In my homeschooling years, during the summer, while most people are pouring over vacation condos, historical towns and maps that will lead them on roads to new and exciting places, I was sitting in the living room making lists of plans to get organized for the following fall.  Not too exciting for my family but was something I looked forward to.  The imagery of a peaceful, smooth running, organzied year...that was my motivation.

Oh, we had fun during the summer, went on vacations and took on that somewhat "lazy days of summer" attitude.  But, the Lord had showed me that I needed to take the summers, when there was not so much pressure, to get my ducks in a row for the following year. 

Over and over in God's word he shows us examples of order...order that in turn gives us peace and helps our relationship with him and our relationship with the others around us.  That is what I want to talk about today and for the upcoming Wednesdays.  I want to give you some tips from a veteran to hopefully help you become more organized and more peaceful...to make the most of your homeschooling call and to teach your children through your example, obedience to our Lord.  And there is a tiny jewel of testimony here...I wrote this post and was nearing completion when I lost it all.  There is someone out there that God wants to speak to through this post and Satan doesn't want that person to see it.  That I am sure of so here I go again..."Lord, help me to be your instrument, let your words and lessons pour out from me like water.  Touch all that read this and use it to better serve you, their families and to bring them many blessings as they go about doing your work.  With your words move them from the comfortable spot they are sitting to a new place, a better place that honors you more.  Bind Satan, and protect us from the attacks of the enemy and help us to always want to be molded into a better vessel for you!"  AMEN

Imagine for a minute that your children are in traditional school.  They come into their classroom and their teacher isn't there.  She slept in this morning and figures her students know what to do.  How about the children entering their classroom and the teacher spends half their class time rummaging through papers and books, unprepared to teach the class before her.  Or upon entering their class the teacher is sitting at her desk in GAP flannel p.j. pants and a tank top leisurely sipping her Starbuck's coffee.  Would any of you stand for this?!  Absolutely not!  The principles office would be full of irrate parents and rightly so.  The teacher has been given a responsiblilty and she has fallen down on the job..right!?  But think about it..how many of us are out of bed each morning before the children, have had a good (that doesn't mean long) prayer time, made our bed, gotten dressed and brushed our hair and have looked over the days lessons before the children arise?

As I said earlier, God's word, starting with creation, speaks over and over about order, peace, and being prepared.  True we are teaching our children at home and with that comes some freedom...freedom to teach them spiritually, freedom to hone in on their special needs, freedom to teach a subject until they really learn it and the freedom to let the Lord show us their God given talents and develop them.  It shoudn't give us the freedom to not be prepared, organized, orderly and spiritually filled up. It gives us a special gift that a lot of parents don't experience...that gift, though, has awesome responsibilites...a gift that  can only accomplish its best by the laying aside of ourselves and giving all of the "me" to God, so it is about Him and our children.

Let me remind you that studies have proved that it only takes 21 days to form a new habit.  It is only a matter of self-discipline and in the whole scheme of life that is a pretty easy thing.  So what are you going to discipline ourselves to do!  First, and foremost we are going to wake up before the children and go to God to get filled up with Him for the day.  In other words we are going to pray...start with praising his power, his might, his holiness.  Acknowledge that without Him you ARE nothing...your being is only by his design.  Then repent...repent of what you have done wrong..attitudes, actions, and thoughts.  Then repent of what you have failed to do.  Overlooking a lesson, a chance to reach out to someone, and the failure to use the teachable moments, that are like jewels, he has given you (everyone knows teachable moments is one of my passions)!  Now your heart is ready to ask for his guidance...ask him to give guidance and wisom to your husband as the head of your home and as the headmaster of your school, guide your lessons, speak His words to your children.. and design your attitudes to be those of a servant for the molding of your children.  Bind Satan...bind him in yourself, your home, your schoolwork, and in your relationships with the others in your circle.  Ask for God's help in keeping Satan behind you instead of in front of you leading you down the wrong path.  And finally REJOICE and again I say REJOICE!  REjoice in the abundant blessings He has given you, rejoice in the gift of your husband, your children, the opportunity to homeschool.  Rejoice in the day that is ahead of you, rain or shine, for the opportunity to see another day. Rejoice in his love and protection over you and your family.  REJOICE..

You might think that written out it seems like alot but I assure you it is not.  It really will take you only about 10-20 minutes a day..except for the more you pray the more natural it becomes and the more you are pulled to it...then your pray time will grow, you will find it hard to stop! After your pray time get dressed, make up your bed and go over your lessons for the day.  Some of you might choose to do that the night before and that is fine..for me I was always too tired at night and after a good pray time in the morning I felt refreshed and eager to look at our lessons..to make sure I had a handle on them.  But, whatever works best for you do it..the objective is to be ready and waiting on them not the other way around.

Let me emphazise again...this is not me just being OCD...this is living out a lesson straight from the word of God.  It is His teaching that things be in an orderly manner not mine.  And our job as parents is to prepare our children spiritually for eternity but also to equip them to be accountable,  functioning adults so that they can effectively go about and do what God has planned for them.  They won't be able to sleep in and not report to the job on time.  They won't be able to go to their college classes without being prepared with their lessons.  They won't do very well in life if they don't dress appropiately..no, I don't think they will get very far in the real world in their jammies or shorts and a tee shirt! Another thing is that you are better prepared for losing track of time and needing to run out to the bank, the store, the post office.  You will save time by already being dressed and ready.  If company drops in unexpectedly, are dressed and ready to hostess them.  And it is a much more pleasant picture and example to your daughters...a pleasing outfit, neat, fixed hair and a touch of make-up.

Again, remember it only takes 21 days to form a habit...if you start tomorrow by July 20th you will have formed a wonderful habit. If you don't want to take this from a veteran, remember that it is instructions from God..do it because He has called you to it.  You will be setting a good example for your family, you will have a lot more peace in your home, and you will be living out of God's teachings.  You will reap abundant blessings and feel God's presence a little more in your home.  You will be blessed!

A voice of one calling; "In the desert prepare the way for the Lord!; make straight in the wilderness a highway for our God.  Every valley shall be raised up, every mountin and hill made low; the rough ground shall become level, and rugged places a plain.  And the glory of the Lord will be revealed, and all mankind together will see it.  For the mouth of the Lord has spoken."  Isaiah 40:3-5