The new school term is well underway for many families
and excitement fills the air as homeschool parents implement
the year’s curriculum and learning for their children.
Support Group and Co-ops are busy with activities and
events; anticipation for a productive year is ahead. Extra-curricular
activities and interests are pursued. The average homeschool
family’s busy life has become much busier during
the fall and winter months.
As a homeschool leader, extra responsibilities and tasks
are added to your already full plates of managing your
own household and educating your own children. Without
proper planning and organization, many times homeschool
leaders find themselves stretched thin by the demands
of life, daily tasks, and additional pressures that arise
from being a leader within the homeschool community. At
times, leaders experience cycles of burnout. Sometimes
this burnout is a result of over-commitment and other
times it may simply be that the homeschool leader constantly
gives to their family and community to the neglect of
their own needs.
One mechanism to prevent homeschool burnout and to encourage
balance living is to establish methods of organization
and to arrange the priorities of your life. Even with
the best methods of organization in place, sometimes life
just happens and unexpected events can overturn the best
of planning. The writer of Proverbs gives insight: “The
mind of man plans his way, But the LORD directs his steps”
(Proverbs 16:9). A thorough plan, subject to the will
of God, can be a goal to look towards and provide stability
in the midst of the day to day busyness that comes from
educating your children at home.
Focus on Priorities
Every person is given 24 hours a day, 7 days a week to
manage. Within this slot, one must factor time for labor,
rest and leisure, study and worship. In order to be a
good steward of time and energy, establishing priorities
enables you to choose how much time and energy to devote
to each aspect of your life to maintain balance.
What balance am I speaking of? Certainly not the balance
of the juggler standing on a spinning top while tossing
up plates into the air and juggling them. As a homeschool
leader, you may identify with the juggler as you manage
the demands and responsibilities placed upon you; however,
the balance I am speaking of is a less precarious situation.
The balance to strive for is the spiritual equilibrium
and harmony that comes from living a life devoted to the
Lord and putting your faith in action as you minister
to the needs of your families and communities. Balance
is an emotional and psychological stability that characterizes
your life when the Lord orders your steps and you choose
to walk in them.
1) Devotion to God
Matthew 22: 36-39 (Deuteronomy 6:5) Teacher, which is
the great commandment in the Law?" And He said to
him, "'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 foremost commandment."
The second is like it, 'YOU SHALL LOVE YOUR NEIGHBOR AS
YOURSELF.'
First and foremost, devotion to God is the highest priority
in life. We are created as His workmanship for His glory.
Many times, due to busy schedules and pressures in life,
a lack of communal time with the Lord will result in life
becoming unbalanced. The Lord gives His people His indwelling
Holy Spirit, the Spirit of Truth (John 16:13; 1 John 4:6),
to guide according to His Word. When the equilibrium of
life becomes unbalanced, the Spirit of the Lord speaks
in that still small voice encouraging the return to spending
quiet time in devotion to Him each day.
Prayer and Devotion
Time spent with the Lord will bring life and blessing
into every aspect of life. Good leaders recognize Who
is their source of strength and will cling to the Lord.
A healthy practice to develop would be to schedule time
each day for prayer and devotion. Homeschool parents and
leaders can equip themselves to face the daily demands
by carving out time to focus on the Lord and seeking His
will and purpose. Times of family prayer and devotion
are beneficial and can be a good discipline to train your
children up in the Lord. In addition to family devotions,
parents and leaders have need of their own quiet time
in which to seek the Lord. It can be difficult at times
to carve out the needed space within the day for this
quiet time, especially for parents with babies and young
toddlers. For some parents, this quiet time is scheduled
before the children wake and the day begins. For others,
a block of time in the afternoon while young ones are
napping becomes a sanctuary of peace in the midst of a
busy day. Some may choose to use the quiet hours of the
evening to seek the Lord through prayer and devotion.
I would encourage you to find out what would work best
for you and the pattern of your family and commit to nurturing
your personal walk with the Lord. The rewards are priceless
and you will experience an added peace in your hectic
schedule.
Scripture Reading
Time spent in the reading and study of Scripture each
day is imperative to build and strengthen leaders in their
daily walks. Study of the Word will enable you to discern
truth from error and understand the Will of God. The Word
of God will also equip you to accomplish the tasks that
He has called you to complete as you build up your family
and serve as a leader in the homeschool community.
Worship
Time carved out for worshipping the Lord each day will
bring an added peace and pleasant environment into the
home. When the trials of life or pressure of life arises,
you may renew your strength from focusing on the goodness
of the Lord and the beauty of His holiness.
2) Dedication to family
Psalm 128:1-4 How blessed is everyone who fears the LORD,
who walks in His ways. When you shall eat of the fruit
of your hands, you will be happy and it will be well with
you. Your wife shall be like a fruitful vine within your
house, your children like olive plants around your table.
Behold, for thus shall the man be blessed Who fears the
LORD.
After Devotion to God, the next priority of a homeschool
leader that is needed to maintain a balanced life is dedication
to family.
Keeping an Orderly Household
In addition to the various homeschool leadership responsibilities
one may hold outside of the home, most leaders have the
daily routines of school schedules, meal planning and
preparation, household maintenance, piles of laundry,
everything else related to keeping a home. The mother,
who tries to accomplish this in her own strength and without
the assistance of other family members, is bound to end
up discouraged, frustrated and irritated, not to mention
exhausted. One of the best methods to maintain a proper
running household is to develop a daily schedule and delegation
of responsibilities for each family member. Posting this
schedule in a visible location and reviewing it frequently
as a family will encourage your spouse and children to
do their part at building an orderly family. An orderly
home life will encourage organized leadership for the
homeschool community. If you find yourself overwhelmed
by demands or harried by chaos or disorder, then you may
want to consider developing a more structured daily schedule.
A couple of months ago, our family checked out the old
version of “Cheaper by the Dozen” from our
local library and read excerpts of the book. We were delighted
and inspired at how this large family ran like clockwork
and in an orderly fashion. Over the past few years, we
have maintained a loose schedule and flexible environment
within our home. Our school days, meal times, and bed
times would be determined from day to day by the demands
of our schedule and needs of the day. This school term
we began to develop a structured schedule within our home
and we have found quite a bit of peace and productivity
through an established structure.
Cultivating the Marriage Relationship
After our relationship with the Lord, the most primary
relationship in our life is the relationship with our
spouse. More often that not, the pressures and responsibilities
of our families, households, careers, and daily life prevent
couples from spending the adequate one on one time needed
to cultivate the marriage relationship. When couples become
too busy to nurture one another’s needs whether
spiritually, emotionally or physically, the marriage relationship
can suffer. To ensure strong marriages, the husband and
wife must build a secure foundation upon the Lord and
His Word. Couples must pray together, study the Word together
and work together to train their children and establish
a godly heritage. Another good way to spend quality time
with your spouse and to cultivate the strength of the
marriage relationship is to plan special date nights each
month. Spending time with one another, talking and focusing
on one another will bring about a greater intimacy and
deeper communication.
Nurturing Family Time
As a homeschool leader, you may find that at times outside
activities will infringe upon time spent together as a
family. If we find ourselves spending more nights outside
of our home than within our home, it would be good to
reorganize our priorities and set aside quality family
time. Some families may find it beneficial to set aside
a weekly Family Night. This night could include board
games, special projects, and/or reading aloud books to
one another. What is most important is that you take the
time to love and talk to one another and encourage each
other in the Lord. These nights will become cherished
memories that you children will never forget and they
in turn will share them with their own children.
3) Healthy Disciplines for Living
Philippians 4:6-8 Be anxious for nothing, but in everything
by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your
requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which
surpasses all comprehension, will guard your hearts and
your minds in Christ Jesus. Finally, brethren, whatever
is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is right, whatever
is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is of good repute,
if there is any excellence and if anything worthy of praise,
dwell on these things.
In order to serve the Lord, your families, and to minister
to the needs of your homeschool communities as a leader,
you must take care of your health needs to ensure that
you have the fuel to make it through each day. It is possible
to develop small habits which will increase the health,
vitality and happiness that you experience in our daily
lives. Many times as homeschool leaders you will spend
vast amounts of time serving others and must be certain
to care for your own needs so that you may continue serving
others well.
Nutrition
As an educated leader, you understand the need for a healthy
diet to give your body the proper fuel for running properly.
In the busyness of your schedule, discipline yourself
so that you do not have to rely on unhealthy snacks or
junk foods to keep you going between meals. Keep a container
of fresh veggies and bottled water in the refrigerator
to grab when you are rushing out the door to meetings
or activities. As a leader, you will need the energy to
keep your body motivated. Encourage your family to practice
healthy habits as well. You may find it beneficial to
spend a few weeks on a nutrition unit study as a family
and learn ways to establish healthy disciplines within
your home environment.
Rest and Rejuvenation
The Lord created His people to labor for six days a week
and then enjoy a sabbatical of rest each week to spend
with their families in worship and study. The hectic demands
and schedules in daily life require a weekly sanctuary
of time in which to refocus and rejuvenate so that you
may have strength to soar through each new week. Many
homeschool leaders find it to be difficult to have adequate
times of rest and rejuvenation, but time off is necessary
to maintain balance in life. Obtaining adequate sleep
each day will give you the mental, emotional and physical
strength to face the opportunities and challenges that
you are presented.
Develop Mental and Emotional Strength
One can expect that trials, stresses, and burdens will
arise in life from time to time which can be difficult
to handle. Financial pressures, miscommunications in marriage,
difficult relationships with family, illnesses, and even
world events are just some of the stressors that could
impact our daily lives in a negative manner. Thankfully
the Lord, through His Spirit, has given believers a built-in
psychological coping strength to navigate through the
trials of life. The more that you study, reflect upon,
and internalize God’s Word, the more the Holy Spirit
will work mental and emotional strength in your life.
Although hardships will occur, you “can do all things
through Christ who strengthens” you (Philippians
4:13).
Living in the Balance
Matthew 6:33 "But seek first His kingdom and His
righteousness, and all these things will be added to you.”
In order to live a balanced life and accomplish all that
the Lord has called you to be in the many roles of your
life, as you focus on your personal relationship and devotion
the Lord, He will order your steps. As you desire to do
good and serve the needs of your family and your homeschool
community, may the Lord uphold you and cause your work
to prosper according to His will for His glory.
Sharra is the blessed wife of Michael and mother to Shaiya
and Briyah. They are a homeschool family living in Central
Indiana. Sharra operates the Heritage Academy cottage
school as well as an educational consultation ministry
for new homeschool families. Stop in and visit her blog
at: http://www.homeschoolblogger.com/SBadgley/.
She serves as the Indiana volunteer state coordinator
for The Old Schoolhouse Magazine. You can read about happenings
in Indiana at: http://www.homeschoolblogger.com/Indiana
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