How easy is it for us as parents to burden our children with our broken dreams and missed opportunities? To try to relive our lives vicariously through our kids? To burden our children with the unyielding weight of our expectations?
I'm often afraid that my second prayer may do that to my three.
I pray that they'll be smart.
I want them to love to learn and stretch and grow. To love books and thinking. To develop their talents to their full potential. I want to push them and challenge them. I want them to be out of the box thinkers, bold innovators, brave leaders, and so much more.
And yet, what if that's not what they are called to do? What if their gifts and talents are different than mine. As they probably will be. I know my Dad, who I respect enourmously, hoped I'd be a chess player, and I can't stand chess. So, I know that they will probably turn out very much unlike me.
So let me revise my second prayer.
I pray that they will take their God given talents and gifts and stretch them to their fullest potential, no matter what those gifts might be. I pray that they'll grow into unique and radically different people who are incredibly competent, serving God in many varied ways.
And that's why I don't want to send them to school.
To paraphrase a father far greater than I, "These are my children in whom I am well pleased!"
Every night when I put my children to bed I pray the same prayer. The one thing that I desire for my children above all else. That they would know and love the Lord. While I give them a backrub, sing "Father, I adore you", listen to them talk about their school day, or listen to them pray "Now I lay me down to sleep..." I lift them up in prayer to the Lord of All and ask that the Holy Spirit would reach these three apples of my eye.
"Start children off on the way they should go, and even when they are old they will not turn from it." Proverbs 22:6
My wife and I do all I can to model, emulate, and teach our children to know and love the Lord. But we also know that we are broken, sinful parents and our best efforts will never be enough. What's more we also know that each child will make their own choice about their faith and there are no guarantees that they will choose faith.
With that in mind we choose to take advantage of every opportunity that exists to encourage our children to grow in faith.
This is one of the reasons we are such ardent supporters of Christian Education and Christian schools. If there is an opportunity that will allow us as parents to do a better job of raising our children to know and love Christ we'll take it no matter what the cost.
Students from my online class explain one of the key reasons we believe so strongly in Christian education in this video:
I know that there are many Christians who did just fine in public education. I also strongly encourage those Christians who are called work as teachers in the public system as they are needed there. I've heard the arguments about having our children serve as witnesses in the public system. I've heard people complain about the fact that our Christian schools are full of sinful, broken human beings just like the rest of the world.
But none of that matters if Christian schools will make a difference in my children's faith life.
I've always believed that Christian schools (and homeschooling for that matter) make a huge difference in the lives of our children. There's even a recent research project by Cardus gives us reason to believe that it's true. I know that it made a difference in my life.
As a father I must do all I can to raise my children up in the way that they should go.
Amongst the many thousands of voices on the internet what makes me think that I have anything to offer? Aren’t there are others wiser, more experienced, and more articulate than myself? What makes me think that anyone would listen to my voice?
Truthfully, I’m not certain I have a good answer to those questions. But here’s why I’m doing it:
1) Earlier this year I heard Andy Crouch speak and was inspired. (I’m still singing “I hear music in the air.”) I just finished reading his book “Culture Making: Recovering Our Creative Calling.” He uses lots of “Cs” in this book, but in the end the key idea that I heard was that we as Christians need to create culture. I’ve been challenged to think about how I can create culture. While I love to sing, I’m not a musician. I love to read, but I’m not about to write a book. What am I good at? I like to think. A lot. And so I’m creating this blog as a place to share my thinking. It is my humble attempt to add something to the culture of our world. Even if no one reads it.
2) In the last few years I have been on an educational journey. Learning at the intersection of education and technology. I’ve been scouring the internet for other Christian educators who are doing the same. I’ve found quite a few who have inspired my thinking.
But not one of these is in the educational jurisdiction that I’m in. I’ve been searching throughout my community for others who are sharing their thinking in this medium and I’ve come to the conclusion that there aren’t any. Yet. Perhaps I can encourage others to do the same by starting.
3) I want to engage my students in authentic tasks where they put their work on the public stage. But how can I ask that of them if I don’t do the same?
4) And finally, but far from the least. I hear God calling. More on this in a later post.
