For those of us that homeschool (or even those who are in public schools) it’s time to really start gearing up for the new school year.  Whether you school year round or take the summer off, getting ready for the next school year is always full of decisions.  For homeschoolers, it’s a time to go through the curriculum that you already have and see what you do have on hand, what you need, what worked, what didn’t, if there are any supplements that you would like to purchase, etc.  For all of us (public school & homeschoolers) we have to go through and see what basic supplies we have & what we NEED, such as pencils, paper, rulers, crayons, pens, etc.

It never ceases to amaze me how much work goes into both types of schooling just to get ready for the start of a new year.  For us, homeschooling is the way that we feel God has lead us to go, and we love it!  However, it is still a lot of work.  Brian & I chose to go ahead & use some of our income tax return to start buying curriculum for the upcoming year, so we already have most of that on hand.  But, having the curriculum on hand doesn’t mean that it’s already preplanned out to fit our family’s needs.  I did get a head start on that at the end of the year, but that was also with us planning to continue a subject per child over the summer.  But, since our planned semi-calm summer has turned into a hectic one, well, let’s just say that we’ll now be fitting most of the summer plans into the upcoming school year.  But, that’s the beauty of homeschooling.  Flexibility.  I love the fact that we don’t have to force our children to complete the exact same work that everyone else in the classroom does.  They do not have to be forced to try to squeeze into the same mold as everyone else.  They get to be who God made them to bed.  They can whiz through science while they need to take a slower pace in math.  They take a faced paced approach with Bible while maybe taking a slightly slower speed in English, etc.  They can use their strengths to help them with their weaknesses, all the while turning those weaknesses into strengths. 

Hmm.  That sounds really familiar.  Doesn’t God do the same thing for us?  Teach us so that are weaknesses are made strong? Romans 8:36a says, “In the same way, the Spirit helps us in our weakness. “  That verse also talks about how the Holy Spirit intercedes for us in prayer when we, ourselves, don’t know what to pray for.  In teaching our children to grow in their weaknesses in school, we are teaching them to be better students and, eventually, employees/employers in the working world.  In the same way, God uses our weaknesses to grow us for His glory so that we can better serve Him in the mission field, at home or abroad. 

For us, our choice to homeschool is based on where we felt (and still feel) God leading us.  We want our children’s education to be biblically based, with Christ at the heart of our learning.  We try to make sure that –He is the one that helps us to make the decisions in what curriculum to use, what co-op to be a part of, etc.  We strive to make him Headmaster/Principal of our school just as we strive to make Him the head of our household. 

We’re really excited about this upcoming school year.  Brian & I believe that God has a lot of blessings in store for our family this year, and that seems to be confirmed lately since we’ve met up with a lot of mountains in our homeschool trail these last couple of weeks.  With a lot of help from our Lord, we are slowly climbing each one & tackling all the obstacles that have been laid in front of us and finding our way through.  I, myself, truly believe that God is using each of these to grow us and lead us down the path that He has planned for our family.   So, how are your plans for the new homeschool year coming?  Do you have any mountains you’re having to climb or bumps in the road that have sent you down a different path than you originally thought you would be going down?  I would love to hear how God is growing you and your family through these.