The Past Two Years...

Over the summer our Imago Dei growth groups have been reading and discussing the book Spiritual Disciplines for the Christian Life by Donald Whitney.  It has been a rich time.  Tony and I have worked through this book before (a few times in fact).  At the end of the chapter on stewardship I found these words written under the bibliography section:

I praise God for his grace and faithfulness in answering my husband's prayer for his own faithful stewardship of both time and money.  In case you have difficulty ready his writing from the above picture, it reads:

2 yrs.

(1) family - spend time and share Gospel

(2) write

(3) preaching - keep it up

(4) giving lavishly

(5) plant a church in a major city

Two years ago, Imago Dei Church was officially launched in Raleigh (a long time dream come true!).  On September 11, 2011 we gathered outside of our home (where we had begun meeting earlier that summer) in East Millbrook Middle School Auditorium.  This Sunday, on September 8th, we will celebrate as a church family with corporate worship at the lake followed by, as we like to joke about, a "new covenant pig pickin'."  You can read more about this on the IDC blog here.  In fact, if you're in the area we'd love to have you join us!

Meanwhile, I would be quite amiss if I did not express our gratitude.  Thank you so much for your continued prayers for Imago Dei Church (including our family) as we seek to reach Raleigh, North Carolina and the ends of the earth for His name sake...

I thank my God in all my remembrance of you, always in every prayer of mine for you all making my prayer with joy, because of your partnership in the gospel from the first day until now. And I am sure of this, that he who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ.

(Philippians 1:3-6)

Another update in our lives worth mentioning a little about is our decision to homeschool for middle school...

 We still have three in elementary school and are very grateful to be zoned at an excellent school in the area.  It has been tremendous watching their growth over the past two years....

 Last year, James struggled in multiple ways at our public middle school.  He had some good teachers who had incredible demands on themselves.  He would often come home in a bad mood, completely unorganized and unable to fully express either what was going on at school or what the assignments were despite there being ample time in class to write them down!  This, as you can imagine (and perhaps relate to), was incredibly frustrating often leaving us clueless on how to help.  We discovered over the summer (with an official diagnosis very common for children with colorful pasts) that he, along with his sisters, struggle with attention deficits (either hyperactivity, in his case or with an inattentive version, as in the case of his sisters).  That, really, was not at all surprising.  In fact, it was quite liberating!  We now know more about our children and how to help them learn better!  These aren't "deficits", they are gifts.  As our doctor/friend says, basically and in somewhat of my own words, "God has given a gift of a fast brain.  You just need to learn how to use it!"  We have made incredible strides...

This summer was devoted to investigating and praying through what this school year would and should look like.  The last couple weeks of the summer, God made it abundantly clear as to what we needed to do.  First, when the burden was getting quite heavy, I called Angela to my room and shared what I was struggling with.  I told her, "Angela, I am struggling with the decision of whether we should take James out and homeschool him.  Of course, if we did that, we would also homeschool you.  What do you think about that idea?"  She looked intently at me with tears streaming down her face and said, "Mommy, I want you to homeschool me."  I gave her a hug and asked her to be praying.  Since that brief discussion, it has been like a physical weight has been lifted from her shoulders.  She was harboring a lot of anxiety towards the idea of facing middle school.

The next morning we drove to meet my parents halfway for a "kid swap."  Angela and Jana were headed to spend a few days with grandma and Aunt Amanda, as well as their baby cousins.  James was returning from a week with grandpa (a.k.a. PopPop).  He rode in the front seat home so we could talk while Joshua and Victoria watched a movie in the backseats.  I started our conversation much like I had with Angela earlier, "James, papa and I are praying about the decision of homeschooling you and Angela.  What are your thoughts on that?"  He pondered the question for a couple minutes before responding, "There are a lot of distractions at school which make it hard for me.  I think it would be easier for me to learn without those distractions.  I want you to homeschool me.  I also think it would be really hard for Angela."  Those two Friday and Saturday conversations pretty much answered the question for us.  However, on Sunday while worshipping with our Imago Dei family, the Lord poured out His grace and overwhelmed me with His peace.  The decision was clear: we needed to pull them out and homeschool them whatever that meant and however difficult it would be.  

Later at growth group while discussing Whitney's Spiritual Disciplines for the Christian Life, God continued His gift of peace and clarity.  As we talked about stewarding our time I became overwhelmed with the gracious gift of being a mother.  God has gifted us with a weighty honor and responsibility of teaching our children.  We missed nine years of James' life and seven years of Angela's life.  Those previous three years in the public school were necessary and fruitful.  They have made the transition to living in another country and culture easier.  Now it is time to have some move individualized time with them, particularly during a rough season in life: middle school!  Are you kidding me?!.  I'm not sure about you but that was not one of my more favorable times of life (ha ha).  

So, here we are, journeying through the homeschool experience...

 And let me just say that it has been exhausting!

But God is good.  His mercies are new every morning.  Great is his steadfast love toward us. He has allowed (and I know I will need more to survive, ha) some sweet time alone.  

Heavenly Father, help me steward my time wisely...

Come now, you who say, “Today or tomorrow we will go into such and such a town and spend a year there and trade and make a profit”—yet you do not know what tomorrow will bring. What is your life? For you are a mist that appears for a little time and then vanishes. Instead you ought to say, “If the Lord wills, we will live and do this or that.” As it is, you boast in your arrogance. All such boasting is evil. So whoever knows the right thing to do and fails to do it, for him it is sin.

James 4:13-17