*this article was written for the MATCH Missouri Association of Teaching Christian Homes, Inc newsletter*
I have always marveled at the good Lord’s weather. It can make you smile as snowflakes tickle your face or make you tremble as you see the formation of a funnel cloud. Some storms spring up out of nowhere and other storms march towards you in a steady unceasing pace. Being a weather watcher I find equating storms to our troubles in life to be highly accurate.
The Lord has blessed me with children that have a genetic disorder. One of the major problems we face is dysautonomia, an inability of the central nervous system to control basic body functions such as sugar levels, heat control, blood pressure etc. Recently I turned on the air conditioner and tepid air was the best it could do. The repairman delivered the news that our air conditioner and furnace were dead. Many families would find this an inconvenience, for us it was an emergency.
Homeschooling has allowed us to walk through may storms adapting to the changes as we went. The flexibility that is part of homeschooling helps us react immediately. In the case of our air conditioner going out we had to stop all book learning. Keeping the kids cool and healthy took over all our other priorities. I didn’t realize till later how much the kids continued to learn despite the problems all around them.
We have encouraged a love for learning and the natural curiosity that the Lord placed in the children. The kids asked about the heat, sun, and the coming summer solstice. One of my daughter’s asked a billion questions to a a very patient repair man. Then reported back to the others all about duct work, refrigerant gases, and compressors. What a delight to see the beginnings of your children taking the reins of there own learning.
As a special needs homeschooling family you could say we walk through storms daily. There are times the thunder is distant and the storm seems far away. Then you have to give out seizure medicine, or deal with a sudden behavioral meltdown, or schedule your next IV treatment. You realize that the storms never go away for us, but we must endure them. We need to go through each storm on our knees!
Nahum 1:7 The Lord is good, a refuge in times of trouble. He cares for those who trust in him.
Homeschooling in possible, especially in the worst of storms.Think of the wonderful lessons you teach your children at these times. You teach them that when facing problems you turn towards the Lord. You teach your children flexibility to adapt to changes storms often bring. You teach your child to be an over-comer Rev 21:6,7