Tuesday, August 26, 2008

Vision

Do you remember Alice? No, not the one that worked at Mel’s Diner. I’m talking about the little girl that fell into the rabbit hole in Lewis Carrols’ most famous story. Okay, if you’re like me then you probably don’t know much about it because we’re males and we don’t read stories like that. But maybe you saw the Disney movie. Either way, I have heard that somewhere in the story Alice has a short, although profound, dialogue with a large smiling cat. It went like this…

Alice: Would you tell me, please, which way I ought to go from here?

The Cat: That depends a good deal on where you want to get to.

Alice: I don't much care where.

The Cat: Then it doesn't much matter which way you go.

The Cat is right, and is not just speaking to Alice but to you and I as well. As fathers, God has given to us the humbling privilege to lead our homes and our homeschools. He has placed in our hands the duty to direct and disciple our wives and our children.

So where am I going? Actually, the question is much more specific than that. It is Alice’s question. At the beginning of this new “school year” which way should I go? We must all ask ourselves this question. The answer is one of vision. It does indeed depend a good deal on where I want to get to but, more than that, it depends on where does God want my wife and children “to get to”? What is His vision for my family? Have I sought it out? I must ask all of these questions of myself, as must you. In the midst of asking and answering these questions I find many wonderful truths.

The first is that God does have a plan, a vision, for my family. I don’t have to make this stuff up and try to lead my family by my own wisdom and ingenuity. This truth is wonderfully reassuring for if it were up to me my family would be falling into large holes like that poor little girl!

Second, it is God’s vision for my family. In other words, God’s vision is different for every family. Every family is unique, each one has different needs. We do not all need to look alike. There is a wondrous beauty in this because then we do not have to judge ourselves by what other families are doing. Usually all that comparing ourselves with others will bring us is a lot of condemnation. But God’s vision for your family is different than His vision for my family and from the Johnsons down the street.

So how do we get this vision and begin to implement it in our homes? I have found a few steps helpful in my journey.

Begin by seeking God for a family vision statement. For what reason does your family exist? Your family was ordained from all eternity by the perfect and all-wise counsel of God. He had a purpose in creating it, so what is that purpose? A vision statement will help you to clarify what it is you are striving for. To give you an example, my family’s vision statement is, “The Churchill’s are a family striving together to live as the people of God, through the instruction of the Word of God, for many generations.” I have heard vision statements that are much briefer than this, and others that are much more detailed. Some families simply use a Bible verse that is very meaningful to them. Again, it is what works for you, and it is God’s vision for your family.

Next, seek out what your short term goals are for each member of your family in light of this vision. Ask yourself, “What are the spiritual goals I want my children to attain this school year?” “What are the academic goals?” Each answer will be unique to your child, but it gives you something to measure their growth by and helps you to know if they are growing in the way God wants them to. In my home the academics is merely one of many ways of developing the spiritual goals. We teach what we teach in order to develop their character and to help them to grow in the grace and knowledge of Jesus Christ.

And most important, establish a time that the family gets together to worship God and learn from His Word. For my family we do a devotional and read from God’s Word at the dinner table. Then we discuss what we have read and attempt to apply it to what we learned throughout the day (whether during homeschool or at work). This seems to be what works best for us, yet I have been with many families as they worship God, and every one of them is different. The point though, is that each of them set aside a time to learn God’s truths together and to honor Him as a family unit.

These are three steps that have helped me in this great privilege of leading my family. I hope they are helpful to you. Just remember, God loves you and your family, and gave you everyone in your family out of His’ perfectly wise and loving counsel! Praise God!

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