Called To Homeschool

Not so long ago I remember the annoyance I felt when a woman would say she was "called" to homeschool.  We never set out to homeschool.  Growing up, I knew one homeschooled girl and she was weird so I vowed I would never do that do my children.

When my son turned five I did what you do with five year old children.   We drove down to the local elementary school and signed that boy up for school.  Easy enough.  But something happened after I signed my boy up for school.

My insides were burdened over the decision.  Every time I thought of sending him I felt heavy on the inside.  There was a lack of peace over our decision to send him to school.  And every now and again this pesky thought would make its way through my mind.

 

"I want you to try homeschooling for a year"

When that thought would come to my mind you know what I thought?  The devil is alive!

There is no way I could ever homeschool my children.  My favorite subject in school was lunch.  I majored in talking too much and passing notes and minored in planning weekend get togethers.  There was zero desire in me to educate my children at home.  I mean, I liked 'em and all, but come time they turn five it is time to spread those wings and fly baby.  Fly down to school and I'll see ya' at three.

 

I'm learning the slow way that when God frustrates your plans it is often because He is working out His unique plan for your days.  That can be an awfully hard pill to swallow.  Especially when the pill looks to be coated in the word thatwasnotonmyagenda. 

 

"I want you to try homeschooling for a year"

 

I began to get a little irritated at the frequency this message kept coming to mind.  So then I started hashing it out with the Lord.  Telling Him how I was pretty sure He'd sent the memo to the wrong girl.  But that stinkin' heaviness I was carrying around like a boulder around my neck.  It got to be a heavy burden.

 

Carry something like that around you long enough and you start to get tired of the fight.  Start thinkin' crazy things like, "Maybe I will just go out on a limb and obey this nudging and see if the miserableness goes away."

 

One evening Shane and I finally came to a conclusion, and it took time for us to come to this decision.  We decided to withdraw our son's registration from school and homeschool him for a year.

 

I got up early the next morning and headed to the school.  I felt like a freak.  "Yes, I need to withdraw my son's registration from Kindergarten."  She looked at me like I was nuts.  But I'm going to tell you what.  When the last paper was signed I turned around and walked out the door.

 

A lightness added a bounce to my step and I was overcome with joy and peace.  When I tell you I was joyful, I mean, I was bubbling on the inside with joy and peace.  That is what walking in obedience can produce inside of us.  Sometimes we cross the finish line of obedience limping because the struggle to obey was a long one.  But it is so worth it.

 

The blessing is always when we take our position and stand where He has asked us to stand.  Even if it is on the middle of the battlefield where you think you're going to get trampled down.

 

There is no other place I'd rather be than right smack dab in the middle of where He's asked me to stand.