Different Seasons of the Homeschooling Journey

   I recently had the joy of speaking at Teach Them Diligently in Ohio.  It was my first time to speak at a large convention, and I was humbled to be a part of what the Lord was doing there.  I so enjoyed the conversations I had with other parents who stopped by our booth, and I have spent a lot of time processing all the conversations and things I experienced.  I guess when people walk up to talk to a speaker they expect that they will receive encouragement from the speaker, but from the speaker's side of things I can say that I was so blessed by the people who stopped by our booth and encouraged my heart!

  I have been thinking about different kinds of mamas I observe regardless of the conference or convention I am at. I typically see a few different kinds of moms in attendance, and it has left me thinking about my own season of mothering and what I can do to encourage these mothers in varying seasons of the homeschooling journey.
  I met many moms at the TTD convention who were on the pre-homeschooling journey.  These mamas are young and preparing to embark on the homeschooling adventure.  They are new and just checking out homeschooling.  They may have one or two children and/or might be pregnant at the event.  Sometimes I sense a bit of shyness in some of these mamas as they are just getting their feet wet and have not yet jumped into the pool of homeschooling.  I love to encourage these moms not to get too stressed and to enjoy lots of time snuggling their babies, playing with their children and reading lots of good stories of virtue and truth.




  Moving on I also see young mamas who have only one or two students and often have a lot of zeal and excitement and incredibly high expectations of themselves.  These Mamas often are high achievers and can be pretty confident in their plans.  Oftentimes these young, stylish moms are at the  conventions having fun get-away weekends with their friends and staying up all night laughing and talking.  They can be very optimistic and are usually on the hunt to find just the RIGHT curriculum that will ensure their homeschool journey will be a complete success.
   I used to be the younger Mama attending conventions by myself too, but now my convention experiences tend to usually be ministry or family centered events during this season of life.  When I get a chance to talk to these mamas I like to remind them to "Seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness in their homeschools.  If we get our priorities out of order putting too much energy into creating Pinterest perfect school rooms and being over-achievers in our homeschooling, our families can be distracted from the most important area of family discipleship and training the character of our children.

  Then I also see the highly distracted moms at these conference/convention events.  There was an event I was a part of some time back where I saw many Mamas frantically running to many different booths seeking out extra curricular activities for their children.  At the same time I was standing there representing a booth focused on spiritual discipleship in the home.  There seemed to be far more interest in the extra curricular things than in family discipleship which made me so very sad.  Of course there is nothing wrong with extra curricular activities, but if we don't first set a family culture of seeking God in all things then the extra curricular busyness can easily turn into idols in our families.

  

  Another group of moms I see at the homeschool conventions are the older, more seasoned moms who have been at homeschooling for many years.  These mamas have often gained a lot of wisdom and seasoned perspective through their many years of self-sacrifice to their families.  These mothers often have a train of young people behind them and are sometimes more on the tired side of things than the enthusiastic side.
 These moms are in many cases juggling many seasons of life at once.  They often have older children they are launching into adulthood at the same time that they are in the thick of homeschooling other children and trying to keep up with busy little people.  I think the mamas in this category often feel tired.  Sometimes they are disappointed and weary with some of the ways life has turned out.  These mamas are working extremely hard and are often carrying a lot on their shoulders.

     This can be an emotional season of motherhood when a mother is watching her children grow up and leave her nest.  She realizes how fast time is passing and really just how little she really is in control of things.  It is easy as a new, young mom to think we can create our own reality and steer things in a certain direction, but as our children grow older we realize that the day comes when we have to let them grow up and trust the Lord to lead them as adults.  We have to relinquish control and love our adult children differently.  We have to love them by being available and praying for them.  I definitely fit this category age wise, and I'm moving closer and closer to that point where I will be launching my older children from my nest.  Seasons are changing, and sometimes change is hard as we can wish things could always stay the same.  My encouragement to mamas in this older, very stretched and busy season is to "Not grow weary in well doing."  I am saying that to myself as I share that encouragement with others.

  Sometimes I see older mamas growing apathetic and not being quite as intentional with the younger children just because they are understandably very tired.   It is important for us older mamas to finish well, so it is my prayer that the Lord will help me to press onward even when I feel tired and emotional with changing seasons.  His grace is sufficient, and it is through the hard things that we grow and can in turn bring glory to our Savior.
  Of course there are all kinds of homeschooling mamas in all different situations and seasons of life.  These observations are not meant to categorize all homeschool moms but are just a sampling of some of what I see as I attend these events.  My prayer is to be able to be aware of these different seasons and differing needs and offer encouragement and hope to mamas to fight the good fight, to run the course, and to give their best toward the ministry in their homes.  This homeschooling journey is not an easy calling, but we are privileged to be able to impact future generations for the glory of God.  We are not only raising our own children, but we are also raising our grandchildrens' parents.  May the Lord help us to grow and to be faithful.