The Old Schoolhouse Magazine

. . . We must
come into the full
realization of what
our choices are
doing to the next
generation.

the Word. They see such promise in his young face and watch his giftings unfold, even in their rudimentary stages.

Mom begins investing the lion’s share of her resources into this sphere called home. She develops her skills as a wife and mother. She learns to manage her growing household and, yes, her new, trimmed budget. Now, without the formidable eight-hour workday and ninety-minute commute, she suddenly finds substantial time to read her Bible and pray. Her relationships with other believers deepen. She gets to know her neighbors and begins to notice the needs of those in her extended sphere. Her life becomes driven by her goal of living out the kingdom of God and raising her young disciple, who will one day change the world.

This child is hugely and positively impacted by a mother and father who are actively and radically praying, working, nurturing, training, and getting their hands around every aspect of that baby’s life. It is beautiful to watch. These invested parents offer the kind of stuff that no daycare facility can emulate. Eternal purpose is unfolding before their eyes and the eyes of those who observe them.

First Corinthians 4: 2 urges, “Moreover it is required in stewards, that a man be found faithful.” The NIV offers this translation of that verse: “Now it is required that those who have been given a trust [sphere] must prove faithful.” We must not abandon our spheres! No one else can raise our children. No one can do it better than we can. We have been given this charge by Almighty God! What more can be said? Dare we pawn off this responsibility to some cheap replacement? Dare we settle for mediocre substitutes when we are the experts on our own children? What are we thinking, imagining that this holy task can be hired out to others? It is insanity.

After nearly thirty years of parenting,
it’s my strong conviction that a child’s
www.TheHomeschoolMagazine.com
unlimited potential can be unlocked by
the humble hands of a mother and father
who team up in this, their God-given
sphere. This is power: parents in their
very own home directing a little human
being into his highest purpose for life. 1

Denise Mira, author of No Ordinary
Child: Unlocking the Leader Within
Your Child, has been married to Gregory
for thirty-one years. They are the parents
of five sons. Denise has traveled extensive-
ly, both nationally and internationally,
inspiring change as she shares the message
God has given her for families. She would
love to have you visit her blog at www
. denisemira.com/blog.php, and she can
be reached at contact@denisemira.com.
Find her on Facebook and follow her on
Twitter!