The Vine Academy is open

So starting tomorrow the public school kids are in school. I always use that time to reevaluate my decision to home school. I always look back and think is this where we need to be and want to be. Am I fulfilling God's purpose for our lives. Am I on the right track? Are the kids happy and where they need to be?
So I'm going to attempt to dissect those questions here.
When I think of last year and our homeschooling journey I am often reminded that I am blessed to be there to teach my daughter. She has learned to read way above her grade level. Her listening skills have exponentially exceeded. And she is most importantly learning to love Christ. She is growing in God and she is learning to show that love to others. Often reminding her momma that God's love should be shown to others.
But that's only part of what we have learned. Those are the intangible things that can't be measured. Those that don't understand homeschool  think that schooling is all that we do. So I'll touch on that. Tater can successfully skip count. We have worked on that for a long while and we have finally mastered it. Tater worked hard on that concept and I'm glad she mastered it. Tater also mastered her reading on a first grade level. She is now reading books on her own. In Bible studies Tater is able to recite, live, and speak her Bible verses. This is major for Tater. Not only her, but Jr Bug has learned his Bible verses. He is able to recite his Bible verses. These verses are not simple sentences but chunks of Scripture that speaks of how we should live, behave, and be disciples of God's word.
So now we are on to a new year. A new change, a new challenge. Tater is officially a 2nd grader. Jr Bug is now a preschooler. I have both of my little ones in school. Its daunting to me to have both of my littles in school. But I'm excited at the challenges it will hold. This is the year that we are going to use school books to teach. In years before, my Tater has learned using Google and my imagination. But this year and in years to come we are focusing on school books. This will be not because of a lack in my creativity but as she gets older she need the experience. Jr Bug still gets my creativity seeing as he is young. He will get my imagination for 3 more years. So I still get to have fun with him.
Am I doing God's will in homeschooling my children? That is often the question that I struggle. Doing His will over doing mine. I can cite Biblical scriptures that point me in homeschooling. Train up a child...Be not conformed to this world...Be ye not hearers of the Word, but doers also. But there is more that points me to homeschooling. I want my children to be so filled with Christ's love that no matter how many holes the world puts in their buckets they will NEVER run dry from His love. My job is to show them God's love on everything we learn about. Whether its learning about how God loves order and therefore math teaches us order. Where God loves us singing and saying His praise so we must learn our grammar so that we can eloquently wax His praises. Or something as simple as learning about how we fit on our community and how we can show God's love in the places that we live. I want to show them how GREAT God is. And all that He has created shouts His glory. This is why I homeschool. As important as the public schools are, they do not teach these things in the classrooms. They don't care for the grace of God. And I refuse to limit God to the weekend. He didn't limit me to the weekend and I REFUSE to do the same to Him. For all that He has given me I MUST give my children  back to Him. There is no choice in this. I must shape them to be ready to fight the battle for their souls. God has required that of me. And I will obey.
My homeschooling them is ultimately me teaching them to obey God's ultimate calling on their life. Am I willing, yes. Am I capable, yes. With God I can, am, and will be able. After all He is the vine and I am the branch. I can do all things in Him. Apart from Him I am nothing.
Thus with this...the Vine Academy is open for another school year.