What guidance does a Christian have for teaching their children?
“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. Deut 6:7-9
Let’s break this down
Vs 7: “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
How do
you teach your children? Diligently. In the original Hebrew the idea was to indoctrinate,
communicate, impart, instill, impress. These are all synonyms for inculcate
which is the English word used as a definition of the Hebrew “Shanan”.
When
do you teach your children? When you sit in your house; when you are out for a
walk, when you lie down and when you rise up. So, in our culture today you
would seek out times or appoint a time daily to sit with your children in your
home to teach them. This could be at the dinner table, in the living room, in a
classroom if you have that in your home. You would also teach them while you
were away from your home. Perhaps a matter of discussion on some thing you saw
while walking, jogging, driving, etc. If you take a vacation perhaps find some
particular place to visit while on vacation that visually helps your children
to comprehend what they are taught. Of course, bedtime is prayer time and upon
awakening praise time.
Vs 8: “You shall bind them as a sign on your hand,
and they shall be as frontlets between your eyes.
What
is the proximity of what you teach your children? For instance, how does one
‘bind’ your teachings on your hand, between your eyes? On the hands…your hands
are an integral part of your daily life. There are few times during activities
in a day your hands are not involved in the activity. Perhaps running, walking they
are at your side but they still participate in your balance and propulsion. Your
hands are so closely related to your eyes in accomplishing a task or action. Having
your teachings juxtaposed between your eyes clearly connotes your brain. Your
teachings, in other words, should be so firmly in their minds their hands will
only support those thoughts.
Vs 9: “You shall write them on the doorposts of
your house and on your gates.
Where do
you post your teachings? In today’s world, basically this is the conclusion to
the idea started in vs 7 and it clearly and literally supports, encapsulates
and protects your children. If you have taken the time to be consistent in when,
how, what, where, and why in the education of all things with your children
they will be completely adept and prepared for the life that will become their’s
once out in the world.
YOU must be the one to frame and develop not only
their knowledge but their character, their discernment, their common sense,
their ability to engage critical thinking and lastly their self-confidence. It fixes
them -- or as they say ‘anchors’ them, in reality and practicality with the
ability to critically and rationally respond to any and all things that may
crop up in their lives.
Another reason why YOU should be the one teaching
YOUR children.
And now this!
In a recent response to the massive closures of
public and private schools because of the CoVid-19 scare there was an article
written and circulated among educators entitled: “Please do a bad job of
putting your courses online”. I kid you not. [See the link below.] With a quick
glance at their rationale you will no doubt see what may strike you as
reasonable logic for such a subversive headline. But if you have an open mind
or are concerned about the agenda being promoted in the pre-K through the
entirety of the formal education system globally you may become very concerned
as to the tenacity of those who would want to teach YOUR children some of the
things THEY ought not those things YOU should be teaching and in some cases your
children should never be exposed to. Here is a sampling of why they wish to
subvert the online course promotion at this ‘emerging’ times of social
distancing.
https://anygoodthing.com/2020/03/12/please-do-a-bad-job-of-putting-your-courses-online/?fbclid=IwAR0RiJiX-E71rSYLmi3vSveZ9PkmBrrCPEsr7EAI4fH4RVT3ebTnlXKOd2Ehttps://anygoodthing.com/2020/03/12/please-do-a-bad-job-of-putting-your-courses-online/?fbclid=IwAR0RiJiX-E71rSYLmi3vSveZ9PkmBrrCPEsr7EAI4fH4RVT3ebTnlXKOd2E
Please read the article. In this next session the
responses in red are to the corresponding succession of bullet points under the
subheading “Remember the following as you move online:”
Response
to Reason 2: Limited data is a fair point so those whose
plans are limited would definitely be pleased if the course is direct with only
essentials. However, to the point of the student having more important things
to do online, what in the world would be the more important things a student at
any grade level would need at this time than access to their continuing
education? Knowing the penchant for gaming, socializing and online videos,
would it not be most constructive to load them up on educational materials to
keep their learning ongoing and cohesive?
Response
to Reason 3: Say what? What does this have to do with
the here and now and the 3-4 weeks off the students may be home due to school
closures? This is a concern both in the present and in the future. Frankly,
there are likely less students without computer access at home than with and
those without should be able to call a phone number and connect to voicemail directing
them to their assignment for the day. They can do the assignment and hand it in
when they return to school. But to suggest the teaching staff sabotage the
online course process for this reason is simply preposterous. Yet, this
rationale does suggest all the more their driving need to have that person to
person control of the minds of YOUR children.
Response
to Reason 4: The student may have siblings who need
access too, that is true. However, most families already have scheduled times
for kids to access the family computer and this would only require rethinking
and prioritizing that schedule.
Response
to Reason 8: Interesting item list. So, lets run this
theory out. Your child has a chronic illness and misses many days or weeks from
classroom instruction. Do they develop mental health problems because they fail
to gather at school daily? They may experience issues related to being
chronically ill and along with that missing their day to day interactions with
their friends. What kind of mental health problems do you think YOUR children
might experience being out of school for a few weeks? Could it be the ability
to begin to entertain new ideas? Engage their critical thinking and begin to
question what they have been taught regarding nonacademic issues? Isn’t really
that loss of control of the child’s programming SOCIAL and academic that is the
motivation for such a reason?
Response
to Reason 9: Really? Are the kids not socially isolated
all summer from the school? Did school aged children exist for hundreds of
years here in the US socially isolated? They spent arduous hours in classroom
instruction and then returned home to whatever the lifestyle of their
respective families lived and domestic violence was not the overarching result
of such ‘social isolation’. Socialization is and always should be the domain and
prerogative of the parents of the children. Academics is what the time spent in
school should be.
Response
to Reason 10: What, pray tell, does this ‘reason’ have
to do with not being able to go to school? Or for sabotaging the online experience
for the student by ‘doing a bad job of posting online courses’?
This following response is to the last bullet point in the article.
Response
to Reason 15: The remainder of the article is making
suggestions on what would be ‘proactive’ ways to do online courses. But ends
with this scary proposition: “Listen for them asking for help. They may
be anxious. They may be tired. Many students are returning to their parents’ home
where they may not be welcome. Others will be at home with partners who
are violent...” Granted, there are kids who live in
homes where dysfunction is the family culture and for them school is a place of
safety. And for them, safety means less tension, consistency, relaxing of
emotional stress, positive influence from staff and fellow students. Students away
at school fulltime returning to a home where the parents do not want them is
not the majority of those or any other students. Using this as an excuse seems
most preposterous. Teaching staff already know their kids and which of their
students are in unhealthy family environments. School psychologists and counselors
will have already worked to assuage this problem for those students.
What does this mean for YOU?
Please look at the counsel from Deuteronomy above
and remember that if you are providing a cohesive and socially sound loving
environment for your children then none of the statements made in this article
will be true in your case. But, what is in fact far more beneficial, if you
have your kids in the public or private school system the 3-4 week break will
be 3-4 weeks of time you can manage by reinforcing what you truly want to teach
your children in preparation for their life in the ever changing world.
Final Verses
Finally, as Christians, because we find GOD’s Word
to be ‘… a lamp to my feet And a light to my path’ shows us in combination
with instruction in Deuteronomy we are obliged to makes sure our kids
understand that they too hold their Bible as the authority on all things life. –Psa
119:105
“The meek will he guide in judgment: and the meek
will he teach his way.” – Psa 25.9
“Teach me good judgment and knowledge: for I
have believed thy commandments.” – Psa 119:66
As you interact with public/private school
officials listen carefully to the reasons they give for any and everything regarding
your children. Do not accept those things that do not support what you are
teaching your children. Take the opportunity to share the gospel. Explain that
you are required to teach your children as Jesus taught HIS followers and
commanded them to do for all time until HIS return. †
NOTICE: If you are feeling inclined or
feeling led to want Jesus as your Savior, your leader, your King, your source
of Peace and Joy but are feeling woefully inadequate, uninformed on how best to
get to know HIM, or find yourself at wit’s end because you believe yourself
trapped and in need of GOD, please know Jesus stands ready to welcome you with
HIS Holy Spirit. Believe these words: “16 For God so
loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever
believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life. “—John
3:16
“Repent therefore and be
converted, that your sins may be blotted out, so that times of refreshing may
come from the presence of the Lord, 20 and that He
may send [c]Jesus Christ, who was [d]preached
to you before, 21 whom heaven must receive until
the times of restoration of all things, which God has spoken by the
mouth of all His holy prophets since [e]the world began.” –
Acts 3:19-20
“Jesus answered and said to him, “Most
assuredly, I say to you, unless one is born [a]again, he cannot see
the kingdom of God.” 4 Nicodemus said to Him, “How can a man be born when
he is old? Can he enter a second time into his mother’s womb and be born?” 5 Jesus
answered, “Most assuredly, I say to you, unless one is born of water
and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God. 6 That which is
born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is
spirit. 7 Do not marvel that I said to you, ‘You must be born
again.’ 8 The wind blows where it wishes, and you hear the sound of
it, but cannot tell where it comes from and where it goes. So is everyone who
is born of the Spirit.” – John 3:3-8
If you need help, please feel free to leave a
comment and I will respond. †
