?Wholehearted or Halfhearted?

?WHOLEHEARTED or HALFHEARTED?

Musings from my Mornings

By Judith

February 2004

Give ear to my words, O LORD,

Consider my meditation.

Hearken unto the voice of my cry,

My King, and my God:

For unto thee will I pray.

My voice shalt thou hear in the morning,

O LORD; in the morning will I direct my prayer unto thee,

And will look up.

(Psalm 5:1-3)

As my day starts, it is still calm and quiet because it is early morning and the children  are still sleeping.  Although it constantly goes against my inner nature, for years I  rolled out of bed before the children, in order to have a little time of solitude with the Lord.  When the children were babies, toddlers, and very young, when I tried getting up earlier, the baby would also wake, hearing me even in the quietness.  Taking time with the Lord even when you have a child on your lap speaks to our growing little ones as they see us over the years starting our day off with Jesus.

We ask the Lord each day to consider our words as we bring our prayers before His feet, in meditation before Him.  We cry out to Him daily for the Spiritual souls of each of our children by name, bringing the daily struggles we have with them, their weaknesses, and our weaknesses (sin?)  which we see reflected in each of them.

But as for me, I will come into thy house in the multitude of thy mercy:

And in thy fear will I worship toward thy holy temple.

Lead me, O LORD, in thy righteousness because of mine enemies:

Make thy way straight before my face.

(Psalm 5:7-8)

God has granted us so much mercy to have chosen us to home train our children.  It isn’t a coincidence.  It really isn’t because of ‘academic excellence’ or likely any of the original reasons we thought to choose this narrow way. Whether you began homeschooling because of a lengthy prayerful consideration or simply because of some events in your child’s life, God used those circumstances to draw you to the place He would have your family go.  Once on this journey there are so many dynamics in having mom and children at home all day which effects so many aspects of family life.

So often, we mom’s are fearful, this being the primary concern expressed by many, many ladies.  For many, it isn’t just fear, it is sheer terror over the future of their child let alone daily being terrified that they aren’t teaching enough (gapaphobia), that they are ruining their child, and that they will direct their child into the (right) future providing them with the right activities both in and out of the home in order to prepare them.  We ought not to come before our LORD with fear but with the ‘fear of the LORD’ which brings us to His feet in worship.  Our temple in not a building we visit weekly but should be in a special place we visit daily to bring our concerns and cares to Him at the beginning of each day.

But let all those that put their trust in thee rejoice;

Let them ever shout for joy,

Because thou defendest them:

Let them also that love thy name be joyful in thee.

For thou, LORD, wilt bless the righteous;

With favour wilt thou compass him as with a shield.

(Psalm 5:11-12)

O LORD, our Lord,

How excellent is thy name in all the earth!

(Psalm 8:1)

Trust in the LORD with all thine heart,

And lean not unto thine own understanding;

In all thy ways acknowledge him,

And he shall direct thy paths.

(Proverbs 3:5,6)