People with a Mind to Work

Nehemiah chapter 4 begins: Now when Sanballat heard that we were building the wall, he was angry and greatly enraged, and he jeered at the Jews. And he said in the presence of his brothers and of the army of Samaria, "What are these feeble Jews doing? Will they restore it for themselves? Will they sacrifice? Will they finish in a day? Will they revive the stones out of the heaps of rubbish, and burned ones at that?"

These are questions for us. First, can we restore what has been lost in the educational system of America? Can we do it ourselves? What are these feeble people doing, without a teaching degree? It is a grave responsibility to make sure our children have good education. I look back to the days of math manipulatives and phonics flashcards. I took those things seriously at the time, but with Arielle entering 7th grade, the burden of educating her weighs heavily on me. She needs to study literature, and she will be learning chemistry this fall. Teaching Liana to read has been difficult. She will be in 4th grade and I know fluency will be a great challenge for her and for me helping her to progress.

The second question: Are we willing to sacrifice? When I taught young mothers at church, one of their biggest complaints was "no time to myself." I hear you! That's how mothering is. It was hard for me to give up my time the second round of parenting my daughters. I had been living a life of freedom to basically do as I pleased as a career woman. The daily grind of being at home with preschoolers was very difficult at first. Little by little God pulled away all my "free time". I fought back selfishly and with resentment. I see now how he was preparing me for homeschooling.

To teach our children at home we sacrifice that "time to myself." As soon as our school day ends, there is dinner to prepare, laundry to do, and errands to run. I have to sacrifice a spotless house, time to curl up with a good book, and my hobbies. I admit this is still a struggle. There is also the financial sacrifice with me not working outside the home.

When my boys were young I remember the jubilant neighborhood coffee parties on the morning of the first day of school, when moms were liberated from their children. I joined in the celebration back then. Now I eagerly anticipate the quiet one-on-one with each of my daughters as we plunge into the new school year.

The next question: Will we finish in a day? Of course not. But will we finish? We have to remind ourselves this is God's work. "And I am sure of this, that he who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ." Philippians 1:6.

The last question: Will we raise up stones and build upon the one Living Stone, our Lord Jesus? A good education is necessary in this world, but are we looking at the big picture? What are our goals for our children? To be successful financially and live a prosperous life? I don't know what God's plans are for my children. I want to prepare them spiritually, first and foremost, so they will be equipped to do his work.

Remember, this study of Nehemiah began because of a class I had on spiritual warfare. It's a battle. The enemy taunts us and tries to prevent us from completing God's work, to foil God's plan and purpose for our children. Nehemiah prays, "Hear, O our God, for we are despised...for they have provoked you to anger in the presence of the builders." Woe to those who try to stop the wall-builders.

I love verse 6: "So we built the wall...for the people had a mind to work."