As a homeschooling mom there are days when I chide myself greatly for not covering all the material I think we "should" be covering. I beat myself up and wonder if I am jeopardizing my children's education by using the DIY (do-it-yourself) method.

Yesterday was NOT one of those days. Let me run it through with you.

First, I had a head-to-head run in with my almost 9-year-old. I swear sometimes this child has the emotions and hormones of a much older person, but I digress . . .

By 9 am, Sweetcheeks was in tears on the floor and out came spilling her confusion about salvation, her misunderstanding of when, where, and how she could pray, and what she needed to do to know Jesus was close to her at all times.

We talked at great lengths about assurance of salvation, knowing that Jesus means it when He promises to come into your heart, and discussing how praying is just talking to Jesus like with any friend or family member she already sees every day.

After many tears and hugs, we finally came to a place of peace and a joyful outlook for the rest of the day. Sweetcheeks thanked me over and over, right up 'til bedtime for helping her to understand better what it means to talk with Jesus and work on Him being her closest friend.

Sweetcheeks was certainly not to be my only child with a need for focused attention this day.

JD Green spent much of the day pushing the limits on all fronts . . . so much so that by the time his daddy arrived home from work, the mama was horizontal.

Lying, disobedience, and defiance had become the operative words of the day in reference to my young son. Dinner was no exception. So, after being relegated to his room with no dinner and an order to don pajamas for the night, JD was steeped in his bad choices. Sin is no comical companion and JD was sensing the error of his ways.

His downcast eyes and morose countenance were screaming his need for repentance when I entered his room to tuck him in for the night. Knowing from experience how lonely wallowing in my own sin can be, I asked him if he felt lonely after being by himself since dinner.

Well, the dam broke loose and my little boy came face to face with grace and mercy. He cried, asked to be forgiven, and then he prayed and asked Jesus to clean his heart and make it new again.

He also prayed that Satan would be sent far, far away from him so he could be a good boy instead of disobeying.

JD learned yesterday that choosing to ask for forgiveness was far better than staying in his own sin. He learned that the same person that teaches him to count by two's in English and Spanish is the same person who can help him come before the God of the Universe and restore his relationship, bringing about a peace that shone all over his face when we were finished.

So, no math was done at our house -- at least not in workbooks. The problems were dealt with in the hearts, and my children have added to their knowledge of who Jesus is in their every day lives.

I'm not worried at all about what we "should" be doing. We're doing kingdom work that will last a lifetime.

Here are our Homeschooling Key Verses:

Instruct a wise man and he will be wiser still;
teach a righteous man and he will add to his learning.

"The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom,
and knowledge of the Holy One is understanding." Proverbs 9:9-10 (NIV)

I think we achieved our school goal yesterday.

Labels: God's Word, homeschooling, teachable moments, truth