Last month I received an email from a sweet sister in the Lord, asking me why I don’t blog much about homeschooling. Her question was stated like this:
Angie, I have been following your blog Leaving a Legacy for about a year now and really enjoy reading your posts. I know you just wrote a book and have been busy writing over there as well, but I was just wondering why you don’t blog about homeschooling? I just started homeschooling this year, and saw on one of your pages that you homeschool and speak at homeschool conferences, but you don’t seem to write about it much. ~God Bless Your Ministry, Ginny
Well this post got me thinking. And over my sabbatical in July & August I spent a lot of my time re-evaluating what mission God would have me on, specifically with Leaving a Legacy.
In case you are curious why we homeschool, click on the Home Education Tab under About!
A little history: When I first started blogging years ago, I spent a lot of time posting pictures and stories of what we were doing for homeschool so family could join our journey long distance. But as the years have gone by, and my personal mission online has changed, I haven’t blogged very much about homeschooling simply because it seems to be one of those “hot topics” among women in the church.
I despise stereotypes and don’t like how it seems to immediately affect first impressions. And when someone comes to a website or blog… they may not stay long based upon their first impression. Homeschooling is like the “damper” of a good flowing conversation among those who don’t. And I deeply desire to speak to all, not just homeschoolers. The magnitude of mission, as my husband calls it, is to have kingdom focused impact that is greater than just the homeschooling community.
Regardless of education choices, many of the reflections the Lord lies on my heart and my husband’s really have nothing to do with being a homeschooler.
However, homeschooling is part of our family identity, there is no way getting around that after doing it for nearly a decade. But it is NOT our identity. Our identity is in Christ Jesus our Lord.
Before Christ, our identity would be best described through recognizing our humanity. We are all brothers and sisters on this planet, yes. But before Christ, our identity in humanity would also be described as being influenced by our human nature, which we now believe to being sinful at heart. Being born again in Christ, our identity is reformed in a sense because though we still struggle against the temptations of the flesh, all of our worldview and perspectives are greatly refined more and more as we grow in our understanding and knowledge of the Word of God and as the Holy Spirit refines our mind (Rom. 12).
Our identity as Christ followers is what I truly want to be the common ground here in this space online. I feel called to encourage mothers and fathers in the tough job that raising children in today’s world can be. Regardless of education choices, because deep down inside out identity is is mutually founded in Christ. That is the foundation of my life, not homeschooling, not being a stay at home wife, or a mother. Those roles and responsibilities we have chosen to take on through our liberties have greatly influenced and impacted who Isaac and I are today, but they are not who we are.
So to answer Ginny’s question, I haven’t written on homeschooling for a few reasons.
One being that I believed it would limit where and to whom God could use me. But when I say it out loud written on paper, I realize how awful that sounds. I was putting God in a box. If I truly believe that my life is His. If I believe that what I write is His because of what He has done in my life and that I can not take credit for it, then this ministry of sorts isn’t about me, at all.
I write because I love it. I love sharing the things the Lord teaches me through the good, the bad, and the ugly of life. I live to point people towards His majesty. I live to labor for the Kingdom of God; to plant, sow, and harvest eternal fruit for the advancement of His Kingdom. And I do it, from this little space in the huge internet world.
Another reason I have withheld from writing on homeschooling is because I felt a deeper burden to share the things I was learning as a parent.
And I don’t want those who don’t home educate to throw the baby out with the bath water simply because they don’t homeschool. That is one of the problems with today’s society. If we don’t like the way something makes us feel or if we don’t see eye to eye on everything, faith, politics, choices, etc… well then we simply won’t listen to the good. Ridiculous. There is so much I have learned over the years from others who are living a starkly different lifestyle than I. If nothing else, it helps me to love others more for their uniqueness.
Ultimately, all these reasons come down to FEAR.
I think I stopped writing about homeschooling for a while because I didn’t want to invite judgementalism in my “real life” that might come from writing about it. Now I realize more than ever that I was fearing man yet again. I have always considered myself an open book. If someone asks me a question, they will get a thoughtful straight forward answer… right away. But putting it out there on the internet for anyone to scrutinize, well that was just a little too risky for me. That people-pleasing wimp started coming out.
You might find this funny because I speak at conferences, at women’s groups in churches, and on radio programs about all kinds of topics, including home schooling. But the truth is, that it’s easy to speak to people you don’t know about homeschooling. And much harder to do so here. I am finally at a place where, I am ready to share the ups and downs of home educating in today’s culture as a first generation home schooler. But I still fear that people will stereotype and judge us.
I don’t think homeschooling, as the main form of education, is right for every family…
However, I think every parent is responsible for teaching, training, mentoring, discipling, and raising up their children to be best prepared for the unique mission God has for them. But I believe God has a different path and design for every family.
So after nearly a decade {if you count preschool} of homeschooling, I am finally mature enough to embrace that homeschooling is part of our family’s identity, just as much as having a large family is. I hope you are blessed by what I share, but know that there is no condemnation here.
May God Bless Your Ministry in Your Home, Family, Community and this World! To God Be the Glory.
Your Sister Angie
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