Posted on 11/29/2008 9:02:43 AM PST by John Leland 1789
This Christian Home Schooling Family Says “NO!” to Obama’s Plans
We have home schooled our children from the very start, now almost twenty-seven years of home school education experience are behind us. We have seven children. Four are grown, graduated, and away. Two are married and have their own children. Three remain in our house and continue to be home schooled. Our youngest is seven years old.
We home school with a foundation of firm Christian and traditional family convictions and objectives. We intend for our children to mature and turn out in a certain way. We do not want them to turn out in the fashion of the godless and humanistic (Psalm One). We intend to raise and educate them to know Christ and His word. What’s more, we believe that we have God’s mandate on this, and the God-given rights and prerogatives to carry this out.
Some reading this have already begun to deny in your own mind that we do have such mandates, rights and prerogatives. Some so-called conservatives would even accuse my wife and me of some form of child abuse. Our children are in church every time there is a scheduled assembly as well as at other opportunities for Christian service. In fact, outside of the home (we believe in the primacy of the Christian home for our family), our family’s entire schedule revolves around Christian service through the church to which we belong. Our friends and our children’s friends are Christian people actively involved in the Lord’s work. Other than befriending others for the purpose of evangelizing them (that means delivering to them the Gospel of Jesus Christ) or for helping new believers to grow in grace and knowledge of Christ, we find no reason whatsoever to build any close relationships with others. We have a very large circle of Christian friends, and that is safe; that is enough.
We don’t have a television in our home. We have four computers and they are all designated to some aspect of ministry. If videos are viewed by our children on a computer, each video is approved by us their parents, and there must be a principled reason for viewing any video. If we listen to radio programs via the computer, they are likewise approved with principle. Our children do happen to select their own music, and they have always chosen Christian music (not contemporary “Christian” music) without any coercion on our part—it is a fruit of their upbringing and home school education.
No (as some of you are no doubt wondering), of the four children grown and gone, none have bolted from their training. All four are in some form of direct Christian service, full time. This is, however, not because Mom and Dad are so perfect, we are not. We made have made many errors along the way, sinned as sinners, been assured of forgiveness by the Blood of Christ and the mercies of God, and have gone on with God’s plan for our family. The success of our children’s upbringing thus far is wholly of the grace of God, Who has ever been faithful to His own word (the Bible), and proves it to those who have a heart for unquestioned obedience to Him.
We have never, never had knock-down-drag-out situations with rebellious young people in our own household. We have discovered in the raising of seven children that there are very simple Biblical principles that, when applied without compromise, will prevent children from following a rebellious streak. Four grown and gone and in the Lord’s service. One even-tempered, obedient, praying, Bible-loving, teenager at home. Two younger ones that would rather be any place with Mom, Dad, or other family members than any place else. They are not perfect; they are sinners who needed redemption from their sin like every other descendent of Adam. The grace of God—remember, what we have been blessed to have in our home is by the grace of God.
Now I ask, What in the universe would make us agree that our children should ever be subjected to plans the likes of Barak Obama’s plans. I am speaking of plans he has for young people to serve in any kind of government “service” corps?
We already know what the government schools are made of in our day, and we have kept our children from being so-called educated by the government. We know that the government schools have the prime objective to brainwash the nation’s young people in the doctrines of humanism, Darwin, the teacher’s unions, and UNESCO. We already know that the government system would like to convert our children to sex mania, Rock and Rap music, illegal drugs, the justification of abortion, desensitizing with regard to the wicked perversion of sodomy (the politically correct words are “homosexual” and “gay” ), and a love of ignorance.
The government schools would want my children to look like the filthy-mouthed weirdoes who slouch off the big yellow indoctrination wagon at our corner every weekday afternoon at three o’clock—baggy britches and briefs exposed. If any would argue that that is not the schools’ doing, but the parents, I would remind them that it is the parents of these slouches who were brainwashed in the same institution fifteen to twenty-five years previously. The parents were taught in the same kinds of schools that teenagers are supposed to be ungodly, irreverent, disrespectful, lazy, and stupid. We have not allowed such mental manipulation of our children.
We already know that the government schools are the training facilities of Marxist-socialists, The United Nations Organization, the radical environmentalist movement, the radical feminist movement, the sodomites, and the Communist Internationalle. Our children are well aware of these cancers. In our home the children read the Constitution, Washington, Jefferson, and the Federalists. They read books written prior to WWII on both Ulysses Grant and Robert E. Lee (“The Gray Fox”). My daughters have studied and been tested on (the book) Mrs. Robert E. Lee by Rose Mortimer Ellzey McDonald, Supervisor of Rural Schools, Clark County, Virginia (1939). Our children do their history compositions from The Christian Life and Character of the Civil Institutions of the United States (Benjamin F. Morris, 1863), and from the virtual library built by the Foundation for American Christian Education in Chesapeake, Virginia.
What would we expect any civilian service corps proposed by this Bible-ridiculing fellow, Barak Obama, to be in reality? Something like the Peace Corps? Well we have run into people from that cult, too, and we already know that there is no model there for our family. Like the United Nations Organization’s service outfits? We met these kinds of people in the Russian Pacific Maritime Region during our missionary activities there in the 1990s. Creepy, man, creepy! These are the spread the wealth, socialist minds, the government school mentality gone-wild.
What would my children be subjected to during training courses in Obama’s service corps? It would be all of the same nature of liberal, politically correct, humanistic, and Darwinian refuse from which we have worked so hard to protect them for almost three decades.
Some might say that if we have done such a “good job” with our children (It has been God’s grace, not our “good job”), then our children will not be damaged by Obamanesque indoctrination. I believe our young people would indeed withstand and reject Obama’s brainwashing if they were ever forced to participate.
Now can you imagine what would happen in Obama’s training facilities if my (or other) young people were to stand up for the Bible? Stand up for the Constitution for the united States (‘u’ in united left lower case for a Constitutional reason)? Stand up for traditional Christian American principles? Stand up against socialism? Stand up against humanism? Stand up against Sodomy? Stand against radical feminism? It would be war on our Christian young people.
We have taught our daughters the family, home, and womanhood principles of Titus chapter Two and other passages) in the Bible. Our daughters are raised to believe in marrying, bearing children, and remaining home to guide the house and rear the young. This is why our daughters do not consider enlisting in the Armed Forces. It is not unpatriotic. To the contrary, our daughters are taught to believe that raising the next generation of godly people is about the most patriotic thing they can do; it is the finest objective they can strive for except the Redemptive objective. Will not our nation need a godly generation to survive? Who will raise that generation? We can send troops to counter military threats, but what if the nation destroys itself from within? What if our nation fails to recover from its current wicked and anti-Christ condition? We need our godly women at home raising godly young people.
Imagine someone forcing women to leave their homes to participate in some government social program, who have been trained and reared to be keepers at home and guides of the house. In our case it would be a deep violation of conscience. Further, our Christian young women would be placing themselves in moral danger, and perhaps even in physical danger, if they stand up for truth, Christian womanhood, and the traditional Christian family, while being trained in an Obama camp.
And so, this Christian home schooling family says, “No!” We are not waiting for the proposals to pass Congress and be signed in to law. We are making sure that our convictions are reiterated again. We have established and published articles on our Christian convictions many times since 1980—this kind of stand is nothing new to us. We are sending these articles to all of our elected representatives, on the federal, state, and local levels. We recommend all Christian families (that is those who do have any genuine conscience and conviction remaining) to join us in saying “NO!” to Obama’s plans to pull American homes apart further by use of some kind of civilian service corps.
No, Mr. Obama, we will not go. We will not send our sons. We will not send our daughters. We will decide for ourselves the forms of public service in which our family members will participate. Mr. Obama, do not create more government hindrances to our private institutions and churches. Every hour you force a young person to participate in your socialistic schemes is one hour less they can be with their families, work at their church, or give to the efforts of a private charity. Mr. Obama, your socialistic ideas are wrong—very wrong! Count us out!
We already know that the government schools are the training facilities of Marxist-socialists,
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I agree with the above. Marxism is our nation’s most serious threat. Government schools are the Marxists’ **most** powerful and important weapon.
Truth.
Their children are already grown, (this article cites 27 years of raising children). I’ve heard too many parents excuse the trollop and punk behavior of their children with the “possible rebellion” excuse. We had the opposite experience with our son, who is a prime example of a “liberal” arts education. Democrat, politically correct, socialistic, which is the more frequent experience. - If I had it to do over, I’d homeschool even though there weren’t the curriculums available back then for homeschooling parents (a foreign concept back then).
Check out the movie “Swing Kids!”
Thirty-seven years ago, when our son started to school, we really didn’t have any exposure (or even knowledege of) homeschooling. I wouldn’t have known where to start with curriculum or anything. My husband’s father was on the school board and my in-laws would have had a cow if we’d veered one iota from “the program”. I think we, and the older people had some old timey, nostaligic idea of school, an idea that was long defunct as reality. In retrospect, my school experience in general was pretty destructive to the human psyche. Now, it’s worse.
I have great respect and admiration for you and your wife’s commitment to your children, to the Lord, and to society. I know it takes great inner strength to homeschool and raise a family in the ways of the Lord. I have 4 little men, 3 of them are homeschooled, and the 4th is only 3yrs old. It truly is the grace of God that carries me through day to day. I was a product of public school, all I can say is thank God for the transforming power of the Holy Ghost. My children will not step foot in a public school. I believe that it is a moral and spiritual death trap for the young. All their ways are contrary to the Word and Ways of God.
We homeschool as well, but here is how we live our lives.
We have a TV, but only for movies we approve... It’s not to say that television is inherintly evil - but much of what is on the major networks is trash.
And the good stuff - we could waste an entire weekend away watching the History Channel, Classic Sports, and so forth. So all in all, it’s just better not to have any kind of TV/Cable service - it’s better to socialize with one another than stare at the boob tube for hours on end like a bunch of zombies...
We don’t live our lives around a rigid Church schedule - rather, we live our lives around our faith, and attend Mass weekly and on days of obligation. We go to confession regularly, and more often than not we pray a decade of the Rosary on an nightly basis.
We befriend like minded people, but we also reach people where they are at, showing the Gospel by our lives and example more often than by preaching it.
And for all those who think our children will be social misfits or won’t know how to deal with others well - don’t worry, we’ll be sure to include such texts as “How to win friends and influence people” and other books by Drucker, Carnegie, etc, so that our children have great people, business, and negotiating skills..
And of course I’ll teach our children how to win the attention and affection of the opposite sex - and how to save sex not for the one they fall in love with, but for the one they will marry. We’ll also teach them how to avoid “ladies of perpetual discernment” - i.e., ladies who can’t commit to marriage because of an extensive discernment period.
Of course our sons won’t be perfect - but they won’t be lost either, and they’ll know what qualities to look for in spouses and friends.
Homeschooling isn’t for all, but in this current culture, it’s a necessity...
I am a non believer, but i LOVE these people!
Exactly what we need in the age of sheep. I for one find them inspirational and must do my part not to be beaten down by the enemy.
Thanks for writing.
We are in our 12th yr homeschooling. While I understand the wording for Obama’s service plan to be voluntary, I believe it very likely will become mandatory. Also, his whole education plan alarms me.
Like others have stated, we will do what is needed to protect our right to homeschool: even starting a private school, if necessary.
“We are in our 12th yr homeschooling. While I understand the wording for Obama’s service plan to be voluntary, I believe it very likely will become mandatory.”
The word “voluntary” is one of the biggest LIES in federal government vocabulary.
We will home school. We will NOT start a private school in order to home school. We will not let government set these standards for us, period.
“What I want to know is whether or not Obama considers volunteering at one’s church as community service.”
You should stop asking questions like this and determine in your mind and heart that neither Obama nor anyone else is going to tell you how to spend your time. Period!
Your question is acquiescent to the idea that the federal government has the right to establish a servvice program.
We will NEVER negotiate with the GOVERNMENT on whether our church service satisfies them for anything. Do you realize what road we are heading down when the GOVERNMENT evaluates the activities of your church, and the GOVERNMENT determines whether the church’s work serves its intersts ???!!!!
Please, please don’t surrender your mind and your conscience this way.
“Their children are already grown, (this article cites 27 years of raising children). “
One teenager, one twelve year-old, and one seven year-old are still at home. Four of the (total) seven are grown and gone. Two of the seven are married are married and have their own children.
Key: The eldest is 31 years old, the youngest is seven.
The eldest began kindergarden in 1982 and graduated from college around 2000 (I don’t remember at the moment).
The youngest was born on the mission field in 2001. And by the way, she reads on what the Indiana public schools would call a 9th grade level. ( But what we would say is, Indiana 9th graders are only reading on a 2nd Grade level!)
Did you even read my post?
I said that I have a problem with the public school forcing community service hours in order to graduate. I know that our local public school doesn’t even count volunteering at church as community service. So not only does the govt want my kids to do community service, but it is to fit their will and not ours.
“I said that I have a problem with the public school forcing community service hours in order to graduate. I know that our local public school doesn’t even count volunteering at church as community service. So not only does the govt want my kids to do community service, but it is to fit their will and not ours.”
We have given up on our public school system. We’ve opted to send our kids to private Christian schools. It’s better than trying to fight a losing battle with our district. Plus, we don’t want our kids exposed to all the problems with our public schools.
Yes. I read that some the children were still at home, but most were grown and gone. I still think allowing children to “experiment” just to insure they won’t “rebel” is a bad idea. It sounds like these people have used wisdom in raising their children in the “fear and admonition of the Lord”.
Good for you!
You have done your country a great service!
Saw that movie. Good one, too. Didn’t know about what those kids went thru but for the movie being published.
“I still think allowing children to “experiment” just to insure they won’t “rebel” is a bad idea.”
This is one of the lessons of Genesis chapters 2 and 3. One of the reasons partaking of the fruit of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil was rebellion against God was, that God expected them to learn the distinctions between good and evil, right from wrong, sin from righteousness from Him and His words to them.
Allowing children to experiment with “alternative” truth, and “alternative” friends, and “alternative” behavior is in reality teaching them that God’s word is insuffiecient for them as the source of truth.
God’s word is the complete, adequate, and sufficient source from which to know the distinctions, and thus guard us from spiritual and moral failure.
It is not not necessary to experiment with sin or ungodly people in order to know what wickedness and rebellion are. It is only necessary to believe what God Himself said about these things. Then obedience brings continued blessings from Him.
God has already told us clearly where we should not walk, sit, or stand. — Psalm 1, the entire Book of Proverbs, and hundreds of other passages.
Everyone should see that movie...especially now. It’s called: Swing Kids with Barbara Hershey and Christian Bale. It happened and could happen again.
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