kids the building blocks to succeed in writing.

My two youngest have begun to bloom under this new format. They are writing freely and really thinking about how writing works. Punctuation is not a maze of dots and dashes, but code symbols to tell your reader HOW to understand what you are reading!

I'll post more as our new "curriculum" begins to flesh out.  

Let me start by saying, no offense to the crafty ladies out there that love this stuff, but I must ask a question???

Why oh why would anyone paint big black holstein spots on a laundry room wall??  I decided this was the weekend to remove the big black cow spots and the holstein wallpaper border from my laundry room.(we just bought the house) I am replacing it with a sunny yellow with white trim and border. It looks so classy!!

I think the next task I must conquer is to remove wallpaper from the bathroom...another pet peeve because as the wallpaper gets old, moisture gets trapped behind the paper and it molds!

Well that's my nightly rant...and remember, Never wallpaper a bathroom and never, ever, ever carpet a kitchen.

Signing off!

Well, I am trying to experiment with my blog and get the page the way I like it. Sigh, I know about enough code to make me bruise my head from the banging!!!! AAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHH

Anyway, I pray you will all bear with me as I try to be creative and bring about a site that I am proud of and enjoy coming to time after time!

This was a pretty fun weekend so far! My homeschooling family takes a 3-day weekend from Friday-Sunday. We usually spend Sundays on fun projects, relaxing crafts and study time for spelling. I know it sounds strange to have school on Saturday...but I suppose that is the advantage of homeschool!

Proverbs 10:22

It is the blessing of the Lord that makes rich and He adds no sorrow to it.

This scripture has been running through my mind for the last few days. It came to mind in a study I had with my children as I saw the Word come alive in a Bible lesson. It revealed itself to me vividly when my son came to me and said sin was like the fire in the fireplace, it consumes everything it touches. It came to me last night as my husband called and told me he would be late for dinner because the transmission went out in our only running vehicle on his way home from work. This scripture screamed out loud to me when the next morning we were able to fix our old truck for 129.00 that just happened to be in the budget and we found a rebuilt transmission for our suburban for 150.00 and we could pay it when our tax return came in!

The blessing referred to here is not just a financial one. It is a richness of life, of family, of love and of finances. It has been revealing itself to me in an abundance that is dizzying. So next time you feel you are facing something that is larger than you are, remember this promise, among the many the Lord has given us, The blessing of the Lord makes rich and He adds NO SORROW TO IT!

Praise the Lord forevermore!

We will be starting chapter 7 of Volume 2 next week, and someone in my
homeschool group sent this Easter cookie recipe around recently. I thought I
would share it with all of you, because it seemed really neat.

EASTER STORY COOKIES

 To be made the evening before Easter

 You need:
 1 cup whole pecans
 1 tsp. vinegar
 3 egg whites
 pinch salt
 1 cup sugar
  zipper baggie
 wooden spoon
 tape
 Bible

 Preheat oven to 300 degrees (this is important-don't wait until you're
half done with the recipe)!

 Place pecans in zipper baggie and let children beat them with the wooden
spoon to break into small pieces. Explain that after Jesus was arrested, He
was beaten by the Roman soldiers.
 Read John 19:1-3.

 Let each child smell the vinegar. Put 1 tsp. vinegar into mixing bowl.
Explain that when Jesus was thirsty on the cross, He was given vinegar to
drink.
 Read John 19:28-30.

 Add egg whites to vinegar. Eggs represent life.   Explain that Jesus gave
His life to give us life.
 Read John 10:10-11.

 Sprinkle a little salt into each child's hand. Let them taste it and brush
the rest into the bowl. Explain that this represents the salty tears shed by
Jesus' followe! rs, and the bitterness of our own sin.
  Read Luke 23:27.

 So far, the ingredients are not very appetizing. Add 1cup sugar.  Explain
that the sweetest part of the story is that Jesus died because He loves us.
He wants us to know and belong to Him.
 Read Ps. 34:8 and John 3:16.

 Beat with a mixer on high speed for 12 to 15 minutes until stiff peaks are
formed. Explain that the color white represents the purity in God's eyes of
those whose sins have been cleansed by Jesus.
 Read Isa. 1:18 and John 3:1-3.

 Fold in broken nuts. Drop by teaspoons onto wax paper covered cookie sheet.
Explain that each mound represents the rocky tomb where Jesus' body was
laid.
  Read Matt. 27:57-60.

  Put the cookie sheet in the oven, close the door and turn the oven OFF.
Give each child a piece of tape and seal the oven door. Explain that Jesus'
tomb was sealed.
 Read Matt. 27:65-66.

 GO TO BED! Explain that they may feel sad to leave the cookies in the oven
overnight. Jesus' followers were in despair when the tomb was sealed.
 Read John 16:20 and 22.

 On Easter morning, open the oven and give everyone a cookie. Notice the
cracked surface and take a bite. The cookies are hollow! On the first
Easter, Jesus' followers were amazed to find the tomb open and empty.
 Read Matt. 28:1-9

I started this chapter with some reluctance as I wasn't sure how well it was going to be received. However, my children have really enjoyed this unit thus far. We've studied about coins and how they are minted, the differences in the minting process, foreign currency, what it means to be good stewards of what belongs to us, giving and money management. We'll also go into the Civil War and the Great Depression.

Here are some links to sites that I found most helpful in our studies. Even if you don't use Weaver, you may find these to be of interest to you in developing your own unit study.

http://www.usmint.gov/mint_tours/index.cfm?flash=yes&action=vtShell

What a great site! These streaming videos walk you through the entire process of what the U.S. Mint does and the responsibilities of each office nationwide.

http://www.usmint.gov/kids/index.cfm?fileContents=coinnews/preshow.cfm

This kids' site offers printouts of common and popular U.S. coins and some fun educational games as well.

http://www.rulesforuse.org/pub/index.php?currency=aud&lang=en

This site allows you to search what is accepted currency in a given country. Detailed images allow you and your children to see what is printed on banknotes across the globe.

http://www.michigan.gov/hal/0,1607,7-160-15481_19268_20778---,00.html

Among the many other interesting PDF files available at this site for Historical studies, there is a great printout for kids to design their own wampum belts. Not only used as currency, wampum belts had great significance in marking historical events. My kids loved this!

I'll come back and add more sites later.

Blessings,

Christine

BETH MOORE AT THE AIRPORT

For those of you who don't know Beth Moore, she is an outstanding Bible teacher, writer of Bible studies, and is a married mother of two daughters.  She is a member of First Baptist in Houston.

Waiting to board the plane, I had the Bible on my lap and was very intent upon what I was doing.  I'd had a marvelous morning with the Lord.  I say that because I want to tell you it is a scary thing to have the Spirit of God really working in you.  You could end up doing some things you never would have done otherwise.  Life in the Spirit can be dangerous for a thousand reasons not the least of  which is your
ego.

I tried to keep from staring, but he was such a strange sight.  Humped over in a wheelchair, he was skin and bones, dressed in clothes that obviously fit when he was at least twenty pounds heavier.  His knees protruded from his trousers, and his shoulders looked like the coat hanger was still in his shirt.  His hands looked like tangled masses of veins and bones.  The strangest part of him was his hair and nails.
Stringy gray hair hung well over his shoulders and down part of his back.  His fingernails were long, clean but strangely out of place on an old man.

I looked down at my Bible as fast as I could, discomfort burning my face. As I tried to imagine what his story might have been, I found myself wondering if I'd just had a Howard Hughes sighting.

Then, I remembered that he was dead.  So this man in the airport...an impersonator maybe?
Was a camera on us somewhere?

There I sat, trying to concentrate on the Word to keep from being concerned about a thin slice of humanity served on a wheelchair only a few seats from me.  All the while my heart was growing more and more overwhelmed with a feeling for him.

Let's admit it.  Curiosity is a heap more comfortable than true concern, and suddenly I was awash with aching emotion for this bizarre-looking old man.

I had walked with God long enough to see the handwriting on the wall. I've learned that when I begin to feel what God feels, something so dramatic is bound to happen.
And it may be embarrassing.  I immediately began to resist because I could feel God working on my spirit and I started arguing with God in my mind.

"Oh, no, God, please, no."  I looked up at the ceiling as if I could stare straight through it into heaven and said, "Don't make me witness to this man.  Not right here and now.  Please.  I'll do anything.  Put me on the same plane, but don't make me get up here and witness to this man in front of this gawking audience.  Please, Lord!"

There I sat in the blue vinyl chair begging His Highness, "Please don't make me witness to this man.  Not now.  I'll do it on the plane."

Then I heard it...  "I don't want you to witness to him.  I want you to brush his hair."

The words were so clear, my heart leapt into my throat, and my thoughts spun like a top.  Do I witness to the man or brush his hair?  No-brainer. I  looked straight back up at the ceiling and said, "God, as I live and breathe, I want you to know I am ready to witness to this man.  I'm on this Lord.  I'm you're girl!  You've never seen a
woman witness to a man faster in your life.  What difference does it make if his hair is a mess if he is not redeemed?  I am on him.  I am going to witness to this man."

Again as clearly as I've ever heard an audible word, God seemed to write this statement across the wall of my mind.  "That is not what I said, Beth.  I don't want you to witness to him.  I want you to go brush his hair."

I looked up at God and quipped, "I don't have a hairbrush.  It's in my suitcase on the plane.  How am I supposed to brush his hair without a hairbrush?"

God was so insistent that I almost involuntarily began to walk toward him as these thoughts came to me from God's word:  "I will thoroughly furnish you unto all good works." (2 Timothy 3:17)  I stumbled over to the wheelchair thinking I could use one myself.

Even as I retell this story my pulse quickens and I feel those same butterflies.

I knelt down in front of the man and asked as demurely as possible, "Sir, may I have the pleasure of brushing your hair?"

He looked back at me and said, "What did you say?"

"May I have the pleasure of brushing your hair?" To which he responded in volume ten, "Little lady, if you expect me to hear you, you're going to have to talk louder than that."  At this point, I took a deep breath and blurted out, "SIR, MAY I HAVE THE PLEASURE OF BRUSHING YOUR HAIR?"

At which point every eye in the place darted right at me.  I was the only thing in the room looking more peculiar than old Mr. Longlocks.  Face crimson and forehead breaking out in a sweat, I watched him look up at me with absolute shock on his face, and say, "If you really want to."

Are you kidding?  Of course I didn't want to.  But God didn't seem interested in my personal preference right about then.  He pressed on my heart until I could utter the words, "Yes, sir, I would be pleased.  But I have one little problem.  I don't have a
hairbrush."

"I have one in my bag," he responded.  I went around to the back of that wheelchair, and I got on my hands and knees and unzipped the stranger's old carry-on, hardly believing what I was doing. I stood up and started brushing the old man's hair.  It was perfectly clean, but it was tangled and matted.  I don't do many things well, but I must admit I've had notable experience untangling knotted hair
mothering two little girls.

Like I'd done with either Amanda or Melissa in such a condition, I began brushing at the very bottom of the strands, remembering to take my time not to pull.  A miraculous thing happened to me as I started brushing that old man's hair.  Everybody else in the room disappeared.  There was no one alive for those moments except that old man and me.  I brushed and I brushed and I brushed until every tangle was out of that hair.

I know this sounds so strange, but I've never felt that kind of love for another soul in my entire life.  I believe with all my heart, I - for that few minutes - felt a portion of  the very love of God.  That He had overtaken my heart for a little while like someone renting a room and making Himself at home for a short while.  The emotions were so strong and so pure that I knew they had to be God's.

His hair was finally as soft and smooth as an infant's.  I slipped the brush back in the bag, went around the chair to face him.  I got back down on my knees, put my hands on his knees, and said, "Sir, do you know my Jesus?"

He said, "Yes, I do."  Well, that figures, I thought.  He explained, "I've known Him since I married my bride.  She wouldn't marry me until I got to know the Savior."  He said, "You see, the problem is, I haven't seen my bride in months.  I've had open-heart surgery, and she's been too ill to come see me.  I was sitting here thinking to myself, what a mess I must be for my bride."

Only God knows how often He allows us to be part of a divine moment when we're completely unaware of the significance. This, on the other hand, was one of those rare encounters when I knew God had intervened in details only He could have known.  It was a God moment, and I'll never forget it.  Our time came to board, and we were not on the same plane.  I was deeply ashamed of how I'd acted earlier and would have been so proud to have accompanied him on that aircraft.

I still had a few minutes, and as I gathered my things to board, the airline hostess returned from the corridor, tears streaming down her cheeks.  She said, "That old man's sitting on the plane, sobbing.  Why did you do that?  What made you do that?"

I said, "Do you know Jesus?  He can be the bossiest thing!"  And we got to share.  I learned something about God that day. He knows if you're exhausted because you're hungry, you're serving in the wrong place or it is time to move on, but you feel too responsible to budge.  He knows if you're hurting or feeling rejected.  He knows if you're sick or drowning under a wave of temptation.  Or He knows if you
just need your hair brushed.  He sees you as an individual.  Tell Him your need!

I got on my own flight, sobs choking my throat, wondering how many opportunities just like that one had I missed along the way... all because I didn't want people to think I was strange.  God didn't send me to that old man.  He sent that old man to me.

John 1:14  "The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us.  We have seen his glory, the glory of the One and Only, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth."

Life shouldn't be a journey to the grave with the intention of arriving safely in a pretty and well-preserved body, but rather, to skid in broadside, thoroughly used up, totally worn out, and loudly shouting, "Wow!  What a ride!  Thank You, Lord!"

If my High School friends could see me now! Who would have ever thought I would choose to quit my job and undertake educating my 3 children, 13, 10 and 8??

This is my first official year of homeschooling. I actually withdrew my youngest last year in January (was that really a year ago now) after moving to a small community where I thought, finally my children will benefit from a small town atmosphere and small town school. I had another thing coming! After multiple confrontations from my child's teacher, followed by an ultimatum from the principle who demanded I allow corporal punishment I threw the book at them...or rather the withdrawn form! I was scared to death and read every book I could think of about homeschooling. After 2 months, I withdrew my other two children when I felt I had a semblance of what I was doing. I started out with standard school textbooks and found that I really didn't like the direction I was heading with it. It just seemed to stale, too disjointed. I was introduced to Unit Studies and found my niche. Money was an issue, so I also needed something I could feel comfortable with and was cost effective. Introduce Weaver by AOP. I love the hands on, the freedom and the price that allows me to teach all 3 on the same subject, all incorporating the Bible as my standard. Initially I bought the whole basic 5, along with the Penmanship and the Success in Spelling. However, now that I've gained in confidence and seen the advances my children are making thus far this year, I've decided that I want to blaze my own way when it comes to the subject of Language Arts.

I will post more later on my ideas for this concept. It may be disapproved by for some, but we all have to adapt our education to suit the needs of our children right? It is no different for me. Thank you for reading along with me as I take it a step at a time, a day at a time...rejoicing all the way.

Blessings,

Christine