To the Finish

"Do you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only one gets the prize? Run in such a way as to get the prize." -1 Corinthians 9:24

The end of the school year was getting closer. The calendar wasn't the only source that revealed that fact. The quality of my children's schoolwork was also an indicator. With the finish line in sight and carefree summer days just ahead, my children rushed through their lessons. Poorly written compositions, half-answered history questions and math papers with high percentage of incorrect answers confirmed that spring fever had hit our homeschool. I needed to find something to motivate my children to finish the school year working to the best of their abilities.

Christians can also suffer from a tie of "spring fever." Being tempted to compromise God's standards of holiness, we half-heartedly obey and "slack off" when it comes to maintaining the spiritual disciplines of prayer and Bible study. Living the Christian life in our own strength, we fail to see our vulnerability and fall prey to Satan's temptations. "So, if you think you are standing firm, be careful that you don't fall!" (1 Corinthians 10:12). To run in the heavenly race in which God has placed us, we must run with self-control and discipline. To finish the race, we must discipline our bodies and run in such a way as to receive the prize - a crown that will last forever (see 1 Corinthians 9:25).

Your children are looking to you as an example of how to finish this year's homeschooling race. If spring fever is tempting you to be lazy and lax in disciplining your day's schedule, you can't expect your children to be much different. Pray and ask God to replace your lost motivation with a new fervor to finish the homeschooling task he has given you to do.

-Taken from Homeschool Mom's Bible; devotions by Janet Tatman; p. 453

If Walls Could Speak

"For I know that good itself does not dwell in me, that is, in my sinful nature. For I have the desire to do what is good, but I cannot carry it out." -Romans 7:18

If your homeschool walls could speak, what would they say? What secrets would they tell others about your homeschooling family? Would they tell of quiet times reading books, exciting times when science experiments went "south," creative times of nightly puppet shows from behind the couch and joyful times when a child received a hard-earned A+ on a semester test. Unfortunately, sometimes our walls would also tell secrets of not-so-nice times when conflicts led to unloving acts or when laziness led to procrastination.

Every homeschooling parent knows the fall far short of being the perfect Christian parent. The temptation to allow selfishness, greed, jealousy and even laziness to take over our lives is strong. Homeschooling is only successful when we listen to the Lord instead of our flesh and submit to his constant love and guidance.

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Have you been focusing on your failures more than your successes? Take heart! We all fail in our efforts to be the best parent and teacher of our children. The true battle that turns our defeat into a homeschooling victory lies in saying "no" to the flesh, so the Holy Spirit can control our every thought and action. "I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I now live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me" (Galatians 2:20).

-Taken from Homeschool Mom's Bible; devotions by Janet Tatman; April 2nd; p. 378