PrincipledMom™

My oldest daughter (10) entered this year's essay contest from our state's Christian homeschool organization. The topic was "The Role of Christians in Government." When I saw the title I knew she just had to enter. It took a lot of prodding but I finally got a paper out of her. She typed it up, then saw that it had to be hand written, so she copied it and we put both copies in the mail. A couple of days before Capitol Day we got that all-important email: she won!

The judges thought her essay was the best one entered in any age category. They wished the high schoolers could have written as well. Here is her essay in its entirety.

According to Webster’s 1828 dictionary, the word government means “who or what is
in control.” In the Garden of Eden that Who was God, and He governed us internally. Then
sin changed things and now we need more external government. That’s where Christians
come in, offering God’ s idea of government.

One of the roles of Christians in government is to follow. Follow Jesus, that is. Always
follow your leaders unless they do not line up with God’ s Word. Be a good example to other
followers.

Another role is to pray. You need to pray for the right candidates to be elected. You
also need to pray that the leaders we have will make right choices, according to 1 Timothy
2:1&2. Prayer sometimes makes the difference between life and death.

Still another role Christians have in government is to lead. When you lead as a Christian,
you reflect God. God’s leadership is wise, consistent, righteous and just. In fact, the Bible in
Job 34:17 says that you should not lead if you don’t agree with God’ s justice.

Christians get ideas regarding government from the Bible. The Founding Fathers called
the Bible “America ’s political textbook.” Christian leaders should look to godly leaders in the
bible for insight and wisdom.

It is a great responsibility to elect our own leaders. We should vote carefully. The most
basic role of Christians in government is to show others how God wants us to live, no
matter what role we are in.

I share this not to get a pat on the back, but to demonstrate God's faithfulness. When we instill Biblical principles in our children, they can think governmentally. It just becomes their way of thinking. I am raising the next generation of godly Christians who will hopefully lead and not blindly follow. This essay gives me much hope for America's future.

And it was a real treat for her to win a prize for her hard work too! On Capitol Day February 10 we made a trip to Oklahoma City for her to receive her award. And when she received a copy of her citation a few days later she was over the moon. It's a giant certificate with her essay printed in the body inside a blue folder. She will treasure it as one of her special homeschool memories. And so will I.

Just want to spread the word about a few things.

• Ms. Dang has audio and handouts from her regular Wednesday night salon. They are a must-listen.
• Mrs. Smith with Pilgrim Institute has a free 45 minute video on Repairing the Breach for you or your church.
• Mrs. Smith also is working on some online classes. Details coming.
• Her latest (#4) history book will be out later this year.
• FACE has some dinged books at a discount.
• 23rd Pilgrim Institute conference will be in Elkhart , IN March 19-20. Theme is "Educating for Liberty"

In case you didn't know, you can take a Rudiments of America's Christian History & Government by correspondence course. More details here.

As a home educating mom with a few years under my belt I've been around the block a few times. And in the way of home education resources there aren't too many things I haven't read or seen out there. When I feel I am struggling with a situation in my little homeschool I'm glad I know where to go to find some instant (or at least pretty quick) answers. After many years of this it got me thinking. I'm not so sure this is a good thing.

When writing to a friend a few months ago I asked a question in passing that has haunted me ever since: why are home educators in need of so much encouragement? We are probably the only segment of the American population that has so many resources and materials devoted to making us comfortable with our choices. Who else gets constant reassurance that they are okay, that they are doing the right thing, using the right materials, doing it the right way? Don't get me wrong we all need encouragement. It's scriptural to encourage one another, but I think it has replaced faith to some degree.

Why am I so reluctant to trade my life of faith for the quick affirmations of well-meaning friends? Why do I look to those around me for answers and not to God Who has all wisdom?  I shortchange myself with a quick satisfaction and once again deny myself the contentment of God's answers in God's time. Instead of laying my worries and concerns at His feet I pick up a magazine or visit a web site for a dose of peace. But it never lasts for long and I'm right back where I started.

So the cycle goes on and on. We feel the need for constant intermittent encouragement to satisfy the doubts and fears. This we pass on to our children without realizing it. Now we may be training another generation to require the same reassurances. They are not left with questions to wrestle or self-esteem in doubt. Soothing words flow in a stream of consciousness we probably don't even realize we are perpetuating.

We should look for encouragement to God's Word. In difficult times David encouraged himself in the Lord (1 Sam. 30:6, Ps. 42:11). Jude admonished his readers to build themselves up in their most holy faith through prayer (Jude 20). Today's Christians who are persecuted and languish in prison rely on their scripture memory and their faith to encourage themselves through perilous circumstances. Encouragement has its place, but I want to lean on the Lord and take the pressure off my friends. They are not my Holy Spirit and I never want to put them in such a place.

In closing, if I may offer you a bit of encouragement inspiration, I leave you with my new favorite song, by Sara Groves. And the lyrics to another song that I think fits this post.

You are my strength
Strength like no other
Strength like no other
Reaches to me

You are my hope
Hope like no other
Hope like no other
Reaches to me

In the fullness of Your grace
In the power of Your Name
You lift me up
You lift me up

Unfailing love
Stronger than mountains
Deeper than oceans
Reaches to me

Your love O Lord
Reaches to the heavens
Your faithfulness
Reaches to the skies

You Are My Strength by Reuben Morgan

Do you have any idea how much God loves you? He is crazy about you. You are always on His mind. He wrote you a valentine--His Word. God is for you. He is in love with you as His child. Drink it in

For this Valentine's Day I thought I would offer you a little printable reminder of God's love. Do you know all the things God's love does for you? This list comes two on a page so you can print out a few and put them all over: the fridge, the mirror, your Bible. You may even want to mail one to a friend.

What God's Love Does for Me

Happy Valentine's Day!

Unit studies (which I prefer to call integrated studies) are wonderful. Teaching all the kids all together, planning one stream of lessons for the whole bunch is smart and interesting, and you actually retain more information as you see how it is all connected. However, the thing that always has concerned me is the tendency to focus on facts. It is easy to get caught up in the activities and the topic and lose sight of the beautiful principles that hold it all together. How do you create a unit study that keeps the focus on the principles? Some things to remember:

1. The overarching principle is the focus of the unit. This is the umbrella for all your lessons.
2. The leading ideas point to the Principles. They guide your lessons.
3. Lesson plans come from the leading ideas, which come from the principles.
4. The facts of the lesson illustrate the principle, much like an illustrated sermon.

So this is it in a nutshell: principle---->leading idea---->lesson

For example, your study on WWII may discuss the Holocaust. Your study may have the overarching principle "God's Principle of Individuality." Your lessons could include the leading ideas like, "All men are created in God's image," "We are all responsible for our own relationship with God" and "Man has intrinsic value." Your lessons would be guided from these leading ideas that reinforce the Principle. So your lesson might include studying a concentration camp story, reading up on the third Reich and their ideas that are contrary to the principle or calculating how many people lost their lives.

You could show that even as the prisoners lost their freedom they went to great lengths to maintain their individuality--sharing stories of their heritage, smuggling out personal items,writing stories during and after the horrific events. (It is interesting that the Third Reich went to so much trouble to document the Jews as individuals, taking photos, issuing numbers, keeping meticulous records.) Also there are many inspiring stories like Corrie TenBoom's biography that are inspiring stories of individuals making a difference in the lives of other individuals during the war. And you can do scripture documentation, key sheets and word studies to complete your study. This is just scratching the surface of course, but I hope it gives you an idea of how an integrated study can work well using Biblical principles.

Do you see how the lessons come alive as you discuss the material in light of Biblical principles? Writing, reading, history, literature and sometimes math and science can be intertwined into a cohesive study that makes sense to all of your students. Have them study some things on their own and then share what they learn with one another. (They learn even more and you didn't have to teach it yourself!) You will be amazed at what the Holy Spirit can prompt in your children.

It is almost like planning a traditional BPA lesson plan, only you have several subjects together instead of separate. Providential HisStory flows naturally between the subjects because everything has happened at some point in history.

I think the label "integrated studies" makes more sense for BPA families because the subjects are integrated under a principle and not a topic. If you think of them as integrated subjects that can keep you out of the "facts only" unit study ditch.

While this isn't the only way to create an integrated BPA study, it's the way that makes sense to me and I hope I've done a good job of explaining myself. Thoughts? Ideas? Please leave a comment.