Baby Joey is now in the double digits like the rest of them! Does he look happy or what? Emily (third from left) got her braces on a couple of days ago. She now joins Hayden and Samuel in the braces club. She still managed to eat cake and ice cream (although mostly the softer ice cream)!
After spending a day on James Island at the Department of Natural Resources, we returned home to celebrate Joey's 10th.
We had another opportunity for a free field trip today and we took advantage of it! I can't say enough about the Department of Natural Resources. I am so impressed!
Today's topic: Sharks and Fish.
Does this response look familiar? Reminds me of his brother, Harrison. Here, Joseph is touching a dead fish. I have to say, today's classes smelled a little like CAT FOOD.
First, the younger kiddos had to locate and identify the outer parts of the fish. Our friends, the Blauchs were there too! Joey and Nathan worked together.
After watching a presentation and learning the outside parts of the fish, Joey and Nathan cover it with paint.
Big sister, Hayden helps them to make a fish print.
Hayden watches over the little artists. They learned that fish prints were made by the early Japanese before cameras were invented to brag about the size of their catches!
After everyone's work is hung to dry, the next activity begins.
The instructor teaches them an interactive song about the parts of a fish sung to, "Head and shoulders, knees and toes, knees and toes......"
Can you sing, "operculum"?
Meanwhile........
The teenagers dissect a shark in an outer building. As usual, Emily and Benjamin (Blauch) did most of the cutting.
A couple of funny moments: Here, Jacob realizes his brother Benjamin just wiped his hand on Jacob's shoulder. He is about as thrilled about this entire experience as Harrison.
The group next to ours had a "fresh" shark so it was uh, juicier. When the group turned it over, all the "guts" spilled out. Harrison looked over just in time to see it. Emily ran over there shortly afterward to see it on purpose.......
After the first hour, the two classes switched buildings and the teens learned about fish and the younger ones learned about sharks.
Here, Joey and some new friends locate the outer parts of the shark after a presentation.
Next, they went outside. Each child had a card clothes-pinned to his clothes with a picture/name of a type of shark on it. After learning the different characteristics of the several varieties, several games were played to practice their "shark senses".
A blind-folded student tries to identify which child gently threw a bean bag at her by her sense of touch.
Joey's label said, "Dogfish". The three dogfish had to compete in an obstacle course wearing goggles and a boot.
Here, Joey weaves through the tables.
He gets under the limbo bar for the win!
The teens have been given the fish from the earlier group. Yes, they still had some paint on them.
Emily is partnered up with her good friend Avery Gibson for the fish dissection.
Harrison is back with Benjamin and a new friend named Gabriel.
Samuel works with Avery's brother, Harlan.
Could it be? Is Harrison actually performing an incision?
No, he wanted to REMOVE THE EYEBALL. This was OPTIONAL. In the picture below, he is DANGLING the eyeball. I don't think he is squeamish at all. I think he likes DRAMA and testing his mama.
A lovely, little squid is presented to my teenagers for dissection.
Can you guess which child of mine wants to major in biology and which one does not?
South Carolina offers mild fall and winter months with a rare day or two of snow. But even with the milder temperatures in December, it was still a pretty chilly day for a trip out to the coast! Yes, today we found ourselves zipping over to the Department of Natural Resources on James Island for FREE science opportunities for the kiddos. My three teenagers, Emily, Harrison, and Samuel, met with other home schoolers in our support group to learn everything they ever wanted to learn about squid and even stuff they didn't.
Harrison is taking biology this year, and as you can probably imagine, he has not been the most enthusiastic student. Emily, on the other hand, has been a little scientist ever since she could mix things. I can't tell you how many times I have discovered mystery items in my freezer, had my baking soda disappear way too quickly, or found her outside in the dirt, planting something new. Emily insisted on taking Honors Biology her Freshman year and desires to pursue it in more depth at our local, Christian college next year. She is a Senior now and is LOVING her anatomy class.
Emily followed me to my "mole removal" procedure last summer because she WANTED TO WATCH (yes, they let her), and then joined me at the hematologist when I had my blood tested because of a low platelet count. She will be accompanying her sister, Hayden to her orthodontist appointment next week, and then will have the personal experience herself in January. Every doctor's appointment around here is an opportunity for a field trip for Emily. She wanted to be here today because to her, the idea of dissecting anything is a thrill.
I was horrified to find two deer legs in my garage refrigerator last week. Emily had talked her dad into bringing them home from his seasonal part-time job at a deer processing business. She was studying joints in anatomy and wanted to study some real knees. I shudder to think what our trash collectors think of us. Yikes. Interestingly enough. Harrison has frequently assisted Scott in deer processing and doesn't seem to have a problem cutting up deer. He says blood doesn't bother him. It is the slime.........Emily, interestingly enough, hates blood. What a pair.
Harrison is more of a political guy. He loves history and watching the news almost as much as watching football. These two are currently taking a Constitutional Law class together. This class is more of a challenge for Emily, who is doing very well; but Harrison eats that stuff with a spoon.
Meanwhile in another building...............
My nine year old, Joseph (center), enthusiastically raises his hand during a salt marsh study while my faithful assistant, Hayden (a home school graduate) keeps an eye on him while sitting on the floor, (at the back of the class). She continues to pursue her writing, but will attend college with her sister next year. Like Harrison, she is a history lover.
Joseph hasn't had much classroom experience outside of our home, and it is always interesting to me to see how my kids respond in a group setting away from their usual classmates (siblings).
The dissection class held about twenty teenagers. Another group of twenty from our group met an hour before we did. My husband is standing in the back keeping an eye on our three while I "float" back and forth between the two classes observing and taking pictures.
The materials and presentation were well-organized and informative.
The kids receive their squid and work in teams of two. Our friends, the Blauch family, also participated today. Harrison's friend, Benjamin (sitting next to him), who wants to be a marine biologist, patiently listens to Harrison explain why this activity is inappropriate for young minds
due to its grossness.
Dad wanders over. My husband, Scott, had actually begun to pursue a degree in marine biology about eight years after receiving his degree in business, but decided not to continue after we began expecting child number two (Emily). Over the years, he has had several salt water fish tanks and even experimented with tilapia farming. Harrison is surrounded and outnumbered by biology lovers today!
Samuel and his lab partner count appendages on the squid. Samuel enjoyed this activity far more than he expected today.
Joey's group goes outside on a marsh scavenger hunt to locate some of the items and critters they discussed and touched during their lesson.
Back at the lab, Emily uses the probe to locate the "beak".
Sammy cuts the squid to identify more parts.
Emily and Harrison have a male. Samuel and his lab partner have a female.
Somehow, Harrison managed to get through the entire lab without actually touching the squid. When Emily insisted that he at least break open the ink sac; he used her hand to do it. Sigh. I can't be too hard on him. I did the same thing in college. I was always the "scribe" in these types of labs. I took the notes while the other partner did all the messy stuff.
Now for assessment. The students complete a labeling worksheet.
Joey's group finished up their scavenger hunt by taking a few minutes to "clean up" pollution in the marsh area and returning all the shells, hermit crabs, etc. that the students had collected.
The kids returned to the shelter and volunteered to reach in to the "mystery bag". The objects in the bag were used to explain how the marsh is used and contributed to by animals, plants, and water. Some of the objects were a pillow (migrating birds use the marsh to rest), coffee filters (oysters filter the water), an apple (the marsh provides food) and a whisk (because the marsh is where the salt and fresh water mix).
Joey tastes a tiny "sea pickle". This salty, little plant grows among the marsh. Joey learned that these are sometimes used as a salad topping in some of the fancier restaurants. I think Joey harvested enough of these to store in a pickle jar! He even put a couple on his chicken sandwich for dinner!
Fascinating Fact: Below is a picture of a squid "pen". The kids located and removed these during their dissection. Because squids are invertebrates and have no backbones, these "pens" give the squid support instead. They are located where a backbone would be and are nestled underneath the ink sac. Seriously, a pen and ink are found inside these little guys! The Lord definitely has a sense of humor!
Happy is he who has the God of Jacob for his help,
Sammy and I grade and discuss his Language test. His planning notebook is in front of me.
I shared in an earlier post that my primary motivation for teaching my children how to teach was to equip them to pass their faith, values, knowledge, and skills successfully on to the next generation. I do not know my grandchildren yet - but I know that I will love them and want them to honor God and be excellent in all things. I have another motivation as well. I desire for you to do the same so that we may build and strengthen the Kingdom of God through healthy, intelligent, and faithful family relationships and instruction as disciples of our shared Heavenly Father.
I have learned so much over the last twenty-three years as both a public school teacher and as a homeschooling mother and I know full well the pitfalls that can so easily undermine us as we educate our children.
I have already addressed the first two pitfalls in earlier posts: a failure to establish a secure, stable, and consistent learning environment because of a distracted and absent teacher (mother); and a failure to spend time in prayer and in the Word to be refreshed and instructed by our Master Teacher. I know these pitfalls only because I have experienced them personally. I can better equip my children and you to avoid them if I reveal them beforehand. Learning from our mistakes is the point of my next topic: Assessment.
Harrison and I rework a geometry problem. I also have Harrison's "Planning book" in front of me. It is a simple, humble notebook with 180 dated and numbered boxes he drew with a ruler for each subject. He writes his assignments in the boxes himself and then highlights them with a blue highlighter when he is finished. I initial each box as we go over an assignment. They don't "count" unless they have been initialed by me. This keeps us both accountable. He is not allowed to take a test until all boxes are initialed for that unit. When all 180 of his numbered boxes are signed off, he is finished with that subject for the year!
Assessment is a fancy way of referring to "grading" your child's work. This important component of instruction has been abused, misused or neglected both in the public and private school systems as well as in the homeschooling community. Assessment informs both the student and the teacher whether or not the information taught has been learned. Our children need to not only experience assessment as a student, but learn to utilize it as a teacher. Individuals like to be successful and "get things right", but the purpose of learning is to acquire something new. It is humbling the first time a new concept or skill is attempted because there is always the risk of failure. This process is difficult for the student because he is wrapped up in proud flesh and doesn't want to get things wrong; and it is difficult for the instructor because he is wrapped up in impatient flesh that really doesn't want to sit there and work through another problem.
In a public or private school classroom, it is more challenging to meet the individual learning needs of each student. Since these are institutional environments with up to hundreds of students and tens of teachers, it is not unusual for a learner to go year after year with a gap in fully understanding a specific concept. This can occur because of a failure to recognize the problem or because of the lack of a willingness to sit down one-on-one and work the child through the material. There are remedial classes for those who are seriously behind, but this is usually not the case for the average student who simply "missed something" somewhere. This is not always the teacher's fault. In an institution, there is a genuine lack of time, parental support and involvement, and consistent communication between multiple teachers over several years.
It is also very likely that a parent may not even be aware that a learning gap has occurred. Although standardized testing may reveal some gaps, most parents don't understand how to translate test scores and address a weakness. The information is available to next year's teacher; but with a large class of students with a variety of needs and a plan for the year that must be fulfilled, who has time to go back to previous elementary concepts?
The homeschooling parent, however, does have that luxury and should take full advantage of it! Assessment is incomplete, however, if reteaching does not occur when a student does not master a concept. Simply marking an answer wrong is not enough. The student must have his faulty thinking corrected or a gap will occur. Most of the time, the purpose of a test is to identify whether or not a learner has information or a skill memorized when the period of instruction is completed. If the test is truly a final assessment, then a child's failure also means that the teacher may have failed to recognize that her student needed more instruction or practice and was not ready for such an assessment. "Whoa!", you say. You mean it is my fault if my kid fails a test? What if my student is lazy and unmotivated? Is that my failure? Not necessarily, but be aware that a teacher who gives a test knowing full well about her student's attitude problem has a different purpose for the test in mind. The purpose of a test given under those circumstances was not to assess but to punish - and that is a form of instruction - not an assessment. I am not stating that administering tests as a wake up call is wrong - but what I am saying is that you need to call it what it is.
Our Lord tests people who frequently fail. We know the Lord is the perfect Teacher, so a failure can't always be the fault of the instructor. Sometimes a test is given to humble the student because he believed he was an expert when he was truly only a novice. An assessment can be just as revealing to the student as it is to the teacher. In the case of the Lord, He knows the results before the test is given, but we do not! As for we human teachers, we also know that there should be consequences for lazy behavior; but students fail tests everyday in the public and private settings because the material simply was never mastered as a result of poor monitoring. For a student who sincerely wishes to learn, that is a failure of the instructor or an unavoidable failure of the institutional method simply because of time constraints. Sometimes an assessment method or its timing is just inappropriate and that is another reason for failure. That again, is not the student's fault. Don't be guilty of poor monitoring of your child's progress! Model to your child how monitoring works.
Emily grades her English page. If she gets an answer incorrect and does not understand why, she gets me and we go over it together. I reteach the concept if necessary. Like Harrison, she also keeps records of her assignments. Emily also writes a specific daily assignment sheet with all of her subjects for the day to keep her focused until her work is done. Some of my kids need that and some do not. I use the daily sheets for my two younger boys because I need them! I also maintain the planning notebooks for my two younger boys because they are not ready for that responsibility yet. Not all assessments are tests. Not all assessments are written. Each time my child demonstrates a skill and it is measured against a standard of some sort, my child as well as I are informed of his progress. I can assess whether or not my child can jump rope simply by watching him. If he or she is getting the answers wrong, or demonstrating a skill incorrectly, then we must discover the source of the problem and fix it. THAT is where the real learning occurs! Each time my child gets an answer right, that means he or she already knew the material. Learning occurs when my child's level of knowledge increases or improves and that is what I'm after! Where there is no challenge, there is simply practice. And that has value too. Mothers, PLEASE sit with your child and go over his work carefully - especially before a test! Self-assessment is when a learner grades his/her own work. There are times when that is perfectly appropriate - even more appropriate. Two of my children are learning Algebra I and II through a video series. The only work I grade is their tests. It is more helpful and productive for them to use the solutions manual and check each step by themselves than for me to look at the final answer. Self-assessing detailed, complicated work where the process is multi-stepped helps the learner catch exactly where he/she made a mistake. Self-assessment is also important in self-teaching. In Galatians 5:22, the fruit of the Spirit is listed. There you find the word "longsuffering" or as we call it today: patience. As a homeschooling mother, my Lord teaches me patience and assesses my patience in this role. It is not always easy to sit still and sound out words with a second grader, rework equations, or edit a paper again and again. As my family and I work together, we are all under the tutelage of Christ, learning and practicing His ways in a great exercise of patience!
Hayden is teaching herself how to play the violin with the help of Youtube.
Harrison watches an algebra video before completing his assignment.
Teach: To cause to know something Presume: To expect or assume with confidence Merriam Webster
Not many of you should presume to be teachers, my brothers, because you know that we who teach will be judged more strictly. James 3:1
....Just as he (Jacob) crossed over Penuel the sun rose on him, and he limped on his hip. Genesis 32: 31
So, I had just finished my previous article about teaching our children to teach and how we must prepare our children to impart knowledge to others, when the Lord brought James 3:1 (above) to my mind.
sigh.
This happens to me. A lot. No, it is not necessarily a rebuke - although sometimes it is - when my Teacher does this with me. It is a challenge. Something to think about - something on which to dig deeper.
I have prayed about these articles. In fact, I felt led to write this series, which, as a busy, homeschooling mother is not an easy thing to do. I asked the Lord to lead me to the topics of His choice, and just as I was prepared to write about curriculum - He gave me the verse. Yes, I have been learning from the Master, and today I want to talk to you about encouraging and leading your children to do the same - especially when it comes to teaching.
I am a master too. A master of presumption, that is. My father was an elementary school principal and during the summers, "his" school was my playground. When I finally entered elementary school at another location, I boldly entered the teachers' lounge on the first day to get myself a soda from the soda machine. How dare those teachers chase me out of there! Didn't they realize who I was? Couldn't they tell I was one of them? Two days after entering kindergarten, I announced to my mother that I wanted to quit because, "I already knew everything". I had decided at the age of five that I wanted to be a school teacher and from that age onward I sat in class after class convinced that I could do it better than the one standing in front of me.
In my twenties and thirties, I was a cute little thing dressed in a sharp suit, manicured nails, and a mic on my lapel; sharing my insights and strategies to others in my profession. Then, since that wasn't a large enough audience, I wrote articles on the subject as well. I was also an avid distance runner who sought the runner's high and a perfect body. I was the iconic American career woman applauded by her worldly peers.
At the age of thirty, I was training with the Leukemia Society for a marathon. During a sixteen mile training run, I fell to the ground with a pulled hamstring. This came on the heels of just recently abandoning my teaching career (after the birth of my second child). Now I had to pull out of a marathon. I was also still recovering from the divorce of my parents after over thirty years of marriage. I had lost my identity and my world of perfection was falling apart. I needed a Savior - badly.
Immediately after my salvation, I became consumed in a busy church. The leaders knew I was an experienced, certified teacher, so I was given the assignment of Sunday school teacher. True, I hadn't read the Bible yet - but I was just so dynamic and well, confident - surely the Lord must have wanted me to lead His little ones.... and then the women..... and then, yes, even the men. I led ministries and workshops during that first year all under the presumption that that was what the Lord wanted me to do because I was just so good at it. :) In fact, many of the "ministries" that so desperately needed workers were themselves birthed from presumptions that they were actually necessary and part of the Lord's plan. It seems to be human nature to identify a need and then feel "led" to design a program around it. I've learned over the years that when the Lord reveals the need(s) of another person or even several persons, He isn't calling me to pioneer a program, He is usually just encouraging me to be a friend. Sometimes He is also revealing a trend of the enemy against the church that needs a season of proactive prayer.
Isn't it funny (and yet so tragic) how we will do anything to avoid serious prayer time or an intimate friendship? The truth is that a lot of folks who are in need of special friends are in messy situations that we prefer to handle from the safe distance of a "program". We'd rather call some embarrassing individuals a "ministry" rather than claim them as our friends! That is not the Lord's way! He calls us His friends and we are surely needy and messy in His sight. Although, in hindsight, I now realize the error of my ways (and of the church's leadership for that matter), there was an assignment during that time I am convinced was truly from the Lord. The church was in need of a cleaning lady and I was in need of some cash. I scrubbed the church's toilets.
In addition to learning that the "best" man (or woman) for the job from our perspective isn't always God's choice, I obviously had to learn first and foremost that a teacher must be humble. If I had presumed I had been qualified before, I was even more presumptuous after reading the Bible a few times and completing numerous discipleship courses. My faithful Teacher pressed on, however, instructing me and humbling me until I was afraid to teach anyone. Then, and only then, He decided, was I finally trustworthy to do some teaching (like, uh, homeschooling my own children and writing some articles every few months on a couple of blogs - with few followers!) Someday, I am hoping I can also be trusted with that athletic body again too, but I digress............
In the Book of Genesis, Jacob had an encounter with the Lord and he was never the same. His name was changed and his walk was changed. The Lord has a way of doing that with His learners. He transforms that strut into a limp. The limp slows you down, makes you tremble, and makes you think. You stop blurting and become more thoughtful. My limp? It started literally on the day of that training run and continues to this day. The Lord blessed me with five, beautiful, dynamic children with the same sinful nature that I have to show me how annoying I can be - and yet, still lovable.
In addition to the new lifestyle and attitude, I lost that focus on myself. Perfect body? Hahahahahahahahaha! The body went when the knees did. A fall and a twisted ankle last year gave me another literal and occasional limp. Manicured nails? I'm lucky I get a bath and my clothes on right-side out! Nope, people don't admire me because I'm cute and dynamic anymore. My students don't adore me quite like the former ones did. No one wants to talk to me and pat me on the back after a lesson. My glory has faded so Another's may come forth. If it hadn't been for the Lord and aging, I would have stayed on that fast track, and I would have been a doomed and dangerous woman - and on the wrong team to boot.
Ah, the tongue. That was what James was referring to when he wrote that verse above. We are so full of advice and so quick to give it, but beware! The Lord is The Shepherd and He jealously guards His flock. Be careful before you give that counsel and that instruction. Is it Scriptural? Is it from the Lord, or are you shooting from the hip, just citing your personal experience and trying to lead without even being asked?
And yet.
Don't bury that talent or you'll be thrown into outer darkness.
Don't hide that light under a bushel.
What is one to do?
Yes, keep your feet at home, my dear sister, but you must also consistently sit at the feet of the Master so He can teach you how and when to share the treasures He shows you with others.
If you begin to lose that limp and stop trembling, pray until you get it back. Teach your children the fear of the Lord and that teaching is serious business. Whether the teaching is academic or spiritual - you are leading His little flock. Remember, if He hands you a staff and calls you to teach His children or women, you'd better make sure you show up for His teacher's meetings!
Whoever therefore breaks one of the least of these commandments, and teaches men so, shall be called least in the kingdom of heaven; but whoever does and teaches them, he shall be called great in the kingdom of heaven. Matthew 5:19
The Great Commission:Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age. Amen. (Matthew 28: 19-20)
Men: ....and the things that you have heard from me among many witnesses, commit these to faithful men who will be able to teach others also. (II Timothy 2:2)
Women: ....the older women likewise, that they be...teachers of good things-that they admonish the young women to love their husbands, to love their children, to be discreet, chaste, homemakers, obedient to their own husbands, that the word of God may not be blasphemed
(Titus 2:3-5).
Our Lord is The Teacher and we are to be conformed more and more into His image.
Mothers, how can we nurture Biblical teaching skills in our children so we can more effectively build the Kingdom of God and foster generations of literate, even brilliant, future believers who can replicate themselves?
A few, random, but real life pictures I snapped one day of the various ways my children are learning to teach.
My eighteen year old, Hayden, (here with a head cold!) grades the American History papers she assigned to her fourteen and sixteen year old siblings. She is also responsible for teaching them American Literature this year.
Hayden goes over an assignment with her fourteen year old brother, Harrison.
Hayden, as well as her sister, Emily, have been learning how to teach reading skills. Hayden works with her eight year old brother, Joseph, on his Language workbook assignment.
Harrison quizzes Joseph on his spelling words. Although Harrison may not be the primary homeschooling parent one day, he will be expected to do this........
......lead and teach his family through devotionals and Bible study. Here my husband, Scott, prepares before we meet for our daily family Bible reading/discussion. My sons will also need this skill if they are to be qualified for church leadership (I Timothy 3:2).
Topic 1
Keeping Your Feet at Home (Proverbs 7:11)
Throughout the Scriptures, a reader can find numerous accounts of families where a man of faith brings forth children who lack his integrity, excellence, and obedient ways. It happened to Noah, Abraham, Samuel, David, numerous kings, and Job, just to name a few. The Bible commands us to teach and train our children. I want my children to love and serve the Lord all the days of their lives, but I also want my grandchildren and great grandchildren to serve the Lord as well! This desire led me to the conclusion that I must not only teach my children the basics, but I must also teach them how to teach others. Some day, if the Lord tarries, my children will be expected to train up their own children - one of the most important responsibilities the Lord has given them. I can't neglect to ensure that my children are equipped to teach and train the next generation of believers!
As a Christian woman, I am expected to eventually mature enough spiritually to teach children and other women. As a mother, my primary teaching responsibility goes to my own children. The Bible warns women of our fallen nature and weaknesses:
1. We desire our husband's position. (Genesis 3:16)
2. We are more easily deceived than men (I Timothy 2:14)
3. In I Timothy 5:11, Paul warns the church against financially supporting young widows. He writes that their desires will inevitably lead them astray - even wanton against Christ. He states that they have tendencies to be idle, to wander from house to house, become gossips and busybodies, and say things they ought not. Paul's solution? Let the young widows marry, have children, and manage the house. Why? To give the adversary no opportunity to speak reproachfully. Is this only a risk for young widows? No. This is a risk for all young women. The healthy yoke of a busy, well run home protects them. If you are convinced that you are immune to these tendencies, go back and read number two.
As for the men? Well, they have sinful tendencies of their own, but I am not writing to them.
None of us are immune to stumbling and we must be vigilant and remain in the realm we have been given. In God's great wisdom, He has decided that the best place for a woman to be conformed into the image of His Son is in the home serving a husband and children. Can you think of a better place besides missionary work to deny yourself, serve others in a sacrificial manner, and to develop the fruit of the Spirit? We must embrace this assignment and stop running away from it. A good soldier never leaves her post!
As a Christian mother who sincerely believes that homeschooling is truly the best option for her children, I have been saddened by the trends I am seeing in my own homeschooling community: placing children back into the school system for financial reasons or simply out of frustration, becoming more and more dependent on co-ops and support groups, and running around so much that school is rushed, disorganized, and unfruitful. I do not want my future, homeschooling daughters to fall into these traps!
A couple of years ago my husband lost his job. You know, it never even occurred to me to put my kids into public school and go back to my career. That was simply not an option. The souls of my children were not worth risking. We lost our home - but not our kids. God came through and placed us into an even better home and my husband into an even better job. We survived and what was truly the most important to us remained.
I have participated in co-ops and believe they can be a great service. If you don't speak French, for example, and your child desires this language credit, a course is a wonderful opportunity. Be aware, however, that relinquishing all subject areas is no longer homeschooling your children. That is private schooling. I was deeply convicted of allowing my children to participate in classes taught by other homeschooling mothers knowing that I was contributing to something I believed was destructive to their own homes. If I believe mothers need to spend more time at home, then I shouldn't be taking advantage of the ones who haven't discovered that yet.
Some women feel bored and restless after being home all week. Well, our husbands have to be at work all week, but they're not allowed to abandon their posts. It is common to feel bored and restless anywhere, but the home is not the culprit. It is the attitude. Make your home a lovely, interesting place and you won't feel this way!
When I taught public school, I wouldn't have dared to hang on the phone, spend hours on the computer, and leave to run errands while I was on duty. I was expected to show up on time, have plans for the day, keep a clean, well-organized classroom, manage records, and do more than just "give assignments". I was there to teach and teach well. I would have been fired for anything less. Should the world have higher standards than the servants of God? Are the children of strangers worthy of better attention than my own?
How does "keeping my feet at home" teach my children how to teach? I obviously do not stay home alone. My children are with me. Many young people today don't keep their feet at home either. Everybody is running around, "going to and fro" (Daniel 12:4). My children, especially my daughters, must learn to be content to stay put. If they do not learn to do this, they will be more likely to embrace our world's overstimulated, selfish ways and flee their homes and children when it is their turn to train. When I stay home and stay focused, I am modeling to my children the first principle of good teaching that the Lord demonstrates to us daily; a commitment. I am saying, "I love you and you are worthy of my time and best effort. I am here to take care of you. You are more important to Mommy and Daddy than money and my selfish desires for attention, accolades, and "me time". I am here to help you. Our school time is important to me. I am not going to farm it off onto somebody else because I don't feel like doing it myself. If I seek another to mentor you, it is because I have prayerfully sought the Lord for someone better equipped in this particular area. I embrace you as my responsibility and I do not resent it. I am training you for a kingdom, precious child of God, and you are my sweet offering to the Lord."
Several weeks ago I awakened after having a disturbing dream. This dream was followed by two more dreams and I am convinced they are from the Lord. I sincerely believe that I have a responsibility to share these with you.
In the first dream, I was staying in a villa by the ocean. I walked outside to the shore and suddenly saw the ocean rapidly pull back a mighty distance. I thought to myself, "This is going to be an enormous tsunami. I have to warn people!" I suddenly noticed that there were these incredible rock formations that had been under the sea. The landscape looked like a sculpted desert in colors of orange and brown. It went on for miles. I saw people in the distance walking through the formations in fascination. I suddenly remembered that a great tsunami was coming and I ran inside the villa.
I can't remember everything that I began to do; all I know was that I became distracted and busy and forgot about the tsunami again. I seemed to be alone in this villa. When I remembered, I looked up at my window and saw a wall of water looming over the villa. It was too late. I realized that I was going to die and prayed that it would happen quickly. I wondered how painful it would be to not be able to breathe under all that water. Suddenly, I found myself in what looked like a waiting room. There were televisions all around the room and others were watching to see what became of the earth. I asked someone, "How many are left on the earth?" Someone said, "Only twenty now." And then I woke up.
As I lay in my bed, I began to tremble. We are commanded in Scripture not to believe every spirit, not to believe every dream. Over the years, I have become better at discerning when I am being attacked by the enemy and when the Lord is trying to get my attention. I tried to remember the details of the dream. As I prayed to the Lord for discernment, the Scripture from Joel came to my mind as quoted in the Book of Acts:
'And it shall come to pass in the last days, says God, That I will pour out my Spirit on all flesh; Your sons and your daughters will prophesy, Your young men shall see visions, Your old men shall dream dreams, And on My menservants and on My maidservants I will pour out My Spirit in those days; And they shall prophesy. I will show wonders in Heaven above And signs in the earth beneath: Blood and fire and vapor of smoke. The sun shall be turned into darkness, And the moon into blood, Before the great and awesome day of the Lord. And it shall come to pass That whoever calls on the name of the Lord shall be saved.' Acts 2:17-21
According to Peter (and the Holy Spirit), the last days had already begun by that day at Pentecost and it continues to this day - ever increasing as we draw closer to the return of Christ. As these verses ran through my mind, my trembling increased and I slid off the bed to my knees, grabbed my prayer shawl, and began to pray. I took the dream personally. Was I too busy to warn others of the coming of Christ? Was the Lord warning me that I would be caught unprepared by a great wave of tribulation because I wasn't paying enough attention?
It troubled me and I continued to pray about it. I shared my dream with a trusted and insightful friend. She told me that I wasn't the only one who had dreamed of a great tsunami. She sent me a Youtube video of another woman who was describing a similar type dream, but this woman had made it to higher ground. I did not.
Youtube is a wonderful way for God's people to share what the Holy Spirit is revealing to us as a body of believers and can unite us - but for every true and sincere video from the Lord, there are hundreds of misleading ones. My friend and I agreed that this particular one was from the Lord and I continued to pray for more insight. I found it interesting that this woman and I both found ourselves in temporary locations. She was in a hotel in her dream and I was in a villa. We have to remember that earth and even our bodies are not our real homes. It makes perfect sense that these things would be represented by a hotel or another temporary dwelling. I've attached two of her videos at the end of this post.
I got busy again. Now when I state that I got busy, that does not mean that I was not being faithful to the Lord. I continued to read my Bible daily, attended church twice a week, and prayed with my family and by myself. I continually sought to walk in holiness the best I could and repented frequently. I do not say this to boast, but to remind us all that we must beware we think we stand, lest we fall. We must remain humble and strive to grow no matter where we are. When I say I got busy, it means that I began to lose my sense of urgency to share the Gospel. I began to forget the small amount of time that we have here and that many, many people are in great danger of being lost forever. I felt safe (which is a good thing), but this made me stumble.
A few weeks later, I had another disturbing dream. This time I was in a house on the marsh. There weren't a lot of properties around and I thought that I was on some type of island like James Island or Johns Island here in South Carolina. I was standing outside and looking toward the water. I suddenly became aware that a great storm was coming, but the water seemed calm and at rest. The sky looked clear. I decided to go into the house and prepare to flee to higher ground. The house seemed dark. As I walked from room to room, I knew that there would be nothing left of my house when the storm was over and that I needed to grab whatever I could. The rooms seemed to be quite messy and I struggled to find anything valuable. I found a homeschooling textbook in the middle of the floor and grabbed it. I decided I had better look out the window to check the weather, but when I looked up toward the window, the shutters slammed shut and blocked my view. There seemed to be a man next to me and I knew he was responsible for closing the shutters, but I didn't feel particularly threatened by him.
I ran outside to put the textbook in the car. To my great relief, I saw that the water seemed calm and unchanged. When I turned around, though, I was terrified to discover that water had begun to creep up onto the property and puddle onto the only road to higher ground behind me. I began to yell to my husband and children that they needed to get into the car. I heard their voices, but I couldn't see them anywhere. Suddenly, what seemed like dozens of cars pulled up right in front of me and a person I used to teach with many years ago got out of her car and said, "Jennifer, why are you still here?! Don't you know a storm is coming?" I said, "I know, I know! We're leaving now!"
The cars disappeared and I began to feel despair when I realized that the road was now completely covered. I thought I saw a boat-like structure in the distance and waded to it, but when I touched it, it turned to reeds. I got back to the house as soon as I could and grabbed a phone. I started to call the police, but then remembered 911. I felt a great sense of relief, but when I dialed it, I got their voicemail. I left a desperate message and then found myself on the roof of the house surrounded by water.
I saw my children playing dangerously close to the edge of the roof. I saw a woman in the distance I recognized from a former church stranded in the same situation that I was in. I didn't know where my husband was, but it was only then, when it was way too late, that my children suddenly realized that something was wrong. They were younger in the dream and began to bicker in their panic. I grabbed my daughter, Emily, and when I did, she became an infant in my arms. I tried to pray for the Lord to take us quickly, but it was so hard because of all the noise and bickering. Then I woke up.
Once again I found myself trembling in the darkness in the wee hours of the morning. I was scared now. What did this mean? The dream seemed less personal now. It seemed like more of a message than a rebuke, but what was I to do with it? As I lay there, the danger seemed so real, so close, that I expected a river of water to wildly course through my neighborhood at any moment. I cried out to the Lord in my heart, "Lord, PLEASE tell me how to get to higher ground! I know you're warning me, but I don't understand!"
I don't know how to describe what happened, but it has happened before. Although I was fully aware of everything around me, I was also aware of the presence of the Lord standing next to my bed. To someone watching me, I would have climbed off my bed, taken my prayer shawl, and gotten on my knees; but what was happening in my mind was totally different. The Lord gently took me by the arm and pulled me from my bed. He walked me to the foot of it and I knew what He wanted me to do. I removed my prayer shawl from my desk drawer and put it over my head. I felt Him place His hand upon my shoulder and lead me to the floor to my knees. He stated simply, "This is how you get to higher ground." He then bent down next to me. His presence was so real. He felt so close I could practically feel His breath on my neck. He simply whispered gently, but firmly, "Do you hear Me now, Jennifer?" All I could do was nod.
I knew then that although I had been praying and walking with the Lord, He was wanting more from me now. I had not been praying with enough direction, enough passion. I was privileged to receive revelations from Him, but what was I doing with it? How was I to pray now? I began to pray in tongues because I simply didn't know what else to do. I suddenly looked up and saw my husband in the moonlight sleeping and I knew I was praying for him. I heard the Lord tell me He was going to "wake him up" and I knew this meant that a new passion and direction was going to come upon my husband for Jesus. When I asked the Lord if He wanted me to tell my husband what I prayed, He simply stated, "Yes, but I shall be the One who wakes him." I then realized that even though I would tell my husband everything, that that would not be what would awaken him to a revitalized call. It would be something personal between he and the Lord and I had to respect that.
I know that the Lord does not want me to leave my post as a stay at home wife and mother because that would contradict what God's Word commands me to do. I knew that even though I was home, however, I could still make a difference. I have this blog. I have a voice. I could cry in the wilderness in my own little way like John the Baptist. I planned to make an entry on this blog as soon as possible. But then my life got a little crazy. My son had a medical procedure on his toes and couldn't walk for several days, kids got sick, and errands seemed to multiply out of nowhere. Exhausted one night, I fell into bed and grabbed the remote while waiting for my husband to come home from work. I don't watch much television, but a program began about the tsunami that had hit Japan a year ago. Several individuals were being interviewed (with translation) and their personal accounts as well as dramatic footage were played before me on the screen.
Once again I seemed to find myself in an unusual place. I was watching the program, but also became keenly aware of a great analogy the Lord wanted me to see. I saw individuals obliviously driving along as water began to creep up alongside them only to sweep them away in a torrent of water. I saw a man trying to run with what looked like a television set as water outran him down the street. "Why wouldn't he let the thing go?" I wondered. Person after person greatly underestimated the devastation that would come and lingered too long to get to higher ground. In one moving account, a fireman delayed warning people because he just didn't think it was going to get that bad. He blamed himself for the loss of life in his area. Those on higher ground helplessly watched people below become quickly overwhelmed by the surging flood. People were screaming at those below to "Hurry!", but the ones on lower ground simply couldn't see what was coming and lacked the urgency needed to make it. It was only when the water came upon them and it was too late that they realized the seriousness of the danger.
I was convinced. "I've got to write that blog entry!" I went to church this past Wednesday night and one of my prayers was that the Lord would use our church members as His laborers and make appointments for us to share the Gospel. Early the next morning I had another dream.
This time I was in a skyscraper in what looked like New York City. I looked out the window and saw that it was beginning to rain. As I looked out the window, I wondered how bad it was going to get. "Is this going to be the bad one?" I thought of my children and knew they were somewhere in the large building, but I didn't think they were in danger at that point.
I don't remember what I started doing, but once again I got busy. It seemed like only a few minutes later that I looked out the window again. The rain was getting harder and cars were driving with their windshield wipers frantically whipping across their windshields. I tried to discern if it was bad enough to leave, but I was so high up, it was hard to tell. I left the window again. I can't remember what I was doing between my visits to the window. All I know was that it seemed to be brief periods of time when I would check the level of danger. The next time I looked out the window, I could no longer see cars on the road. My view zoomed in closer to where the road used to be and the water was filthy. I saw a toilet paper roll floating on the top of the water and thought to myself, "Uh oh, the sewage system is overcome. The city is too flooded for us to get out now." Although I was high up in the building, I did not feel safe. I knew the foundation could not hold up if the water got much higher. I grabbed the phone and tried to call my mom. When she answered, I told her to call 911. As I looked out the window, I saw what I feared would happen. Another skyscraper in the distance began to collapse into the water. Before I could finish speaking to my mother, I felt the building I was in begin to go down. I thought of my children as I fell through the floors. Suddenly, I felt great power come upon me. I thought of superman as I began to fly with great strength upward through the floors of the building. I remembered the people in the first building I saw go down. I knew that they were under an unbelievable amount of rubble and water. Even with superpowers, I felt that it would be futile to rescue any of them. Then I remembered my children. They too, were under a great deal of rubble and water, but because they were my children, I was willing to try. Then I woke up. I thought about how people who were strangers to me, were very possibly children to God; and that He wanted to rescue them no matter how much rubble they were under - no matter how futile it seemed. In a crisis, individuals call on the ones they've always called on: their mothers, 911, even friends. Joel states in the Scripture I wrote above, that whoever calls on the name of the Lord shall be saved. If you don't learn to cry out to Him now, you won't think to do it in a state of panic either.
It was five o'clock in the morning and I was paralyzed with indecision. After this dream, I didn't know whether to wake up my husband to pray with me or to get on the computer and begin typing this blog. I began to pray. What was I waiting for? I knew what all this meant now. For me, I could see that my hesitation to warn others would eventually leave me feeling like that fireman who hesitated to shout the warning. As soon as I sat down to the computer to type, my husband woke up. I shared my dream with him. I told him I was in disobedience and that the Lord was still being very gentle with me, but that I really didn't want any more of these dreams and that I was going to have to make time to be faithful to cry out in the wilderness even if I had to do it at five in the morning. My wonderful husband prayed with me - and I love how he always so thoughtfully pauses before he begins to speak to the Lord on my behalf. He then encouraged me to write this and suggested that I write in the evenings after the kids have gone to bed and while I wait for him. So here I am. The kids are in bed and FINALLY - I get to share the message. What is the message? GET TO HIGHER GROUND NOW. By the time it looks bad, it will be too late. Higher ground does not mean that you necessarily need to move to the mountains. It means that you need to get on your knees now and pray. Pray like your life depends on it and continue to pray that way. If you are not saved and in an obedient relationship with Jesus Christ, you will surely go to hell when you die. If you are saved and are wasting time, you will be ashamed in His presence for being a poor steward and for being responsible for the eternal lives of others you made excuses not to warn in time. If you don't know if you are saved, you'd better find out. Where are your kids spiritually? Your spouse? Pray for their salvation and growth now. Are you training them or are they on their own? Pray for unity. You must know the Word of God in order to be able to discern between true and false teaching. You can't know the Word of God if you don't read it for yourself. False teaching is everywhere. God has a plan for you and you need to know what it is. Expect to be tempted with busyness. Resist it. PLEASE SEEK HIM AND JOIN YOUR VOICE WITH MINE. The Youtube videos my friend sent me are below. I do not know this person, but I was taken aback by the similarity of our dreams and leadings. But as the days of Noah were, so also will the coming of the Son of Man be. For as in the days before the flood, they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day that Noah entered the ark, and did not know until the flood came and took them all away, so also will the coming of the Son of Man be. Matthew 24:38-39
