Sometimes in the homeschool experience, we get so busy with lesson plans that we forget the bottom line. Or maybe we’ve never sat down and written a carefully thought out mission statement that expresses the heart of what we are trying to do.
But, it is worth the effort! Often, a mission statement can pull us back to center when we’ve strayed. It can encourage us during failure. It can help us hang on when the going gets tough.
Nineteen years ago when we were contemplating the beginning of our homeschool adventure, we chose Deuteronomy 6 as the verse that would guide us into this unknown territory and be the heart of our mission statement.
The actual word “Deuteronomy” in Hebrew literally means “The Words.” Here’s the back story. Moses is 120 years old and is addressing a new generation destined to possess the Promised Land. These people had survived the 40 years of wilderness wandering because their parents had not been faithful. Over and over Moses reminds them of the importance of obedience so they will not make the same errors that their parents made. Deuteronomy is a renewing of God’s covenant with Israel.
In chapter 6 we see that the home is to be a divine school:
“Hear, O Israel! The Lord is our God, the Lord is one! And you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your might. And these words, which I am commanding you today, shall be on your heart; and you shall teach them diligently to your sons and shall talk of them when you sit in your house and when you walk by the way and when you lie down and when you rise up.”
What a powerful command! We are to communicate early in the morning and the last thing at night. We are to share with our children while we sit at home, jog around the neighborhood, or ride in the car.
Moses expected more than, “Oh, by the way, one time our people wandered around the desert for awhile before we came here.” He did not want an occasional comment squeezed in between watering the donkey and fixing the roof. He was instructing the people to have a continual communication and celebration of the story of God’s mercy, goodness, and provision.
The really exciting thing, though, is that not only is this Israel’s story, it is our story. For years our country, our churches, our parents have been unfaithful because they did not remember.
As homeschoolers, we’ve been called out to pursue a different path. We’ve been called to conquer the Promised Land, not to continue wandering in the desert. We’ve been called to remember.
God was offering His people freedom from those that would enslave them. On this special day of July 4th, we celebrate another freedom from tyranny. God is all about freedom. We are to remember and teach our children.
Do you have a mission statement?
By Jeannette Webb with Aiming Higher Consultants (reposted with permission)