Recently, my husband was nominated to serve in a position at church. He was asked to provide a short bio and in it, he mentioned that we were homeschooling parents of 8 children. He said that homeschooling has been an instrumental tool God has provided to present the Gospel to our children.
“Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one! You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your strength.
“And these words which I command you today shall be in your heart. You shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, when you walk by the way, when you lie down, and when you rise up.”
Deuteronomy 6:4-7
These verses are tried and true in the Christian homeschool community, in particular the part where parents are instructed to be the ones to diligently teach their own children the things of God. Teaching God’s Word continually throughout the day would require that we as parents are actually with our children throughout the day–literally as we sit in our houses, as we go about our day, when we get up and when we lie down, we are to intentionally teach them God’s commands. Following this directive can be difficult to do when we send our children out of the home, every day, for most of the day.
My husband and I are grateful to God for His wisdom here. We are thankful for the opportunity to use homeschooling as a means to share the Gospel of Jesus Christ with our children each day. Because we are sharing Biblical truths with our children through their academics, homeschooling really has become a part of the fabric of our family life since our faith is part of our family life–it just fits.
The Bible isn’t separated from their daily education, only to be studied in isolation during a church-led Bible study or in Sunday school. Instead, God is very much welcome and appreciated in every subject we study, allowing my children to behold the wonder, wisdom and beauty of His hand everywhere.
I asked my oldest three children about homeschooling from a Biblical worldview and I will close with their thoughts:
16-year old:
We are here at home with you all day, so because we are here, we hear the Word more often, several times a day. When we were at school, we couldn’t hear it as frequently simply because we weren’t here and our school wasn’t teaching it. Also, we get to learn History and Science from a Christian worldview, and that makes them easier to understand, especially Science. I remember I had so many questions in public school that I couldn’t get answered, that now I have answers to. I know that logic and reason flow from God and His design is seen in Science. For example, animals behave the way they do, based off what they need because of God’s design for them. He knows what He created.
14-year old
Mom, you quote the Scriptures to us every day and it gets in our heads and then we begin to memorize them. We learn God’s Word each day. Homeschooling also means less unlearning. When we were in public schools we got “back and forth messages”–the school taught us one thing and when we would get home, you and Daddy would teach us something different. That was confusing for me as a little kid. I like the consistent approach of homeschooling.
12-year old
I realize how foolish sin is, and at home, I can take my time and think through my actions before making a decision. We have regimens each day, and lots of chances to practice doing the right thing because you and Daddy are there to reinforce what is right. In public schools, what the Bible says is right may not be reinforced there if they don’t agree with it. I just think that teaching kids God’s law, homeschooling and your parent’s influence makes for a better walk with Christ.
How do you incorporate the Bible in your homeschool? Do you use homeschooling as a tool to introduce and teach the Gospel to your children?
