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Scripture for Your Homeschool Journey

May 7, 2019 by Megan

I’m about to finish up my third year of homeschooling. Our homeschooling journey so far has been filled with many fun, joy-filled days along with a lot of really hard, frustrating days. But that’s not really surprising; life is like that. We all have days of blessing mixed with days of trial. But regardless of whether you are in the middle of a dark trial right now or enjoying a time of blessing, God wants to teach you something. Here are some Scriptures to meditate on wherever you are in your homeschool journey.

Scripture for being mindful of the blessings

Honestly, some days my calling as a homeschool mom doesn’t feel like a blessing. Some days it feels more like a burden. I’m overwhelmed. Discouraged. Stressed. On those days, I need to read Scripture that reminds me of the great blessing and privilege it is to raise and teach my children.

Psalm 127:3

Children are an heritage of the Lord; and the fruit of the womb is his reward.

Psalm 128:1–4

Blessed is every one that feareth the Lord; that walketh in his ways. For thou shalt eat the labour of thine hands: happy shalt thou be, and it shall be well with thee. Thy wife shall be as a fruitful vine by the sides of thine house: thy children like olive plants round about thy table. Behold, that thus shall the man be blessed that feareth the Lord.

Being a mom is a wonderful gift! These little seedlings in my home require a lot of time and care now, but someday, with the Lord’s help, they will be self-sustaining, fruit-bearing trees. I am continually amazed that I have the privilege to be a part of that growth process.

Trusting the Lord to do what you cannot

When I, as a homeschool mom, feel anxious and stressed, it is often because I am trying to control everything around me. I’m living in constant fear of failing because I’m forgetting something really important—that the one responsible for outcomes is God, not me. My only responsibilities are to trust the Lord and be faithful to what He has called me to do.

Proverbs 3:5–6

Trust in the Lord with all thine heart, and lean not on thine own understanding. In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths.

1 Thessalonians 5:24

Faithful is he that calleth you, who also will do it.

Philippians 1:6

Being confident of this very thing, that he which hath begun a good work in you will perform it until the day of Jesus Christ.

As homeschool moms, we have a calling—a calling to be our kids’ mom and our kids’ teacher. Most days, this calling feels like more than I can handle. But I am often reminded of 2 Corinthians 12:9: My grace is sufficient for thee: for my strength is made perfect in weakness. I have always found God’s grace to be sufficient for whatever day I’m having. And I know that God’s grace will be sufficient for your day too.

3 Ways to Grow in the New Year

December 29, 2016 by Meredith

How do you prepare for the new year? Whether you celebrate the first day of the year with a party or treat it like any other day, now is a good time to think about the challenges (and blessings) of the past year and to set goals for the brand-new year.

But we can’t make assumptions about changing for the better without some prior preparation (Proverbs 21:31). Make the choice now to grow. A large part of growing is making an evaluation and setting a goal to change. God delights when we actively pursue changes that develop Christlikeness because it honors Him and reflects His grace to others. Take inspiration from the following practical ways to grow in the year ahead.

Grow as a Mother

Bring on the New Year’s Resolutions! Find a tip for making each of your goals attainable.

5 New Year’s Resolutions Moms Will Want to Keep can deepen the relationship between you and your spouse as well as with your children. Which one will you focus on?

Grow as a Teacher

10 Tips for Your Homeschool Year offers ideas for refocusing after the holiday season. Choose one of these tips to apply to your homeschooling.

How Do You Plan Your Homeschool Year? Sometimes schedule changes take place in the middle of a school year. Be inspired with these resources.

Grow as a Homemaker

Use meal planning ideas from $5 Dinners on Pinterest! There are tons of yummy recipes to choose from, including meals for those in your family who have dietary restrictions and food allergies.

Household Management Forms can help guide you on the path from chaos to order. Download these printables that include cleaning lists, daily chore charts, and meal planning worksheets to get started.

How to Embrace (and Love) a Cleaning Routine keeps things simple by setting aside different days of the week for specific tasks. Learn how to develop a cleaning routine that works for you and your family!

Whatever goals the Lord lays on your heart for this new year, create your plan for growth so that it is laid out one simple step after another. Then share your plan as well as your goals with someone else. This action might be the hardest of all, but we all need motivation and encouragement along the way in this journey. Here’s to a blessed year of seeing God’s grace and strength at work in you!

How One Homeschool Mom Managed Her Roles

December 17, 2015 by Meredith

Do you feel overwhelmed with the myriad of things that you have to do? That feeling comes over all of us now and then; but if you’re a busy homeschool parent, you’re probably more familiar with it than most.

Eujeana, a homeschool mom who shared her story on the Hip Homeschool Moms blog, explains how overwhelmed she felt and how a complete homeschool curriculum helped her educate her four kids effectively. She describes the sheer quantity of work that she faced.

There are about eight subjects in the elementary grades, so that was thirty-two subjects I was supposed to teach each day! Really? No way could I do that successfully and still have dinner on the table and other household management tasks accomplished. Using a complete curriculum with a distance learning program not only helped me to teach the subjects my children needed, but it also allowed me to give my children a rigorous education and still give them time to be children!

In her search for a solution, Eujeana discovered the concept of a complete homeschooling currirculum, specifically our BJU Press Distance Learning. With this program, she found that she could get involved with her kids’ education while also enjoying some flexibility. Lesson plans were already taken care of, so Eujeana could clean the house, create her shopping list, cook her family’s meals, and do all the other things a mom has to accomplish each day.

Homeschool moms like you have multiple full-time jobs. You wear the hats of mother, wife, household manager, and teacher for multiple grades. If you’re feeling too busy and overwhelmed, it’s possible to find relief through a comprehensive homeschool curriculum that does some of the paperwork, planning, and instruction for you. Look for a program that doesn’t take over your homeschool, but supports you with lesson plans, activity ideas, suggestions, and video lessons. Check out Eujeana’s full article, “Traditional, Boxed, Complete Homeschooling Curriculum and How It Worked for Us!”

Homeschooling with a Newborn

May 12, 2015 by Karin

painted portrait of a mother and two children — Mother and Sara Admiring the Baby by Mary Cassatt/Wikimedia Commons/Public Domain

As my husband and I excitedly awaited the arrival of our third-born, I wondered how homeschooling would fit into the new family picture. Megan recently wrote a post about the challenge of transitioning to three children and about the soul-stabilizing truth of our changeless God. With that assurance, I sought out some specific tips to answer this question: how do you get back into a homeschooling routine when you have a little one that needs lots of attention?

Here are three I came up with. I’d love to hear your answers in the comments.

1. Welcome Others’ Help

Caring for a newborn while recovering from birth (not only physically but also emotionally, as I remember the postpartum blues that hung over me like fog after the birth of my firstborn) is not a task to handle alone. Reject the pride that wants to be supermom. We must mortify the resentment that tempts us when we don’t receive the help we didn’t ask for. Identify areas where others can assist and be humble enough to request aid.

Older siblings are often eager to help with a new baby. (It might take some convincing that washing the dishes is a great way to do that.) A husband, while bearing the responsibility of providing, often wants to support you at home as well. He just may be waiting for some direction on specific ways to lend a hand. Grandma is probably eager to spend time with the grandkids. (Now you just have to figure out how to convince her to move in permanently!)

Besides family members, allow your church family to use their various spiritual gifts to help with pressing needs (Galatians 6:2). An older woman or a teenage young woman who’d like to earn some extra income may jump at the chance to help once a week for a month or two.

How about bringing in an experienced and exciting teacher for each of your children’s subjects? This is possible through BJU Press Distance Learning. Another idea is to have a stock of educational videos, such as creation science videos, in your possession or from the library for those times when homeschooling seems impossible. A stack of well-chosen books can also promote independent learning.

2. Set Realistic Goals

Unreasonable expectations lead to burnout. Forget the grandiose Pinterest lists of craft ideas and the exotic field trips. Pare down your school plan to the bare basics for those first couple of months. After that, my babies tend to be sleeping better at night and settling into a routine that jives with our family’s new normal.

Set realistic goals for completing household chores as well. Spring cleaning and those new or time-consuming recipes can wait for another season in life.

Ask God to give you wisdom in choosing tasks and to give you strength in completing them. He is the Good Shepherd who will “gently lead those who are with young” (Isaiah 40:11 NKJV).

3. Respond with Flexibility

While I might prefer my family to march to my perfectly organized schedule, I don’t work in a factory, and I’m not raising robots. Having a plan is wise, but it takes wisdom to learn how to balance the plan with the needs of the various family members.

Most importantly, do my children see the Galatians 5 fruit of the Spirit in me? Do they hear love, joy, and peace in how I respond to spilled milk and see patience, kindness, and goodness when I’m trying to calm a newborn down for a nap? Do I show faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control in helping a resistant child solve a math problem? These life lessons are even more important than the academic lessons I’m hoping to check off my daily planner.

Apart from Christ the Vine, I can do nothing (John 15:5). Daily, I must seek the Lord privately in my devotions, drawing nourishment from His Word, casting my cares on Him in prayer, and surrendering my will to His. Our sovereign God orders each day according to His plan, so I can serve Him from a heart of faith.

For those of you who have homeschooled with a newborn, what advice would you give for getting back into a homeschool routine?

From Student to Teacher

April 21, 2015 by Karin

One summer as a young teenager, I begged my parents not to give me a teaching role in our backyard Bible club. My big sister was the one that all the kids adored, and besides, I got stage fright, even in front of a crowd of five-year-olds. Somehow, I still ended up teaching the missions story for the club. At the first meeting, I read the story directly from the book, making little eye contact with the children. To my surprise, they eagerly listened, and I slowly started to engage them more.

Another summer during my high school years, my parents sent me to a Christian youth camp that focused on preparing teens to lead Bible clubs. We learned how to creatively introduce, explain, and review memory verses and songs. We took notes on the components of a Bible lesson and the basics of classroom management. We practiced sharing the gospel. After our training, we spent the rest of the summer going into the neighborhoods of our city and leading week-long Bible clubs. It was during that time that my heart was irreversibly captured with a love for teaching children, especially teaching them biblical truth.

The next few years brought more opportunities to sharpen my newfound desire to educate—from teaching in Sunday school, vacation Bible school, and after-school Bible clubs to teaching English as a second language in China. I eagerly consumed articles, books, and courses on effective teaching. I even took notes while observing my favorite teachers at church, on BJU Press Distance Learning videos, and at college. Now I have the joy of teaching my own children, the most challenging and rewarding teaching role I’ve ever had. I’m thankful my parents gently pushed me into teaching, unlikely candidate though I was.

I’d like to encourage parents to think of ways they can give their teenage students opportunities to develop teaching skills. It may not come naturally, but students can learn through avenues such as mentoring under an experienced Sunday school teacher, taking a teaching class, reading a book on effective teaching, practicing with younger siblings, and volunteering for children’s ministries at their local church.

The benefits your students will receive from improving their speech and communication skills through teaching might initiate a lifelong career. Learning to teach will likely be an asset in their future families (perhaps even through home education), church ministries, and careers. How will you encourage your teenage students to step out from behind the student desk, face the crowd, and teach?

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