During a conversation about homeschool, a friend recently asked me a question that has sparked a lot of thought. Her question was, “Do you think that homeschooling is a calling?”
I can answer that question from a personal perspective that, yes, homeschooling is most definitely a calling for me and my family.
My husband and I were convinced even before we had our first children that we would homeschool them. This decision was more deeply confirmed as we began our journey as parents desiring to “train up our children in the way they should go.”
Homeschooling is a Biblical choice for our family based on our understanding of scripture’s guidance and principles for families.
Homeschooling as a calling has allowed us to have more confidence, freedom, conviction, and flexibility. We are free from the stress of having to make the choice from year to year as to whether we will school our children at home, in a private school, or public school setting. The confidence that we have in our calling releases us from this stress.
We are able to view our homeschool with a long-term perspective when it comes to making curriculum and other education choices. Because of our calling, we have a more long-term goal in mind for our children and their home school experience. This helps tremendously in the day to day running of our school time.
Because we know we are called to homeschool we can be discouraged, but not despair when problems arise. When I hit a spot of struggle, I turn to problem solving and finding solutions rather than throwing in the towel because I know this is God’s will for our home. Problems will arise and there will be struggles, but when there is a confidence in your calling you can work through them instead of giving up.
Homeschooling as a calling also frees me from looking at non-homeschooling families with judgment. I cannot judge another person or another family based on calling. A calling to do anything, whether it is homeschooling or anything else is a very personal thing that we come to understand through the Holy Spirit’s work in our lives. I can homeschool with a confidence in knowing without a doubt that this is a calling for our family, but without criticism or judgment of families who have not been called to the same.
How do you know if this is something that your family has been called to do?