By Guest Author Kayla White

Homeschooling offers a unique opportunity to disciple the hearts of the children the Lord gives us. Indeed, the Lord shows the importance of discipling children when He follows the command to love Him with heart, soul, mind, and strength, with these instructions:

“And these words which I command you today shall be in your heart. You shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, when you walk by the way, when you lie down, and when you rise up. You shall bind them as a sign on your hand, and they shall be as frontlets between your eyes. You shall write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates.” (Deuteronomy 6:6-8, NKJV)

While this passage — often the “go-to” passage for homeschooling — gives the responsibility of teaching and discipleship to parents and the family, it also gives them the covenantal authority to do so. This gift is something that no one else has. God uniquely qualified you to teach and train your children in the ways of the Lord when He brought them into your life — and homeschooling offers so many opportunities for doing that! Thankfully, this call comes with God’s special grace to equip you. Great blessings come from following God’s ordained plans for the family!

In Deuteronomy 6, the Lord does not assign a grade-level system to follow or give a list of “core subjects” that a child is required to learn. Academics are important — after all, we would not be able to read Deuteronomy 6 without first learning how to read! But what the Lord does emphasize is teaching and holding to His commands and His way of salvation in everything we do. That should be the heart of our homeschooling!

A passage I was recently meditating on was Proverbs 4, where a similar idea is brought out. In this chapter, Solomon also describes some of the blessings that come from walking with the Lord, including honor, life, and freedom. How wonderful to utilize the opportunities that homeschooling affords us, to instruct our children towards God and the way of blessing.

Another very important part of a child’s education can be found later in Deuteronomy 6 — knowing, remembering, and interpreting history from God’s perspective:

“When your son asks you in time to come, saying, ‘What is the meaning of the testimonies, the statutes, and the judgments which the LORD our God has commanded you?’ then you shall say to your son: ‘We were slaves of Pharaoh in Egypt, and the LORD brought us out of Egypt with a mighty hand; … Then He brought us out from there, that He might bring us in, to give us the land of which He swore to our fathers. And the LORD commanded us to observe all these statutes, to fear the LORD our God, for our good always, that He might preserve us alive, as it is this day.” (Deuteronomy 6:20-21, 23-24, NKJV)

From these passages, we can see some of the Lord’s purposes for homeschooling. He has given parents the responsibility, the authority, the grace, and the ability to disciple their children in the ways of truth, wisdom, light, and life. He wants children to cultivate a hunger for Him, His Word, the fear of the Lord, and to know and remember His works of old.

Homeschooling offers so many incredible opportunities to parents seeking to disciple their children’s hearts! On a personal level, my experience with home education was filled with blessings. On the one hand, I was able to enjoy the “typical” homeschool experience: We had the flexibility to make our own schedule and enjoy various activities during times when most others were in a classroom setting. I also had my assigned academic studies, but there was much more happening under the surface than simply “school.”

It has now been about seven and a half years since I graduated from high school. I often use the academics I learned, and I am grateful to have this knowledge. I must say there are things I have long since forgotten, such as the names of all the major parts of a cell or how to find the slope of a line. However, by God’s grace, the things that I still remember most and am still growing in are the lessons of wisdom, character, faith, and truth that were instilled through those studies and critical years of growing from a child into an adult. By God’s grace, they will also continue to shape me and my life of service to the Lord. 

May the Lord bless your efforts as you invest in eternity by shepherding the souls of your children. He is with you, and will grant the grace, strength, and wisdom you need!

Now may He who supplies seed to the sower, and bread for food, supply and multiply the seed you have sown and increase the fruits of your righteousness. (2 Corinthians 9:10, NKJV)