Teach Them!

"She opens her mouth in wisdom, and the teaching of kindness is on her tongue" Proverbs 31:26 NASB

Teaching has inevitably been on my mind in recent days due to the "call" and privilege I have been given by the Lord to home school our ten-year old daughter. This journey to home school began while I was exploring options for Naomi, our four-year old, for Kindergarten, and, when it became abundantly clear that going to public school would be a grave disservice to her, and the private school we have her in for preschool has received less-than-glowing reviews in the Kindergarten class, I reverted back to a thought I had months ago, "perhaps I am supposed to home school her". This same evening while praying before bed, the Lord impressed upon my heart Romans 11 (especially verse 17), "you, though a wild olive shoot, have been grafted in among the others and now share in the nourishing sap from the olive root" and how this applies to my step-daughter.
The God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, the God of Israel, has grafted me, a sinner and a Gentile, into the Olive Tree, into His eternal plan, and He has permitted me to "share in the nourishing sap" of that tree that was intended for His Chosen Nation, Israel. I have NEVER grafted Gitzel into our family tree. She has always been an after-thought, a side-issue and someone who I looked forward to making travel arrangements for every three months (Easter, Christmas and Summer break - Baby!). The Lord was calling (and convicting, be sure of it) me to graft her in and do for her what I would (and planned on doing) do for my own children - bring her home and teach her!
Because of her academic, behavioral and social problems, of course, my initial goal was to bring her home to teach her the fundamentals of academics, with some scripture and biblical principals sprinkled in here and there. This "experiment" to me was to endeavor to "catch her up" to grade level standards, but God's intention was to give her, "a future and a hope" because the call on our lives to "train up a child in the way he should go" (Proverbs 22:6a), is not about reading, writing and math, but lessons of life, faith, love and so much more. We are called to teach them the fear of the Lord (psalm 34:11). We are called to make biblical principals a part of every day life and to teach them the gospel and story of our Lord Jesus Christ so that they first will receive it into their own hearts and profess faith in Him, and then, so that they will preach it in their families, schools (where applicable), teams, groups and anywhere else we send them. Now, I realize that we are not all "called" to home school our children, in the traditional sense, but we are all, as mothers, called to teach our children, and fill in the gaps where the world, public or private, fails and flounders. It is our job to give them a firm foundation, to give them the tools necessary that they may find their feet planted firmly upon the Rock of Jesus Christ, so that when floods and storms come into their lives, they do not waiver, they do not flail, but "when they are old, they do not depart" (Proverbs 22:6b).
So, when this "mother" in verse 26 of Proverbs 31, opens her mouth in wisdom, chokmah in Hebrew, she opens her mouth with godly wisdom. This is not wisdom that the world gives. This word is used to describe the kind of wisdom Solomon received when he asked the Lord for wisdom. It is ascribed to men and women like: Aaron, upon entering the promise land; Hannah, as she implored the Lord for her son; Job, Isaiah and Daniel at various times in theirs lives. It means, wisdom (in administration), shrewdness and prudence in faith. How can the world ever teach this to our dear children? They cannot, it is our job! And it is our job to do it in kindness, gentleness and faithfulness (Proverbs 31:26b).
So back to my specific call. Gitzel has annoyed and irritated just about every adult she has spent more than 1 day with. It isn't' mean, it is true. She is a sweet, gentle, forgiving and resilient girl who is over-bearing, over-eager and full of less-than-necessary comments and "questions" that rub just about everyone the wrong way. This is, primarily, why everyone thought I was "crazy" to bring her home and attach her to my hip! But God, in His wisdom, reminded me of the great and wonderful qualities she possesses. As I already said, she is sweet, forgiving and resilient. She sulks and shuts-down when she is harshly disciplined, how much more does the "law of kindness on [my] tongue" need to be evident every day, in every lesson? How much more will, "pleasant words [be as] a honeycomb, sweet to [her] soul, and health to [her] bones" (Proverbs 16:24), than ever perhaps my own children who are less emotional and sensitive?
So, we teach! We teach the fear of the Lord. We teach wisdom, discretion, self-control and all the fruits of the Spirit (Galatians 5:22). We teach manners and life-skills and we either supplement what our children learn in school to ensure that they are well-rounded young men and women, or we teach them utterly and completely if God has called us to that, but we must teach them! It is our call, and it is our call to do it in kindness. The Word of God promises that, "the wise in heart will be called prudent and sweetness of the lips increases learning" (Proverbs 16:20). If He has called you to be a mother, He has called you to be a teacher, and if He has called you to be a teacher, He will equip you to do it! Pray and ask Him to show you how if you don't already have a clear vision. A year ago I saw none of this on my horizon, and I certainly didn't faithfully apply these verses to my mothering check lists (especially not for Gitzel), but God is faithful, and He will do it!