Is. 26:12 – "Lord, You establish peace for us; all that we have accomplished You have done for us."

If you count Kindergarten, this is our 11th year of homeschooling. My goodness! What seemed such a long-term, daunting task back then seems like only yesterday now. I honestly can't imagine any other life choice for our family. We have relationships with our daughters that we would not have had if they were away from us for 8 hours or more a day.

Through it all, the Lord has been a stead-fast anchor. It was His idea for us to homeschool. If you have read my bio you know that He put the "want to" in my heart when I was 19 years old, even before I became a Christian and found out about homeschooling at the age of 23. Finding out that I could keep my children at home was such a confirmation of God's love and concern for me as a new Christian. I couldn't help considering it one of those moments when God smiled down and whispered in my ear, "See, I really am here and I care about even the smallest desires of your heart." What sweet assurance.

Sometimes I wonder what it is that God has planned for my daughters. How should I direct their educational paths? These Jr. High and Sr. High years are becoming even more special than the early homeschool years. During these years we actually get to prayerfully guide their academics and electives toward the gifts and callings they feel God has placed on their lives. How exciting! I'm beginning to know how the Apostle Paul felt when he said, "I planted the seed, Apollos watered it, but God made it grow. So neither he who plants nor he who waters is anything, but only God, Who makes things grow." (1 Cor. 3:6&7) These years seem to be the beginning of the harvest of all the labor and pruning in our homeschool garden. Now is when we get to watch how God has made them grow and blossom.

It's exciting to be a co-worker with the Lord in the lives of our children. It's humbling to see that they have no embarrassing awkwardness in their relationship with my husband and I…even as teens they aren't embarrassed to walk arm-in-arm or hand-in-hand with us through the mall or at a festival…something, I'm ashamed to say, I was in my 30s before I was comfortable to do with my own mother once again. Homeschooling has kept our family so close that we never lost that.

Even more than academically educated, we want our daughters to be godly young women, who marry godly young men (and know what to look for in the mean time), who will serve the Lord in their homes and in their churches with gladness. Since homeschool involves "real life," they already know that not everyday is happy or without stress, but they do know where their joy, their provision and their salvation come from. And, I dare say, they know it even better than most of their friends who attend brick and mortar schools…being home, our girls have lived through the decisions and the prayers for provision when the bank account and pantry were low…and have seen those prayers answered time and time again. Those are the REAL economics lessons and the REAL testaments to God working in our lives! Being at home, those things have not been hidden from them.

I would love to take the credit for the precious, loving, giving daughters that I am raising. But I just can't. I am me. I know me. And, for better or worse, my daughters know me. Hopefully, I serve as an example of God's never ending grace…they know that He forgives us and rewards us when we're faithful…my hope is that that will be one of the greatest lessons they learn. And it will have been by God's hand that they have been taught it. As I said: I know me…I can take no credit for what God has done in their lives. He is so good, so faithful. Even when we are not.