Home Schooling Impractical
Alternatives?
Q. We would love to home school our children. We read your article on Biblical Activism and would like to participate. But, it takes two incomes to support ourselves. Can you suggest any other alternatives?
Answer:
Both Parents Working
In today’s world the sad reality is that most Americans need both parents to work to maintain a middle-class standard of living.
Biblical Activism
But, remember, in the article you read we are just suggesting several ways to engage in Biblically-focused activism which includes things like helping to support widows, orphans, the poor, and trying to fit a Biblical pattern of raising one’s own children.
Biblical “public” School?
Probably the closest thing to a secular public-school education in the Bible would be the king’s schools such as those found in Babylon where Daniel was trained – although Babylon worshipped “false” gods – not “no” gods.
At any rate, “Biblical” activism normally can not encompass a “secular” education – it cannot by definition. Besides, Jewish parents living in 500 B.C. usually raised their own children. Most of us can’t do that in the twenty-first century.
Good Training
Raising one’s own children according to Biblical standards means to…“Direct your children onto the right path, and when they are older, they will not leave it” (Prov. 22:6, NLT).
Immersion Principle
Another key passage on raising one’s children has to do with the “immersion” principle. We find this principle in several places throughout the Bible. But, probably the most well- known passage is Deuteronomy 6:7,
“Repeat them (God’s commands) again and again to your children. Talk about them when you are at home and when you are on the road, when you are going to bed and when you are getting up…” (NLT).
We think that parents who cannot home school their children can still make attempts to fulfill this principle. They can actively enroll their children in Sunday School and in as many church activities as they can afford.
At home dedicated parents can play Christian music, watch biblical movies, rent DVDs that educate children about Intelligent Design or Creationism or Apologetics (defense of the faith). They can take their children to Christian concerts and send them to Christian camps.
Attitudes Key
Maintaining a good attitude about churches, church attendance and Christian friendships is also important. Children quickly pick-up poor attitudes such as parents stating things like “churches are full of hypocrites,” and so forth.
A Church for Sinners Only
Being “real” includes teaching children that all people “sin.” That includes Christians. In that case, maybe the best place for sinners is a church where they are taught about the love and forgiveness of our heavenly Father.
There should be a sign outside every church stating, “Church for Sinners Only.” Be sure to teach your children that all Christians belong to the family of God (Ephesians 2:19). We need to learn to act like it!
Weekly 1-hour Church vs. 35-hour Schools
We Christians need to “burn” into our frontal lobes the fact that the public schools have our children every work day for at least six or seven hours. But, our children are usually in church only one hour per week.
So we must work diligently and actively to overcome anti Christian philosophies they may encounter at school. Anti Christian philosophy may be as “innocent” as denying or neglecting the spiritual aspect of mankind to outright attacks upon our faith. Neither is acceptable.
Paul tells us to “destroy arguments and every lofty opinion raised against the knowledge of God, and take every thought captive to obey Christ…” (2 Corinthians 10:5, ESV).
Egyptian Schooling vs. Childhood Home Schooling
Moses is a terrific example of this. He was trained in the finest schools of Egypt. Yet, his own mother “nursed” and raised him in early childhood (Acts 7:22 & Exodus 2:7-10).
Guess who won?
The winners were those who supplemented Moses’ “secular,” formal education with “home schooling.”
Take heart. You can do it!