Monthly Meditation

GETTING READY FOR BACK TO SCHOOL
by Wayne S. Walker

     "The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom, and the knowledge of the Holy One is understanding" (Proverbs 9:10).  Many homeschooling families prefer to homeschool year round, and that is a perfectly valid mode of operation.  Others of us like to take a break from formal studies during the summer months, and for us July is the month where we find that we have to start making some of the final preparations needed to begin our new school year in the fall.  One reason that such a large number of people homeschool is that just as each subject has its beginning principles and each school year has its beginning time, so we understand that education itself has a proper beginning point.  "The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom."

     The prime education goal of those who wish to train their children in the nurture and admonition of the Lord is not just to fill their young skulls with certain information, although instruction is a very important part of the process, especially in the early years.  Neither is the goal simply to develop within them the ability to search out and find the information on their own, although this too is a desired step in the process as they become older and more mature.  Rather, the ultimate goal is for them to gain wisdom in applying what they have learned so that they can make choices and decisions in their lives that are pleasing to God.  We believe that we can accomplish this goal much better by instruction in the home than sending them to schools where God has been banned.

     So as many of us get ready for "back to school," looking over those last-minute curriculum choices, making sure that we have all the supplies that we need, and preparing our lesson plans in an attempt to see that all the necessary areas are covered during the upcoming year, it is good to step back for just a few minutes and view the big picture.  Are the things that we are doing helping us in that goal of stimulating our children's minds to gain "the wisdom that is from above" (James 3:17)?  And perhaps if not, how can we do a better job of accomplishing it?  Making sure that God and His will are foremost in everything that we do will surely help to lay a proper foundation for such an education.
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     From Biblical Homeschooling, July, 2008 ( biblicalhomeschooling-subscribe@yahoogroups.com or http://groups.yahoo.com/group/biblicalhomeschooling/ )