Philippians 1:1, 2

This letter is from Paul and Timothy, slaves of Christ Jesus.

I am writing to all of God's holy people in Philippi who belong to Christ Jesus, including the elders and deacons. May God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ give you grace and peace.

~Philippians 1:1, 2~

These are the first verses of my favorite book of the Bible. I read this book over and over to help re-focus my attention on other things besides life. As a homeschooling mom, it's easy to get our focus off of where it should be. That first verse usually convicts me every time I read it. “Slaves of Christ Jesus”. Would anyone use those words to describe me? Would I? Would He?

Let's take a look at what we so easily become focused on instead of Christ Jesus. As a veteran homeschooler, 16 years and counting, I can say I have found myself a slave to the teacher's guides of whatever curriculum I'm using...be it a big-name publisher, unit studies, online freebies, etc. It is not wrong to want the best for our children and, as the ones responsible for the moral and academic upbringing, it's easy to get caught up in the sometimes never-ending search for the perfect choices for our children.

I've learned over the years it's so very important to pray about our choices. We belong to Him and so do our kids, and He wouldn't want us to spend SO much time worrying about what we're using. If we're spending the majority of every day around the school books and going about our busy lives, we're not like Paul and Timothy being slaves to Jesus. We're slaves to our homeschool. We are meant to be His holy people devoted to serving Him and making disciples of our own kids. A tall order, I know. He won't have us do something without giving us a way to get it done. However, what that looks like for each family is very different from one to the next. It could change from each season of your homeschool journey, too.

The last verse mentions what our Heavenly Father wants to give us His grace and His peace. When we take a look at our school days are our choices part of that grace and peace? If not, we need to take a look at how to change that. Do we need to tweak it or dump it? What is most likely going to help us show our families and the world around us what being a “slave to Christ Jesus” looks like?

Dear Heavenly Father, I pray for those reading this devotional. I pray it would be a help to keep them mindful of You and what You want for their families. As we're feeling convicted or more confident of our choices, may we always feel your grace and peace...and know how to restore it.

In Your Son's Precious Name~ Amen