OPERATION WORLD - MYANMAR

We have used many different sources over the years to draw our family together for group learning, but one of the most consistent for us is Operation World. After learning about and praying for the country we've studied as a group,

we apply what we've learned in a variety of ways, giving the children expressive freedom and choices.

Yesterday, the children wrote down prayer points for Myanmar and added some artwork in there too.

The little ones joined us at the table to make collages...which is especially fun when Daddy is home to help with the glue!

It is a privilege to learn as a family, spending time together around the Word.

What a blessing to homeschool!

And what a blessing to pray together and focus on the world around us.

May the Lord raise up missionaries in this home! Maranatha!

"And this gospel of the kingdom will be proclaimed throughout the whole world

as a testimony to all nations, and then the end will come."

Matthew 24:14

HOMESCHOOLING AN ARTIST

I remember when Brodie was younger, trying to squish him into the educational box. I thought that was the "right" way to homeschool and so I tried and tried. At some point frustrations and confusion led me to question God. Is this really what you intend for our homeschool? Is this the BEST way to homeschool an alternatively minded/artistic child? After all, God is the most genius Artist and He designed the (many) artists in my home in His image. Surely, He had answers to my questions.

I've heard it said in terms of seeking God's will for our lives, that 95% of our questions are directly answered through the Word of God, the Bible...and that the other 5% not specified to our particular circumstances can certainly be revealed to the one who seeks after that explicit 95% with passion. I've found this to be true. When we delight ourselves in the Lord, study His holy Word, and pray constantly, we will be yoked to the Vine. We will know our Shepherd's voice and we will hear from Him. We will.

"Delight yourself in the LORD, and he will give you the desires of your heart."

Psalm 37:4

So, as I sought the Lord for answers to my homeschooling questions, gradually He began to whisper and it became more and more clear that He had new plans for us that differed from how we were originally approaching homeschool. He showed me that just as all people are unique, we all learn in unique ways that compliment the beautiful differences He creates in us, with purpose. In order to fulfill His unique plans for our children, we would need to ask Him to lead us through His Holy Spirit on behalf of each of our learners. He has never failed us since and we haven't looked back once. We have only grown in confidence as we have morphed and there is good fruit as a result, both for us as the parents/teachers and for the children/students.

"Look carefully then how you walk, not as unwise but as wise,
making the best use of the time, because the days are evil."
Ephesians 5:15-16

When given the gift of TIME, children flourish because they are naturally curious and inquisitive. With proper, biblical parental guidance, children can discover God's will for their lives early on and begin investing in their unique avenues of exploration and mastery. When given the benefit of unhurried, unlimited TIME to explore their God-given talents and inclinations, children thrive. There is peace when we step prayerfully into God's plans and He reciprocates by paving the way as we seek Him.

"Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path."
Psalm 119:105

In the case of Brodie, we recognized his musicality early on, but it wasn't until years later that we offered him the gift of TIME. Once we let him have the (literal) hours in a day to focus on his instrument, he began to soar. Once we stopped squashing him into the worksheet/textbook box and let him delve deep into the music God enables him to produce, he began to explore the avenue that he was clearly created for. His piano playing has taken off. His aim is Godward. His focus is pointed and ambitious. His music glorifies God because it must, for that is why the Lord gave him his talent. We remind Brodie of this daily.

Brodie spends many hours most days practicing his piano and composing. He has the time to do so. We allow him unlimited time to hone his craft and he is content to spend it at the keys. He's never had lessons. He doesn't read notes on paper. But, he produces thematic, compelling melodies that tell stories through song and move our hearts to worship God. THIS is what he was created to do. He's currently working on his first original project and preparing to record when the time is right. He creates introductions to hymns that season the heart, encouraging tenderness in preparation for worship. Most days he makes his mama cry as his fingers play our life's soundtrack, the backdrop to our days. I couldn't love his music more and I thank God for inspiring us to let Brodie be who He created him to be...an artist...just like Him.

"'But now bring me a musician.' And when the musician played, the hand of the Lord came upon him."
2 Kings 3:15

MISSION MINDED HOMESCHOOL

One of the main reasons we so highly value homeschooling is the freedom we have to learn in varied ways and through many means. For us, the Bible is our primary source of education. We can utilize the Word of God for every aspect of learning...and so we do. The Bible is central and key to our homeschool all day, every day.

"Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly, teaching and admonishing one another in all wisdom,

singing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, with thankfulness in your hearts to God."

Colossians 3:16

As the Word of Christ dwells in us richly and as the gospel permeates our everything, the inevitable overflow becomes a desire to live like Christ, think like Christ, love like Christ...which manifests in love for our local and global neighbors.

"You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.
This is the great and first commandment. And a second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself."
Matthew 22:36-39

Our aim is to use the catalyst of education to also direct our children's hearts (and our hearts as the parents) back to the Word. We want to be fueled outward by God's Word and also redirected back TO God's Word through our every experience, question, or learning opportunity. This is because we want our lives to be constantly in line with Scripture and we know that it is profitable and sufficient in itself to prepare our hearts and minds for all things.

"All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, equipped for every good work."
2 Timothy 3:16-17

As our love for Christ grows, our hearts desire what He desires and this results in a love for the hurting world around us. Since we have so many learners in our family at varied ages, it works well for us to pick a common source (mainly the Bible, but also other resources) and work together as a family to learn. We then take that unified time to propel us toward prayer and other individualized and age appropriate activities for learning. In this way, we get to take something we genuinely enjoy and are invested in, and allow it to be the stimulus for all sorts of other learning enhancement. Above all, we want our children to grow in the Lord and we know that as we honor Him in this, He faithfully fills in the rest. He provides infinite and abundant educational opportunities through streamlined beginnings and life/learning is...simple.

Here are just a few of our most often used mission minded resources (in addition to the Bible of course) for our group time:

OPERATION WORLD
We use the Operation World book to read about and pray for one country at a time. We use the website (www.operationworld.org) for prayer videos and further learning about people groups represented in the countries we study. Among other subjects of interest, this hits geography, world history, social studies, biology at times, global economics, government, anthropology, and most importantly a love for the world and other cultures in particular with regard to their physical and spiritual needs. If the children take notes or write about what we have learned, we take this opportunity to address grammar and language arts. In the past we have made folders with the national flags as a way to get some art in there too.

THE GLOBE

Following our Operation World study, we pray on our knees as a family around the globe. We pray for the specific needs we have learned and read about a country and it's people groups. We pray for the missionaries and the challenges of the area. We pray for the Lord to raise up laborers for the harvest and we also pray and ask God to show us any way that our family can be part of reaching out to the people we are focusing on. This is geography at it's best if you ask me.

WINDOW ON THE WORLD

The children like this book because it has many pictures and facts about different nations.

They can use it to browse through or read further on their own about countries we have discussed and prayed for.

YOU CAN CHANGE THE WORLD (VOLUME 2)
Put out by Operation World specifically for children, this book also contains many facts about different people groups and countries. It has illustrations as opposed to the photographs of Window on the World, yet still lots of great information that the children can read through on their own as an offshoot of our time together around the globe.



In addition to these learning experiences at home, we try to get our family involved in tangible outreach as well in order to foster a mission minded homeschool. We do this through local opportunities, but also desire to have an international experience once a year as well. We have some plans in the works for this year (Lord willing) and are brushing up on some Spanish. We will see what He has planned, but we are convinced that spending 2% of our time out of our normal context and in the context of another culture has a way of influencing the other 98% of our time here at home.

(Puzzles and games also make excellent and FUN geography tools!

Aida is finally at an age to appreciate David Platt's book, Radical, so she is currently reading that. We also encourage the older ones to be reading the many missionary biographies we have collected over the years, so those are always on rotation as well. We utilize missions documentary videos online and inspiring DVDs we own or borrow. When we sit down to watch something together at night, we realize that what we consider entertaining is also continuing education. Documentaries are a wonderful way to spend family time together and if we choose resources of value, they instigate further curiosity, learning, wisdom, and prayer well after our video has ended. In this way, "school" isn't just something that takes place in the morning and there don't even need to be desks involved. I'd say our greatest learning takes place in a comfy circle...ah the beauty of homeschool!

"And this gospel of the kingdom will be proclaimed throughout the whole world
as a testimony to all nations, and then the end will come."
Matthew 24:14

Psalm 67
May God be gracious to us and bless us
and make his face to shine upon us,
that your way may be known on earth,
    your saving power among all nations.
Let the peoples praise you, O God;
    let all the peoples praise you!

Let the nations be glad and sing for joy,
    for you judge the peoples with equity
    and guide the nations upon earth. Selah
Let the peoples praise you, O God;
    let all the peoples praise you!

The earth has yielded its increase;
    God, our God, shall bless us.
God shall bless us;
    let all the ends of the earth fear him!