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Why I Do Not Homeschool (Part 2)
- 12/13/06
- 157
Yesterday I began explaining why my wife and I have decided not to homeschool our children (and, hence, why we have decided to place them in public schools). I guess this article struck a nerve since, at last check, there were over 100 comments posted by readers. I received quite a few emails as well. Reaction ranged from "Way to go!" to "You are sacrificing your children to Molech!" You can read the article here. It will provide context for what I will say today.
Before I dive into today's topic, I want to address a couple of points that arose in the feedback on my first article. A few people pointed out, and some with a bit of anger and/or sarcasm, that I didn't actual say why my children were in public schools. That is true. But this is a multi-part article. We'll get to it.
Also, several people were offended that I spoke of this decision in the context of Christian freedom and the weak versus strong distinction of Romans 14. Some people naturally assumed that I suggested I was strong because I send my children to public school while they are weak because they prefer to homeschool their children. I did no such thing. I merely indicated that one of us is weak and one is strong. What I said was this (and the quote comes from a series of articles on the topic written by my pastor): "depending on your view on this subject you may fall into the weak category or the strong category. In either case, you will be 'tempted by the devil, the world and your flesh to either despise or condemn those who hold a different view from yours...Depending on whether you are weak or strong, you are being tempted to despise other members of this church or condemn other members of this church. If you deny that, you deny God's Word. Paul does not say, some of you are in this weak/strong struggle. No, he says all of us fall into one or the other classification.' The strong are tempted to despise and the weak are tempted to condemn. Let's be sure that we do not fall into either sin." You will know whether you are weak or strong by your reaction. If you are a homeschooling parent and you feel anger or hatred for what I said (and what I am about to say), you are strong. If, on the other hand, you condemn me for my decision, you are weak. Though it seems strange, the easiest way to gauge whether you are weak or strong is by your sinful reaction. In either case, I'd worry less about whether you are weak or strong and more about asking God for forgiveness because of your sinfulness. I'll do the same.
And now, at long last, I will provide reasons that I send my children to public school and do so on the basis of conviction, not necessity. Do not expect to see me answer the usual charges levelled against those of us who choose to place our children in public schools. If you want to talk about those, go visit Dan's blog and read about the myth's of homeschooling in that excellent series. I am going to make this simple and address only two points. I have little faith that this article will convince or please anyone. Still, this is it. This is why my children are in public school.
For Missions
I believe that God has called every Christian to missions, whether we are born, live and die in our native culture or whether we choose to move halfway around the world and immerse ourselves in another culture. Every Christian is called to missions, for the Great Commission has not been rescinded and will not be until the Lord returns. We are all expected to fulfill this Commission to the best of our abilities. And this is a world in desperate need of the gospel. We have lived in our neighborhood for six years now and have never once seen even one of our neighbors head to church. As far as we know, we are the only Christians in the area. Canada is a spiritual wasteland and my heart bleeds for the people in this neighborhood, in this community, and this nation. As Christians, my wife and I are indigenous missionaries. God has placed us in this culture, among these people, and He expects us to reach out to them and to let the gospel go forth.
Trusting that my children will grow up to be believers, I am convicted that it is my duty as a parent, and as a Christian parent, to prepare my children to fulfill that calling in their lives. I believe they can best heed this call by being in the culture in which God has seen fit to place them. I want them to be with kids who are not Christians, to be friends with them and to love them, to learn what separates them from their friends, and to begin to understand how their convictions make them different from others. I want them to see and know and understand and believe in the superiority of Christianity to any other religion or way of life. I want them to see what the world has to offer and to see that it quickly loses its lustre.
I believe missions can and should happen everywhere. I find it difficult and painful to imagine a public school system devoid of Christians. Imagine, if you will, that every Christian pulls their children from the public schools. There will be no more Christian clubs in junior high schools; there will be no more prayer meetings or Bible studies at high schools; there will be no witnessing, no conversions. Christians will have removed the best indigenous missionaries from their natural mission field. I want my children to learn how to witness to their friends and want them to do it. Assuming my children are or will soon be young Christians, I do not want to deny them the ability and privilege of witnessing to others. New Christians are filled with joy and excitement and, while they may not know a lot yet, they are usually excited to share the gospel with others. I want my children to do this and to see their school as a mission ground. I want them to experience the joy of sharing their faith and to grow in their ability to do this.
There is another side to this. We genuinely love the people around us and want to know them, both so we can relate to them as friends and so we can, with God's help, witness to them of His love and grace. Our children build bridges to the neighborhood. In sending our children to public school, we are building these bridges with our neighbors as our children are building friendships with their children. We are building friendships on the basis of our kids' friendships. This is not to say, of course, that we only relate to our neighbors because we hope to convert them. We relate to them because we genuinely love them, care for them, and seek to know them both for what they can offer us and what we can offer them. We seek to love our neighbors as ourselves. We have credibility as neighbors and as members of this community by having our children attend the same schools as the other children. This weekend we are having a neighborhood-wide event in our home and every family who has accepted our invitation is a family whose children go to school with our children.
Now some may argue that young children are unready to be evangelists and that it is unfair to expect them of this. Once again, both experience and Scripture prove this a false assumption. If our children are believers, they are filled with the same Holy Spirit as you and I. They are equipped to reach out to the most tender-hearted segment of the population.
My wife and I feel called to reach out to the people in our neighborhood and our community. We simply do not feel we could honor God in this way and be as effective in doing it if we kept our children home. We would lose credibility, we would lose friendships, and we would lose access to the hearts of both children and their parents. At the same time, we would be raising our children with the expectation that they witness to others, all the while keeping them from the most natural context for them to witness, to learn how to witness, and to understand those to whom they will need to witness. Our deeds would contradict our words.
To Avoid Worldliness
I have often spoken to Christians parents who feel that public schooling offers too many opportunities for their children to become worldly. Their defenses of homeschooling often discuss the world's problems and are then punctuated by comments like "This is why we homeschool!" Worldliness is clearly a serious offense in God's eyes. It is an offense so serious that worldly people have to be concerned about their salvation, for as the Bible tells us, "Do not love the world or the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him." Here is how John MacArthur defines worldliness: "Worldliness is any preoccupation with or interest in the temporal system of life that places anything perishable before that which is eternal." Iain Murray says it is "the mindset of the unregenerate." Those who love the world, and who put what is perishable before what is eternal, are those who do not know the love of the Father.
But we do not avoid worldliness by secluding ourselves from the world. The key to escaping worldliness is not to avoid the world, but to avoid acting like the world and thinking like the world. To do this we do not escape the world, but allow ourselves to apprehend the allure of the world so it might lose its glow. The world has a natural attraction to all of us who have sinful hearts. Something within us, some dark corner of our hearts, longs to return to the world, to the old man. But with the help of the Holy Spirit, we soon see that the world offers nothing but counterfeit joy and happiness that are opposed to God. To think that we can keep our children from being worldly by sheltering them from the world is false. Sooner or later children will want to see what the world has to offer. It is far better to let them see it when their hearts are tender, their confidence is in their parents, and their abilities are limited. Children who do not experience the world until they are old enough to be able partake in all its so-called pleasures are children who fall away.
I believe it is easier for children to avoid worldliness when they are exposed to the world. This may sound strange, so allow me to explain. I want my children to see what the world has to offer before they are old enough to explore it on their own, without parental guidance. I want my children to see and experience families where God is not at the center. There are aspects to unbelieving families that may appeal, especially when the children are young, but as they grow and mature, I think they will see that what the world offers is so obviously detrimental to both individuals and families. They will learn the value of faithfulness when they see families fractured by infidelity. They will learn the value of mom following her biblical convictions and staying home to be a homemaker when they see families where mom and dad do not arrive home until well after dark leaving the children with no oversight, no guidance. They will see that what mom and dad are teaching them is true.
The fact is that worldliness comes from within. Worldliness is not something that is forced upon people or that is extrinsic to them. Worldliness is intrinsic and arises from a person's sinful nature. A person who never experiences the wider culture can still be worldly. A child who never darkens the door of a public school may be far more worldly than one who does so every day. A child who is homeschooled or who goes to a Christian school is, in my experience, no more likely to avoid worldliness or to grow up to be a committed follower of Christ than one who goes to public school. Visit a Christian college and see if the homeschooled kids or the kids who went to Christian schools act consistently better than those who attended public schools. Experience shows that you will not find a difference based primarily on the breakdown of how the children were educated. Keeping my children out of the world is not going to keep them from being worldly. And, in fact, by allowing them to see the cost of worldliness, the cost of disobedience to God, they will see worldliness for what it really is. They will see that God's promises of blessing to those who honor Him are as true as His promises of the curses that come to those who forsake Him.
I believe I can equip my children to love God and to avoid worldliness by placing them in public schools where they can see for themselves the cost of forsaking God.
Miscellanea and Conclusions
I think it is important to note that, in any educational choice, work remains to be done. Homeschoolers have to be deliberate about building bridges to the community and neighborhood. They have to deliberately seek ways of inviting unbelieving children into their homes and finding ways into the homes of unbelieving families. They have to seek ways of building credibility with those who live around them, of building community with them and of finding ways for their children to learn to witness to others. With those of us who choose to send our children to public school, we must be deliberate about understanding what our children are learning, interpreting it for them, and ensuring that they have a Christian worldview that allows them to filter these things themselves. We must ensure that they understand their sin and see that it is only the Holy Spirit that makes them any different from the other children in the school. In either case, academic education is only the starting-point for building a life that honors God and fulfills His commandments and commission. If you are a homeschooler and are about to post a comment disagreeing with me for my decision, I'd like you to first consider how you are seeking to carry out the Great Commission and how you are equipping your children to do so and allowing them opportunity even now to witness to peers.
I would like to make clear that it is possible that in the future my wife and I will need to rethink our position. A time may come when the school system degenerates to a place where we simply cannot allow our children to be there. A time may come when it just makes sense for us to explore other options. Because I do not regard any of the options are intrinsically wrong, they are all open to us if necessity dictates that we follow a different course. We hope to continue to prayerfully reflect on the state of the system and to make wise decisions.
There is one more thing worth considering. While homeschooling is an option currently available to Americans and Canadians and people in some other corners of the world, it has not always been this way and will not always be this way. Even today in many nations parents have no choice but to place their children in schools where the teachers seek to lead them away from Christ. Do these children fall away? Were the children of Christians in the Soviet Union swept away into atheism? This is simply not the case! God's grace was and is more than able to overcome all manner of unbiblical teaching. While this may not justify a decision, it does show that God is powerful and will not allow His children to fall out of His grasp.
I am not afraid of the world and what it may do to my children. There is nothing the world can offer that is greater or stronger than God's grace. I am sure that my children, at one time or another, will encounter teachings that run contrary to our convictions. They will learn about evolution and will hear that all religions are the same. I know that this is coming and am already working with them to know how to think about these things and to know how to respond. I am teaching them to respond to such teachings with love and respect for the teacher, but with disdain for teachings that go against Scripture. I am teaching this to them while they are young and while they trust me more than they trust others!
I am praying for this grace to be operative in the lives of my children and trusting that it will be so. I am trusting that God will draw my children to Himself and, in so doing, reorient their desires and affections so they see as He sees and value what He values. And as I do that, I am preparing them to know the culture, to be in but not of it--to reach out to a culture that is so desperately in need of missionaries who carry with them the gospel message of Jesus' death and resurrection.
I am a follower of Jesus Christ, a husband to Aileen and a father to three young children. I write books and blogs for fun while doing web design and consulting for a living. I worship and serve at 
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Comments (157)
This is such an excellent post. I was actually in tears reading the paragraph about what schools would be like if all Christian parents removed their children from public schools. It's a thought that has crossed my mind as well, and though I currently homeschool our five year old, I look forward to the day (soon) when we will also be in Canada and be able to put her in public school and see the amazing fruit the Holy Spirit brings because of it. I grew up going back and forth between public and Christian schools, and finished my high school years in public. I can think of at least 3 of my friends that are believers today because of me and other Christian students continually loving them and sharing the gospel with them. And it was so exciting to be there when some of them were regenerated and I'll never forget those experiences that have shaped me. Thank you for your faith in God and his grace. I hope it inspires others to truly seek God's will whatever that may be and be brave enough to obey regardless of what other may think.
So do you wait until your kids are Christians and baptized before you put them in the public school system?
Would you your son should be a sot or dunce,Lascivious, headstrong, or all these at once,That in good time, the stripling's finished tasteFor loose expense and fashionable wasteShould prove your ruin, and his own at last,Train him in public with a mob of boys,Childish in mischief only and in noise,Else of a mannish growth, and five in tenIn infidelity and lewdness, men.There shall he learn, ere sixteen winters old,That authors are most useful, pawned or sold,That pedantry is all that schools impart,But taverns teach the knowledge of the heart.
And seems it nothing in a father's eyethat unimproved those many moments fly?And is he well content, his son should findNo nourishment to feed his growing mindBut conjugated verbs, and nouns declined?For such is all the mental food purveyedby public hackneys in the schooling trade.Who feed a pupil's intellect with storeOf syntax truly, but with little more,Dismiss their cares when they dismiss their flock,Machines themselves, and governed by a clock.Perhaps a father blest with any brainsWould deem it no abuse or waste of pains,To improve this diet at no great expense,With savoury truth and wholesome common sense,To lead his son for prospects of delightTo some not steep though philosophic height,Thence to exhibit to his wondering eyesYon circling worlds, their distance, and their size
To show him in an insect of a flowerSuch microscopic proofs of skill and power,As hid from ages past, God now displaysTo combat atheists with in modern days.
Canst thou, the tear just trembling on thy lids,And while the dreadful risk foreseen, forbids,Free too, and under no constraining force,Unless the sway of custom warp thy course,Lay such a stake upon the losing side,Merely to gratify so blind a guide?Thou canst not: Nature pulling at thine heart,Condemns the unfatherly, the imprudent part.Thou wouldst not, deaf to nature's tenderest plea,Turn him adrift upon a rolling sea,Nor say, go thither, conscious that there layA brood of asps, or quicksands in his way;Then only governed by the self-same ruleOf natural pity, send him not to schoolNo!—guard him better: Is he not thine own,Thyself in miniature, they flesh, they bone?And hopest thou not ('tis every father's hope)That since they strength must with thy years elope,And thou wilt need some comfort to assuageHealth's last farewell, as staff of thine old age,That then, in recompense of all they caresThy child shall show respect to they gray hairs.
- William Cowper
Tim, your article shows you are prepared to 'improve this diet' of your children's schooling, and no one who homeschools should look down on your decision. It just makes me very afraid when I think there could be parents sending their kids to public school with the same convictions as your family, but then because of laziness or business, forgetting to shepherd their children through public school like your family--or just not realizing how much extra guidance they need.
I went through public school, my fiancee went through homeschool and a few years of Christian school, and to my shame, every once in a while when we hear some obscene reference or innuendo to some unnatural acts in a movie or on television, she looks at me and I tell her what it's refering to (I think she's old enough now) and she says, 'ew blake! how did you even know that?' and before I even answer she says, 'oh yeah... public school'.
You've nailed it straight on, Tim. We musn't deny God the power to work in our own lives.
I don't agree with the child evangelist idea. Are there any references in the NT where children go out and evangelize? Besides, is that really the purpose of school? I mean, what's wrong with just taking your children out to evangelize apart from school?
School is for teaching children. The Bible tells us what we are to teach our children (Lev 10:11; Deut 4:9; Deut 6:7; Deut 11:19). In public schools they will be taught those things.
I also think the idea of child evangelism (reaching children with the gospel) is a bit misplaced compared to the biblical model. Biblically heads of households were approached with the Gospel, and upon believing their households entered into the church. Children can't affect their parents in the same way that parents can affect their children, yet much of evangelistic energies are geared towards children instead of their parents.
I've started rambling...sorry.
Tim,
It seems to me your arguments could be used to justify spending sundays hanging out at the mall or bar or wherever rather than in church.
Imagine, if you will, if every Christian parent pulled their children out of Christian schools? They wouldn't exist anymore and I believe that would not be a good thing.
I do appreciate you allowing yourself to be open to all options in the future. Many of us forget to do that.
TH
As someone who has experienced both realms - public school, homeschooling and back to public school, I think I may add a little to this discussion.
I would say that our reason for homeschooling was idealistic as you propose - no argument there. It was almost a separatist attitude which, at the time, seemed biblical. This is not to intimate that all homeschoolers are separatist.
We homeschooled our 10 year-old in 3rd and 4th grade. This year, we decided to go back to public school by mere virtue of the fact that it would relieve my wife of a lot of stress. You see, we have 3 kids now and are waiting on a fourth via Chinese adoption (our first adoption). We are fortunate to live in a solid school district.
As the year has progressed and we have learned more about and grown in the gospel, we feel it is actually a better thing. It may be true that our children will be exposed to the ugliness of the world more quickly than if we homeschooled them. But we also realized that our children will learn more quickly their need of Christ. As they are confronted with tough choices and are likely to fall to temptation more frequently, and with the help of the Holy Spirit, they will see their need for a Savior much more vividly than if we keep them sheltered at home. They will have greater opportunity to experience the love and forgiveness of Christ - hopefully they will also experience the love and forgiveness of their sometimes overly tough dad - that's the idea anyway.
This may sound twisted to some people. But we are convinced that no person can truly understand his or her need of a Savior until that person can truly understand the wickedness and evil bent of his or her own heart. The spoken gospel is simply not enough. You can preach and preach until your blue in the face, but if a child doesn't experience the consequences of his or her own gravitation toward evil, then they will not begin to truly appreciate their need of a Savior or the love Christ has for them despite their wicked tendancies. "...for he who was forgiven much loved much."
This does not mean that I want my children to dive into wickedness. It only means that I cannot and should not attempt to shelter them to the point that they grow up and move out and are in for a rude awakening when they see what the real world is all about. Furthermore, they will never learn about grace as it pertains to their own willingness to overlook someone elses sin in favor of forgiveness and learn how to apply the gospel to real world situations.
In short, they need to be IN the world in order to learn how not to be OF the world. Their is a fine, albeit hard to maintain, balance between legalism/pharisaism and license/antinomianism. My prayer is that we never stray too far either way. And with the help of the Holy Spirit, perhaps we will not.
I echo what you say, Tim, with respect to not despising those who do wish to homeschool. I am for liberty on both sides of this issue.
Thank you for a courageous article. Our son has just started in public school here in London, England. Already he knows that not everyone beleives as we do and that people believe in other false Gods. But his Grandparents are not believers, so he sees it even within his own family.
When we are out he sees homeless people in the street, homosexual men together and drunks, to name a few. It's hard to avoid, but that's the harsh reality of our culture. It's up to us to equip him by being biblical parents, I think that is compatible with sending him to public school.
I should add that my husband, who is now a pastor of a Presbyterian church here in London, was converted in public school through the persistent witness of a schoolfriend over several years.
Tim, I know you were mostly home-schooled or attended Christian schools...I'm interested in your parents' perspectives on why they made that choice, and what they see in hindsight. Any chance of getting them to chime in on the discussion?
I appreciate all your thoughts and convictions on this. It's good to have convictions!
I don't think Tim is talking about Sunday I think he is talking about Monday through Friday.
I agree with a lot you said Tim. Down here in the states a lot of folks take their kids out of public schools because some of them are just not that good. What are the public schools like in Canada?
Josh"...the word of God is not bound."--2 Timothy 2:9
This was an interesting remark:"It may be true that our children will be exposed to the ugliness of the world more quickly than if we homeschooled them."
It got me to thinking in terms of our children being exposed to the ugliness of the world. I think it is a much different thing to have a child exposed to this ugliness under Christian oversight than without any Christian oversight.
We have one child in private school and one in public school. Are reason for being divided...neither could get quality education in their siblings school.
One child has a learning disorder that the private school could not support. The other child is an accellerated learner and the public school could not help him from becoming completely bored.
We pay more to privatize our youngest and I can see a detriment in our oldest son, but I can only Proverbs 22:6'm as the best I'm equipped to do. The reset I live to God through prayer.
If parents decide to home school, private school or public school, what business is it for anyone else. Each parent ultimately must answer to God the Father for their responsibilty of raising their children as they deem appropriate.
Hmm... I don't have time to read the entire article, sorry if I'm not getting the point right. But anyway, someone has told me that I shouldn't homeschool my kids (I'm 21 female single, it will be a while before I have them)(like any of that is relevant... oh well) because of how Christians shouldn't be secluded (I agree). You said something about missions... which is all well and good. But I babysit these young girls, and they are sooooooooooo easy to influence (which I take advantage of, hopefully to their wellbeing), and I can't help but think that it doesn't matter how involved in my children I am; if they are spending eight hours a day in public school with teachers who despise Christianity... well, they will be inpacted by that.
Basically, when I teach my children, if I do, I will teach them all about what they would be learning in public school, and why I think it is wrong. I won't seclude them from it, but at the same time, I will try to teach them why it's wrong, if it is. I want to train them to learn and think for themselves... which I suppose you could do with public school too, but... maybe not. Anyway, the whole mission field thing just seems stupid to me; it's a battle-field, in a way.
Since when do you stick soldiers out in battle right away so that they can learn about it and fight in it??? Without training? They'll die. Sure, you send them out. But I think not before they are trained, is a good idea. :)
I appreciate these posts, Tim, as my family is wrestling with some of these same issues. You've given me some food for thought.
I did find it interesting that the arguments you made were primarily about missions and worldliness, with little being said about the whole purpose of schools -- education. Maybe public schools in Canada are better than they are here, but one of the reasons why we're not considering public schools is simply because they will not provide as good of an education for our children as private schools will, or as we will if we homeschool.
I spent three years as a teacher in public school systems (in addition to being a product of public schools myself), and am unimpressed with the whole educational model upon which they are based.
"I did find it interesting that the arguments you made were primarily about missions and worldliness, with little being said about the whole purpose of schools -- education."
I deliberately left that topic. Check Dan Edelen's series for more. But to summarize, I am not convinced that my child will get a better education at home than at school.
Will do. Thanks for the clarification.
Tim, thanks for a very thoughtful article. Do you mind if I say you sound like a parent of very young children? I admire your convictions, but it is so easy when you are just starting out.
It's too bad you didn't give more thought to Christian schooling. We currently have three of our kids in Christian school. Two more are in public schools, because they have special needs that cannot be met in the Christian School. Believe me, my kids can do alot of witnessing in the Christian school. It is a misperception that all the kids there are Christians.
I can't really place a monetary value on my kids learning everything from a Biblical worldview. Yes, I am still responsible for their education, but it is so much better to have school complement our efforts as work opposed to them.
We just experienced the death of a close family member. Our kids were surrounded by loving kids and teachers, many tears were shed, and prayers were said ( and are still being said) in all the classes. The difference in what my Christian school kids experienced and what the public school kids got, in terms of support, was amazing.
Just thought I'd get me two cents in about Christian schooling.
What I want to know is when does the Body of Christ become united? Why does it have to be homeschoolers vs. public schoolers? Why do we have the need to be right? Isn't that what this is all about? That's my impression anyway.We are homeschoolers here and I agree with much of what you wrote. However, I think homeschooling helps keep the family intact and allows us to teach our children the Word of God. Feminism and women going to work was a direct scheme of the enemy and our families have paid a dear price for that!As for being exposed to worldliness, all I have to do is take my children to church and let them be involved in the youth group and children's ministry. Yes, we do both! There's enough there to last a whole week, do I really need to immerse them in that culture 8 hrs. a day, five days a week so they can become strong Christians? I worked in the public school system for 5 years and wasn't impressed with what I saw. I would beseech parents to go spend some time there before deciding that's the best place for their children to spend the majority of their years growing up.We are an outreach minded family and don't seclude ourselves, but I'm not going to let the public school system shape my children's hearts, I'm going to do it. Yes, some aren't affected by the teaching, but some are. Am I going to risk that my child will be negatively affected? No way.
I have been following both your posts with interest.
I think Theologian has raised some important points in comment #5. Those are some of the same conclusions my husband and I have reached as well after prayerfully considering the right education route for our family. Our family has been in ministry for a long time and more often notice adult converts bringing their entire family to Christ, than child converts doing the same. That is not to say that we shouldn't try to reach the little ones - they are the most precious to Him and their hearts are so soft. But I'm not sure that putting my kids in public school is the most effective way to go about childrens' ministry.
For what it's worth, my husband is a church planter. We are planting a church right in our extremely suburban and new neighborhood, actually. Right now we are meeting in our home and by God's grace have, by several different ways, been reaching out to the people who live around us.
There is a huge new elementary school a few blocks from our home. We have been thinking of ways to reach out to the families whose kids go there. There are many ways. Right now, I don't think that putting our 5 yr olds in school there would accomplish much in terms of missions.
You said you wanted to know how homeschoolers who would comment on your post were personally reaching out to their community with Christ's love, so I would like to share with you some of the things we do with our (very young children) to instill in them a deep love for the lost.
First of all, we pray for the people in our neighborhood with our children constantly. I think that prayer is one of the most powerful (and perhaps least practiced) ways God can use us to reach the lost. We could spend our entire lives actively on evangelizing and the people we would reach would just be a drop in the bucket. It seems to me that we often forget that prayer is the FIRST step to getting the job done. God can open and close peoples' hearts. I see evidence that praying for our neighborhood and for God to use our little church to reach our neighbors has really molded my kindergarteners' hearts.
Second, we want our children to see us witnessing to others. If they were in school for the better part of each day, 5 days a week, I'm not sure when we would find the time to naturally be a light to our neighbors as a couple and as a family. Our children participate in almost everything we do, including befriending our neighbors (who all adore them - even the ones who are adamant about public schooling!) and I have seen God use my homeschooled 5 yr olds to reach more hearts in this neighborhood than my husband and I combined. My kids regularly see and play with some of our public schooled neighbor kids (under supervision).
We are learning to be more and more hospitable every day and often have neighbors just come in our house for some reason at different times of the day. This is VERY unusual in the type of neighborhood that we live in. My husband and I try to have casual get-togethers and just be friendly to the people around us and our children see that first hand. We also make a point of going to every party/event that we are invited to around here. If our kids were in public school I don't think we would be able to be as social with our neighbors as we are! There would be concern for getting homework done every night, and staying in on school nights, not doing too many activities, etc.
I hope the most important and effective thing we will have done to disciple our children is to show them how much Mom and Dad love God and are trying to live right and to love people who need God, even right here in our own home and neighborhood. I really do not see how homeschooling is a detriment to that. Instead, I see that our kids being with us so much has helped them to better absorb what we are trying to teach them because we have that much more time with them in order to influence them.
I love the flexibility of homeschooling. It allows our family to drop things if need be to minister to friends and neighbors when there is a need without worrying about the logistics of school.
You may probably think that we are not "typical" homeschoolers. You are probably right. I have to say though, that I have been around homeschoolers and homeschooling groups - and being a new homeschooler, (we always thought we would hs but haven't actually started til this year) have been impressed by the general thoughtfulness of homeschooled kids about the world around them.
I honestly don't think homeschooling is the right option for every family. But I certainly think it can be the most effective for discipling your kids and molding their hearts and minds for the work God has set for us to do in this world.
God bless you and your family for being thoughtful and doing what you feel is best for your children. I wonder if most Christian parents ever get that far. Thank you for reading my comment! I hope it was all taken in the spirit of discussion.
Tim,
Thanks for the link and the kind words about the Myths of Homeschooling series I posted over at Cerulean Sanctum.
Like I said in my comment yesterday, this is a very contentious issue. It's also a sad commentary on how we Christians can be so hurtful to each other.
Blessings!
Good article.
Our kids started out in public school, then we pulled them out and homeschooled for four years, then we put them back into public school.
What I believe is that one has to follow the Lord for their own individual family on this topic. Some families will be led to homeschool, either for a time or permanently, some will be led to public or private school-but the point is that the "best" is not the SAME for everyone.
I thank God we had the freedom and opportunity to homeschool, and I thank God for the opportunities my children had in public school as well. I am thankful that I was surrounded by supportive people no matter what educational decision we made. I truly believe we followed the Lord when we homeschooled, and I truly believe we followed His leading when we put them back in. That's all that matters.
Tim,I don't condemn those who have decided to allow their children to be taught by public schools, but your reasons for NOT homeschooling (as you have titled your series here), automatically puts us homeschoolers on the defensive (granted, I understand that using a negative title like that draws more attention than one that simply says, "Why my children will go to public schools").
There are many comments by you in this second article that I find offensive, and that quite frankly reveal false assumptions about what you see as benefits of public schooling over and above homeschooling.
I hope to get to some of them soon, but right now it's lunchtime, and I am more hungry than I am offended.
Tim,
Interesting perspective. I am new to your blog and so I don't know much about you.
From your 2 recent posts on homeschooling, I have to ask, as others have, WHY are you writing?
You have prefaced the discussion with Romans 14, but still you publicly proclaim your position and ask that no one challenge you.
Are you looking for someone to disagree with your convictions, or are you looking for pats on the back with "good job, Tim"? Or are you looking to influence those who may be struggling with these same convictions themselves?
If you are struggling with your convictions and want some encouragement and exhortation, then why the discussion on Romans 14? If you are sound in your convictions, then again, why not accept some sharpening from fellow disciples of Christ?
I have no intention of challenging you in your convictions, or anyone else's if it not desired. If it is truth you seek in a public forum, then let the flood gates be opened and allow your fellow Christians to speak. But if you do not desire an open frank discussion centered around God's Word, then I and many others who have read this should just be quiet and allow you to go on your way. If we do speak, then we must examine WHY we speak. If we speak to hear ourselves talk and make our opinion known, then I would suggest our motives are not pure. But if we speak to equip, to exhort, to sharpen, then let it be from the word of God and not from man.
Again, I am not sure WHY you have written these entries.
Brian - I don't know that it would be possible for me to post my reasons for not homeschooling without someone getting offended. Those who publish their views as to why we should or must homeschool will no doubt offend people who choose to put their kids in public school.
As for the other Brian, just because an issue is of the Romans 14 variety, doesn't mean we should discuss it and provide our rationale for our beliefs.
My thoughts on your thoughts:
If you are a homeschooling parent and you feel anger or hatred for what I said (and what I am about to say), you are strong. If, on the other hand, you condemn me for my decision, you are weak.
This may be true, but cannot be determined by the proper context of Romans 14, nor can Romans 14 be used to justify your statements concerning weak and strong Christians. According to Paul, there were not both strong AND weak Christians on both sides of the vegetarian or observance of days issues
1. The strong person is the one who has faith that he may eat all things.2. The weak person is the one who eats vegetables only.
So, the strong and weak are classified in Romans 14 BEFORE any talk of judging or condemning are brought up by Paul. Therefore, according to your paradigm here, and to be consistent with Romans 14, there has to an EITHER/OR with respect to the strong and the weak as it pertains to homeschooling vs. public school...there can't be BOTH strong and weak people on BOTH sides of the debate.
If we are going to use Scripture, we need to be consistent with it and make sure we keep it in its proper context. That is why I don't think Romans 14 should be employed to make a point regarding the raising of children. It just doesn't fit, unless it is forced into a statement such as Tim's above that is inconsistent with the original context.
There very may be (and most assuredly are) BOTH weak and strong Christians on both sides of this issue...but not in the proper context of Romans 14.
I don't see where education is mentioned in Romans 14. There is not Biblical precedence at all to say that Paul meant for education to be a matter of freedom of conscience. In fact, just the opposite.
Tim,
Forgive me, I am a bit slow...I don't understand your response.
WHY are you even posting your reasons for not homeschoolingl? What is it you are trying to acheive? Are you seeking clarity? Are you seeking influence? Or do you just like to hear yourself talk?
Most blogs I have read have a purpose in mind..most are seeking truth, understanding, wisdom and sharpening by fellow believers. They may be confident in their convictions and wish to encourage others through charity. Others are not so sure of their convictions and wish to be exhorted by others.
Your post however, expresses your convictions while at the same time asking that we not discern or judge. And in some way we need to be respectful and claim relative truth for each and every child and family.
Brian - I don't know that it would be possible for me to post my reasons for not homeschooling without someone getting offended. Those who publish their views as to why we should or must homeschool will no doubt offend people who choose to put their kids in public school.
Granted, it may not be able to be done with 100% non-offended reactions, but I think it can be done using more positive reasoning than negative reasoning. When everything is set out from the initial focal point of a negative (Why I do NOT homeschool), then I think things will come out more in a way that offends.
Is it not possible to put forth reasons for choosing public school that do not focus on the negatives of homeschooling? Conversely, it should also be possible to put forth reasons for choosing homeschooling that do not focus on the negatives of public schools.
Granted, pitting the two against each other makes for more interesting dialogue (as evidenced right here on this thread), but I think one's reasons for doing one or the other should also be able to stand on their own, without tearing down the other, don't you think?
I agree with what Brian said..."That is why I don't think Romans 14 should be employed to make a point regarding the raising of children. "
Romans 14 is regarding physical food, which has no eternal weight. Educating our children in the fear of the Lord does have eternal weight.
JUICE said: So do you wait until your kids are Christians and baptized before you put them in the public school system?
This was a very good question, I hate to see it left unanswered.
I certainly respect people who homeschool and do it well - but some of the stereotypes do fit on occasion. Having been a youth pastor for a few years - I saw kids that were raised in a homeschool setting - and just plain lacked any social skills. Call me worldly - but a guy has got to know how to get along and work with others to survive in the real world and in the workplace. And providing an income for a family is a spiritual issue.
What does an employer look for in an employee: skill and ability to get along with, work with others
I think it was about a year or two ago - there was a big story about a homeschool kid killing his girl friend's parents, and trying to run off with his girl, etc. Would he have done that if he had not been home schooled? I don't know - but my guess is that homeschooling really didn't work in that setting. People need to know their kids - parents need to know their abilities and not make this a legalistic test of spirituality either way. Which has been what Tim has been saying all along. Good post.
I can't get over the number of responses here suggest they know better how to parent your child. While they are not all this way, it is to these that I address this comment. As a former homeschooler, I can't tell you how obnoxious that holier than thou attitude is and how it paints the entire homeschooling movement.
It DOES matter how you appear to others and if these self-rightous people are so perfect, then we should all ask them to script our lives for us. It's a shame to see homeschooling painted in a negative light by people who 'judge others by a law they themselves cannot keep'.
Life is a growth process and Tim has chosen what is right in his mind for his family at this point and time. Pay attention to your own planks.
"JUICE said: So do you wait until your kids are Christians and baptized before you put them in the public school system?
This was a very good question, I hate to see it left unanswered."
I'm not sure why this is a good question or why it's a question I'd want to answer. Was it a question I am supposed to answer?
I have not had time to read all the comments so someone may have asked this: How old are your kids?
I ask because this whole outlook can really change in preteen years.
Of course God can work anywhere with anything but I do think we are tasked with protecting and raising our children in the Lord. We would not send them out to negotiate with gangs at thier age. We would not send them out to play on a highway. We protect them. All the while building a strong foundation so they can detect the 'counterfeit' when they come up against it.
You wrote: "Were the children of Christians in the Soviet Union swept away into atheism? This is simply not the case!" >>
I would say for the most part, yes it was...at least in Romania. There was absolutely no future for them outside that system. Being a Christian was a secret they had to keep so as not to hurt their family.
My cousin went to Romania as a missionary right after the regime fell. It was still basically communistic but they allowed humanitarian aid from Christian organizations if they did not street preach or start churches.
She saw this situation with children for real as she worked with Christians who suffered horribly under that regime. The true professing Christians (not the old state orthodox church) had a very hard time with their children. It is a hard life that had to be lived in secret. State school is mandatory and years of indoctrination takes it toll. Many children rebelled and turned against their parents.
It is a very sad situation but God can turn it around and is working there now.
Here is a survey that I participated in...having graduated from homeschool 23yrs ago. It's pretty amazing.
http://www.hslda.org/research/ray2003/HomeschoolingGrowsUp.pdf
I would like to mention that I was private schooled, fundamental schooled(conservative public schools here in So. Cal), public schooled and homeschooled. I wish I could have been homeschooled all the way. I find it interesting when I meet adults who say they went through public/private school and wouldn't have changed it. I would have given up hearing the F-word(along with all the other obscenities) 50 times a day for anything, I would have given up the rude and lude comments from guys for anything, I would have given up having my bottom grabbed by guys flying by my locker for anything.I would have loved it if my parents could/would have protected me from all of that. I'm amazed that we live in a time where Christian parents can, and yet purposefully choose not to.
My oldest daughter actually went to kindergarten. She is 15 and still remembers it., and is literally brokenhearted when she hears of one of my friends putting their kids in public school. Not from what she has been taught, but from what she experienced herself. She came home from kindergarten taking the Lord's name in vain....that took us quite a long time to break since she heard it every day,....she came home saying, "D***!" when she got mad at something.....that took another long while to break.....and oh yes, she was trying to help the little girls on the playground share with each other by telling them that that is what Jesus would want them to do, only to be yelled at, "We don't care what Jesus thinks!!" Trust me, she didin't go on to tell them the Gospel story. She came home crying...like any 5yr old would, and I felt like I had put her with the wolves...which indeed I had.
Tim--I have always wanted to ask someone this, and it seems you are open and willing to answer. How do you take comments like the teachers have made about what is going on in the public school system....knowing that they are in the thick of it and are way more aware about what is going on in the public school system than you/we do...and not take that seriously? I mean these are teachers in the public school system saying they would never put their own kids into it! Do you think they are blowing it out of proportion? Do you think they lack faith? Or do you just think your children will be spiritually mature enough to battle this?
Also, I've always wondered...you've got major-big lawyers from Homeschool Legal Defense, who are in the courts everyday, who are constantly watching what the NEA(National Education Association) is up to....I mean they REALLY know what is going on and what the government is after with our kids....WAYYYY more than we do. They tell us how dangerous it is, how God-hating it is, how they actually have purpose to, and I quote the NEA, "get the rotting, stinking corpse of Christianity out of our education system"....and yet..Christian parents think its a great place to send their small, usually unregenerate at this point, children.
Lastly, Scripture tells us not to walk with the foolish, how is sending our children to school 8hrs a day, all day, with foolish children of the same age, struggling(most not struggling, but embracing) with the same things, being told that the foolish transexual teacher that is teaching them is in authority over them, being faithful to the Word?
What am I not understanding?
I'm not being sarcastic here....I'm seriously at a loss to understand, and I don't want to be legalistic about homeschooling, I want to be God honoring, yet I haven't really had the opportunity to ask, or have these questions answered by someone who is choosing to public school.
Thanks for the opportunity to discuss this!~D~
Many thanks again, I don't think that this ever has to be an us versus them but for some reason it usually is. As a homeschooler for almost 11 years now it pains me to see so many homeschoolers refer to the public schools as government schools, as if God has or could ever leave the school system. As if God isn't always breaking through His creation and constantly working His redemptive work. I hope that I am never threatening to a family who chooses options other than homeschooling.
I'll say it again, if we rely on anything other than God's grace to "save" our children it will be as relying on an idol.
"The world has a natural attraction to all of us who have sinful hearts."
Tim, this issue of worldliness is so critical, and I think there's a big connection with this discussion on homeschooling and the previous one on Guilt For Particular Sins.Jesus admonishes us in Mark 7 -"There is nothing outside a person that by going into him can defile him, but the things that come out of a person are what defile him.” The issue with considering how deeply we permit ourselves or our children to interact with the world is whether we respond in the flesh or in the Spirit. If my daughter is witness to some conversation or actions that are sexually impure, whether at school, T.V., etc., does her sinful heart cause her to want more, or does she respond in the Spirit, moving away from the temptation and replacing what she has seen or heard with pure thoughts from Scripture? Further, have I taught her sufficiently about the truth of God concerning the depth and breadth of our own depravity and need for Christ that she confidently comes to me and tells me what has happened, how she thought and responded (whether sinful or not) so that we can talk and pray and decide how to respond next time? Regardless of what her educational environment is, having that as a goal is what is critical.
Thanks for your thoughtful words Tim.
Jerry M. said, "Having been a youth pastor for a few years - I saw kids that were raised in a homeschool setting - and just plain lacked any social skills."
On the opposite side, I have seen kids taught in public school who are completely lacking in social skills, while all those I have met (and yes I know this is not a statistically significant number) have been very socially capable, far beyond their years in fact. I think taking that particular criteria for deciding one way or the other on home-schooling is probably one of the less useful ones.
As as pastor I have found that most children will resemble their parents in social skills no matter where they are taught. If the parents are not very social, the children will often struggle in that area as well.
As for your post Tim, thank-you. I cannot say I agree with you on your reasons, but I would prefer people think through why they are doing things rather than to follow the crowd either with public schooling, home-schooling or Christian schooling. Growing up in a Christian Reformed Church setting while going to public school for my elementary education, my mother was constantly pushed to put me into the Christian school. When I was going to high-school, I asked to be put in Christian school because that is where I wanted to go. Looking back, I'm sure if I continued in the public system, I would have not continued to follow the Lord, but would have went the easy road of sin. But, for some children that would not be the case.
As for me, regardless of the "Myths of Christian Education" posts you linked to, my experience with home-schooled children has always been one where I am impressed at how knowledgeable they are and how well they function socially. Again, the sample size would not be statistically significant, and I am sure there are bad home-schoolers out there as well.
Just as an interesting aside, for many years the Ontario provincial government required a licensed teacher from the local school board to check on the educational progress of home-schooled children. A friend of mine who is a retired teacher did this when she was working with the local school board. I was talking about home-schooling with her for a while, and she mentioned it telling me that her experience with home-schoolers at that time (this would be probably 20 years or more back) was all good. In fact she was impressed with how well they were taught.
While I don't have time to read every word of this discussion I do just want to share my personal perspective as a mother of 12 aged 6-37 who has experienced homeschool, Christian school, Catholic school, special ed, junior college, secular university and Christian college. The most important thing a parent can do is to remain open at all times to all possibilities. Parenting each particular child is a lot like opening a gift - only with more responsibility attached. God has a plan for each of our children and it's up to us to discern how that is best accomplished. He also has a plan for each family and my experience has been that there have been seasons in our family's life - some which involve drawing inward and nurturing, others which involve stepping out into the world.I homeschooled my children solidly for about eight years, then began to take things year by year and community by community (we moved several times) and child by child. In the four years since we've moved from California to Virginia, our school-aged children have all been in public schools - except for one daughter who homeschooled briefly last year. That wasn't for any negative reason but because it seemed like that was what was God's plan for her.After these four years and the role we have carved our for ourselves here, I know that God's plan for us was very similar to missionaries. I go to a church where we are pretty much the only non-homeschooling family, but that is because we are more like the homeschool families in values than most of the Christians here who have their kids in public school. I've found that the judgment by homeschoolers toward public school families is in many cases completely valid - there ARE lots of Christian families who become compromised because they are lazy and keep their heads in the sand. They also tend to delegate spiritual education to the church. They have no media plan for their kids. Parents and kids seem pretty much like the nonChristian parents and kids. All by way of saying that I believe God does have a plan for certain Christians to have their kids in public schools as missionaries. They are a light not only for nonbelievers but for weaker parents who need role models.It is so important to remember that God's ways are not ours and he may ask us to do things that don't make sense to other people. Then you must remember that in quietness and confidence is our strength. It's always between us and God.Tim, I know that you have not chosen an easier, softer path but an exciting one that will draw your family even closer to God as you have opportunities to build meaningful relationships with those he has plans for you to meet. Blessings to you!Barbara Curtis
Brian is asking Tim, "WHY are you even posting your reasons for not homeschoolingl? What is it you are trying to acheive? Are you seeking clarity? Are you seeking influence? Or do you just like to hear yourself talk?
The best answer is from a shirt on the web, "I think, therefore I blog."
'If our children are believers, they are filled with the same Holy Spirit as you and I. They are equipped to reach out to the most tender-hearted segment of the population.'
In order to be a missionary doesn't one need to be a believer, first? If ones 5 year old child is not a believer, how can a parent send them to the mission field/battle zone to evangelize? Maybe I'm missing something, here.
To me, the whole problem with this argument is sending an unprepared unbelieving child to the unbelieving battle zone, too soon. Doesn't the unbelieving battle zone have a high chance of reinforcing that child's unbelief. It's like giving a 5 year old a gun/Bible, parachute and dropping him in the middle of war all the while saying.....'it's for 'the cause', son, you'll understand.......someday. Now jump!'.
Should a parent have discernment in allowing their unbelieving child to be in an atmosphere which creates a greater temptation to not believe, too soon?
This weak/strong – public/homeshool link is really a stretch and I’ve still not seen a credible association between the two.
Tim: “Some people naturally assumed that I suggested I was strong because I send my children to public school while they are weak because they prefer to homeschool their children. I did no such thing. I merely indicated that one of us is weak and one is strong.”
If people “naturally” assumed you were saying you were “strong” perhaps that says something about how you’re presenting yourself or it could be simply that you did not go out of your way to debunk that assumption in your post.
And, I haven’t read all of your postings but do you regularly aim to admit that you are wrong or weak from the outset? It would be great but strange if you created postings to highlight your “weakness” but I think this may be unlikely- which again may cause others to assume from the tone of your 1st postings that you were saying you were “strong”.
Tim: “Though it seems strange, the easiest way to gauge whether you are weak or strong is by your sinful reaction. In either case, I'd worry less about whether you are weak or strong and more about asking God for forgiveness because of your sinfulness. I'll do the same.”
The last time I checked having a different opinion doesn’t mean one has sinned.
I think it would also help to acknowledge that your feelings about this topic are really from a middle to upper-middle class suburban centric perspective which is not the luxury some Christians live in.
So what you just implied is that is someone rebukes your for your unbiblical stance, then they are weak, and the strong shouldn't rebuke anybody. Protecting your children isn't a Romans 14 issue, it's Biblical precept.
You're PRESUMING that God and the Holy Spirit will protect your children from all spiritual harm (not to mention physical (last year an 8-year old girl was molested at school by the boys)), when the Bible states you are to protect your children. Kinda like leaving all your money on the front lawn, and asking God to protect it. Sure he can, but he gave you the responsibilities of stewardship.
Thanks for this article. It echos our feelings as well, in every arena. After yesterday, I just had to return for the conclusion!
In response to questions about children being evangelists, wasn't it Christ, Himself, who said, "Let the little children come to me!" In our house, there is no greater evangelist than our first daughter. While she's not traveled to Brazil, Africa or the Dominican Republic with her father, she has never shied away from sharing Jesus with others. When she was a young 4 years old, I finally allowed her to ride the carousel without me at our local shopping mall. She had chosen to ride in the spinner and another little boy joined her. When she was finished, she hopped off with the biggest smile on her face. I asked her how her ride was, and her reply was this, "It was great! I asked that little boy on the spinner with me if he knew who Jesus was, and he said he didn't know Him, so I told him ALL about Him!" I'm hoping my look of shock and horror didn't dissuade her from following her heart on these matters in the future!
Never underestimate the impact a Christ-filled child can have on the world, or on you for that matter!
"I think, therefore I blog."
Pretty well. I have been thinking about this and then decided it would be interesting to blog about it. I wasn't able to find much like this on the web (There are approximately 1 billion sites answering "Why do you homeschool?" but none answering "Why do you choose not to homeschool?").
Theologian said:
Romans 14 is regarding physical food, which has no eternal weight.
Strictly speaking, Rom. 14 is about "disputable matters" or "opinions" (v. 1), or "anything that causes your brother to stumble" (v. 21), which Paul illustrates by the example of physical food (as well as holidays, so even his examples are not strictly about food).
Going over Tim's two posts and the ensuing comments, it certainly looks to me like education is a stumblingblock for many on either side of the equation.
As a secular homeschooler (Yes, Virginia, we do exist) I find the conversation here fascinating. Lots of assumptions, of course. Like that all homeschoolers are Christians. That being said, I found this quote to be a bit over-the-top:
I quote the NEA, "get the rotting, stinking corpse of Christianity out of our education system".
Now, as a long-time edu-blogger, I'll put my NEA-bashing bona fides up against anyone's. But this quote doesn't sound legit and Google hasn't ever seen of it. Dee Dee-- can you provide have a primary source?
I see all the reasons listed here as why NOT to homeschool - Worldliness, Missions, Great Commission, etc. as probably my biggest reasons as to why I do homeschool.
The purpose of public school is not socialization, but education. Opportunities for "quality" socialization are limited. Here in Texas, kids probably have an almost totally unsupervised 30 minute bus ride (Conscientious Christian parents might drive their kids to school, but I'll say they ride the bus here just for the sake of not having it viewed as being "seperatist"). The school bus is probably one of the worst environments for unsupervised mixed ages to attack the innocent. At our local elementary schools, children have 20 minutes for lunch - barely enough time to eat, let alone have time for socialization. That is from the time they walk in the door until the time they walk out. Then there's recess - a sore subject with me since the bullying my son received in First Grade Public School is one of the reasons we pulled him out.
The better quality socialization of PS is in the extracurricular activities - and since more and more public schools are cutting back on these extracurricular activities, the "good ones" are independant of the school system - YMCA, community sporting events, church sports teams, etc.
As a homeschooler, I want to expose my children to other beliefs, religions and limited worldliness - but not at the expense of their physical safety. Unfortunately, the PS cannot give me their guarantee that they can vouge for their safety - even in First Grade recess. I can take my First Grader to a sporting event, participate in a group event where I am ultimately responsible for their safety and to encourage their interaction at these MULTI-CULTURAL events. I am responsible and according to the laws here, once my child goes into the PS, the schools have more authority over my child than I do while they are in the building.
Missions - again, there are more opportunities for Missions in homeschooling than there are in PS. While my children are young, my opportunities are limited - but they have more opportunity to actually serve others - help a friend in need, help organize a charity event - on a daily/weekly basis than in the severely limited opportunties in PS or afterschool than in PS.
The Great Commission - by living our lives in service to God, being the hands and feet of Jesus, we reveal to others the Grace of God - Grace in the face of Worldliness. Grace in the opportunites of Community missions are what reveal the Holy Spirit in Us to others. Quality relationships and friendships provide opportunities for non-believing friends and close aquaintances to see in US the hope they desire for themselves and that helps lead them to a desire for God.
I do not see how this would be truly possible in an enclosed PS environment - specifically in my suburban area of Houston, Texas.
As far as education goes - one does not have to look far to know that homeschoolers are outsmarting PS counterparts. They just are. They're is no arguement there, statistically.
I come from a family of PS teachers who have all, one by one, come to see the fruit in my children when compared to the children they see in PS.
I'm a homeschooler, Not a "Homer" (quite a derogatory term). Parents in both PS and HS environments over-shelter/smother their children. That type of fundamentalism is not specific to one type of education system.
God Bless!
"I think, therefore I blog."
This is hardly a biblical reason for blogging,
Prov 17:27,28 - He that hath knowledge spareth his words: and a man of understanding is of an excellent spirit. Even a fool, when he holdeth his peace, is counted wise: and he that shutteth his lips is esteemed a man of understanding.
But since you seem to welcome exhortation, hopefully you are desiring biblical insight into your claims "why not to homeschool". [more on that later]
Hey Brian...could you do me a favor and use the initial of your last name, or even your whole last name along with your first when you post comments? It's not only confusing others, but it's confusing me! ;)