Every day I wake up and the world feels a little more intense than the day before.
Anyone else?
I can’t say this with 100% certainty, but I do think we are in the midst of a shift of some sort that is going to transform our world in ways that will make many of us uncomfortable or afraid.
I don’t think the pandemic and the social unrest in the US is something that is going to just be an event to be weathered, and then we will slowly slide back into the normalcy of before, as if nothing happened.
I don’t say this to be negative, but rather because I think we have to be mindful of how we define success. How do we define a good life? As parents, how do we define what it means to raise kids who are ready for the world?
All of this has been on my mind a LOT.
This is the first year for many of us to have our kids at home full time, rather than in school. I know this is fraught with complexities for so many families, and the inequities and difficulties that some kids are facing is nothing short of gut-wrenching.
That’s why I think we need a new definition of “education” during this season. At least in this family.
As I see the world, I am less concerned with keeping my kids up to speed on societally dictated norms of standardized testing and education that has been formulated to achieve some kind of set of life goals that may or may not fit my kids’ wiring (I have one in particular who is very likely ending up in the trades, and not going to be cracking a lot of books after he’s graduated high school. I could be wrong. We will have to wait and see!)
As I see the world, I see a place where the most CRUCIAL things I want my kids to bring into adulthood are these things:
- The ability to think critically about all kinds of things
- The ability to be fearlessly engaged with all kinds of people, because us & them is anti-Jesus
- The ability to apologize when they are wrong
- The ability to change perspectives & ruthlessly seek wisdom
- The ability to be creative and adaptable when presented with a challenge
- The ability to see a problem and take action
- The ability to be still and sit with their own thoughts and feelings
- The ability to appreciate the natural world
- The ability to do what’s right even when people make fun of them
- The ability to see the Image of God in the people who are most unlike them
- The ability to connect with God in a way that is organic and pervasive in all of life
I want my kids to know they are dearly loved by God our Father & Creator, and that they have been made on purpose. I want them to be confident in how God has made them to be, and to know that they don’t have to fit inside anyone else’s box, because creativity and innovation bring about the kind of redemptive and restorative change in the world that we’ve been designed for.
In short, I want this to be a year that expands the capacity of our souls.
It’s been said that EQ (Emotional Intelligence) is actually a far higher predictor of success than a tightly honed set of skills.
I’m choosing to work from the philosophy that if these kids know how to receive love and give love, whatever skills they need to be “successful” adults will be added to them at the right times. Kind of like the verse “Seek first the Kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these other things will be added to you”. What is the Kingdom of God? Its wherever God is ruling and reigning. I want the the love of God to rule and reign in their lives.
And I want to trust that if we focus on those main things, the knowledge and the skills necessary for life will be integrated into them at just the right times.
This is not a plea for passivity; I don't plan on ditching the schoolwork for the year. Rather, this is just a reminder to keep the main things the main things; Grow in love and grace and maybe we can see a bunch of kids transformed into resilient people who are ready to change an increasingly difficult world.
I hope this encourages you. School at home is hard. You are not alone. God loves you and your kids more than you can imagine!