What’s up with ya girl?
I am trying to move toward creating healthy habits. Not just for my sanity but for my own health. It occured to me that the way that I usually approach things is a bit…scatter shot. Some things hit squarely in the middle target, like running with a local group consistently (Go BGRHR!). Other times though I am completely off the mark. Read the rest of this entry »
This is the day…
I became a mommy for the first time eleven years ago. I do not have warm and fuzzy remembrances of my little girl being born. In fact it was kind of truamatic. Don’t get me wrong the instant I saw her I fell deeply and irrevocably in love. The actual labor and delivery were quite scary. Read the rest of this entry »
Sola Deo Gloria
Genesis 5
To Seth also a son was born, and he called his name Enosh. At that time people began to call upon the name of the LORD. (Genesis 4:26 ESV)
Although the scripture passage we’re studying this week is Chapter 5, we understand from the last passage in Chapter 4 as to the significance of Chapter 5. Following the murder of Abel by his brother Cain we are left with the image of humanity in trouble. However we are told that Adam and Eve had another child named Seth. Seth had a son, Enosh a people started to call upon the name of the Lord. This stands in stark contrast to Cain and his descendants who built cities (Gen 4:17) and made advancements in civilization farming (Gen 4:20), music (Gen 4:21) and invented tools (Gen 4:22) but most notable they did not call upon the name of the Lord. What can explain the difference in the descendants of Cain and the descendants of Seth? We may be tempted to lift up the line of Seth as an example of a righteous family that decided to exercise their “free will” and seek after God in a wicked generation. I don’t think that is what Moses (under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit) wanted us to get when he wrote it.
According to other parts of scripture (1 Cor 2:14), nobody can call upon the name of the Lord without His help because of the fall in Gen 3; mankind is totally corrupt. We are reminded of this in the first few verses of Gen 6:5. We see the doctrine of “total depravity” when we are told “The LORD saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every intention of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually.” We also learn from the Romans 3:11 “that no one understands; no one seeks for God.” Our inability to come to God on our own led Jesus to say in John’s gospel “’No one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draws him.”
The point is that none of the descendants of Seth decided to call on the Lord without the grace of God in calling them; “You did not choose me, but I chose you…” (John 15:16 ESV). I believe what John Calvin said about Gen Chapter 5 is true; that we see God preserving His church since the time of Adam. We have to come to the conclusion that God exercises His sovereignty in saving sinners here to include Adam, Seth, Enoch, Noah and a list of other OT saints. So when we see an OT saint held up for special praise in the scripture for believing God and following His laws in a time when few did. It is right that we honor them as well but with the understanding that they were “sinners” made regenerate or “born again” by the Holy Spirit. Therefore ultimate glory goes to God.
When we see the continuity between the OT and NT and God’s working His plan of salvation from the very beginning, it’s exciting. We are just in Chapter 4 and I imagine we’ll have many more opportunities to see God’s grace through His son Jesus Christ.
Sola Deo Gloria
Update July: Making the Decision to Homeschool One Year Later
Working hard on my Math!
Well, it is almost a year since we decided to get off the public school hamster wheel and take the reigns on the children’s education. Those that know me know that I believe in strong free education. An educated population helps a community and a society grow. What happened last year at my daughter’s school was not what I would call good preparation for life long learning.
The kicker was that this was the gifted program for our district. I had high hopes for all the things she would learn and all the fun she would have in broadening her educational horizons. I came away from her third grade year with a tired kid who was tested until she was a nervous wreck and who didn’t really master the basics. We were both so disappointed. She and I both worked hard. If I saw that she needed help in a subject we would get up early and practice. However, we were also staying up late to get through her homework, and she still wasn’t getting it. The entire year went this way and when I tried to talk to her teachers I felt like my concerns were not taken seriously. After talking it over with my husband we felt it would be best that we pull her from public school. It was a hard decision and one that we did not take lightly. I can’t explain how helpless I felt trying to work with my daughter within the system. Learning was pushed aside in order to teach the kids to pass the Virginia Standards of Learning tests (SOL). Everything was geared towards this test. Not mastering the basics of reading, writing and arithmetic but passing a test at the end of the year. I felt like with much more “learning” in this way and my child would slip through the cracks.
A lot of our school year has been going over things that she “learned” last year so we are just now getting to grade level material. I would be concerned that we are “behind” but doing public school at home is not what our schooling is about. Our schooling is about raising individuals to critically think about the world around them by giving them a strong foundation on how to learn.
We are blessed in that I am able to stay home and do this for all three of my children. I am blessed that I have my husband, Daniel’s, love and support. We have learned a lot this year but we have done it in a way that is certainly not a stressful as last year. Looking back at this year I’m glad that we took this step.
Bringing Them Home
O my hammy (Double D)
Today, memorial day, started out pretty normally but towards the end it gave me some insight to what my home school life might look like. I’ll be educating all three of my children ages 9, 5 & 4 at home for the next school year and for the foreseeable future. It is bittersweet because I really believe in a rich and effective public education. Our grandparents benefited from one and so did our parents. We know that it is possible but it seems to be failing in all but the richest communities. So while I still believe I can’t wait for the system to correct itself. My husband and I decided to really step up and take full responsibility for educating our children. To not just teach them the three R’s but how to think critically and reasonably with a Christian worldview.
Today I read to my children, we talked about planting a container garden, watched some cartoons, went outside and worked in the yard and pitched a tent to play pretend in. It was glorious! I really enjoyed their company and watching their imagination run wild in how to use the tent in their pretend play.
I’m excited to help them learn and grow into what God would have them become. These are the days where motherhood is like a warm kitten purring in your lap. I’m sure another day kitty will attempt to use my thighs as a scratching post but today it was all curled up for my pleasure.
(originally written May 2011)