Weekly Community Outreach Day in Our Homeschool!

The children prepare to take diapers, formula and other supplies to a new mom in need!

The upcoming fall season sparks all kinds of planning and organizational ideas from a homeschool mom! This is the time of year for planning extracurricular activities & school work schedules, choosing curricula, making clothing need lists, fall cleaning, etc., etc., etc.! Our family's homeschool and activity schedule changes each year. Because we school year-round, we have the opportunity to tweak and "re-tweak" our schdule just about any time during the year, but fall definitely calls for a overhaul of what we had planned over the summer or even from last school year. Here is our family's plan for the 2010-2011 school year!

The children reading one afternoon (very typical...as they all LOVE to read!)

Academic Studies

Our curricula vaires for each child's needs, but usually only from 6th grade upwards, as the foundation I lay for each child is consistent from K5 - 6th grade. Our curricula is located under the tab "Our Homeschool Tools". We do combine both history and science from pre-school through 6th grade, and each child is only required to retain what is required for their age. This works very well for our family, as they are all able to share their excitement with each other about the content, while retaining only that which is necessary for their age.

Extra-Curricular Activities

The children LOVE choosing their extracurricular activities for the school year. This year their MAJOR activity is the local 4H group. Here they will learn about multiple subjects, such as horses, farm animals, horticulture, aerospace, small engines, computers, entomology, entrepreneurship, sewing, cooking, citizenship, photography, theater arts, woodworking, babysitting, soil and water, wildlife, healthy lifestyles, career exploration and SO MUCH MORE! They are PUMPED about 4H....and so is mommy! Another activitiy in which all of our children (ages 5 & up) will be participating is in piano lessons.

Kaitlyn auditioned for and was chosen for the CHEA (Charlotte Home Educators Association) Choir, where she will learn music theory and vocal parts. The CHEA Choir desires to produce skilled musicians who seek to serve others and glorify God through singing. The choirs rehearse one afternoon each week and perform 2 joint concerts each year, one in the Fall and one in the Spring. The choir also does smaller concerts on their own at neighboring retirement communities and various community functions.

The boys will be studying robotics and working on projects through that class.

All the children will also randomly participate in homeschool clubs and a P.E. class at the area Recreation Center.

This year will be SO MUCH FUN!

Jake (and Julia) at an area abortion mill, ministering to moms

Weekly Community Outreach Day

This year, we plan on schooling 4 days a week and making Fridays our COMMUNITY OUTREACH DAY! We have really been doing it all summer (here and here and here), but are really just now starting to plan something more than what we've been doing.

We, as North Carolinian homeschoolers, have such freedom to conduct school as we see fit, as long as it complies with NC homeschool laws. Now, we are required to school 180 days each school year, to record attendance, keep immunization records on hand and to have our children take annual tests. Easy enough! We would test whether it was required or not, so we could tweak their education to improve their weaknesses and emphasize their strengths. We also EASILY meet the requirement to school 180 days each year, since we homeschool year-round. Schooling year-round prevents children from having that after summer brain freeze that most students have, so stopping to review is rarely needed. Since all our children are 1-2 years ahead of where they are required to be age-wise, it allows us the freedom to take days off when we can enjoy the outdoors OR donate our time to helping others - through community service!

Galatians 5:13 says, "You, my brothers, were called to be
free. But do not use your freedom to indulge the sinful nature;
rather, serve one another in love."

Just as the above verse says, we have the freedom in our method of homeschooling to do much. We could waste our time on selfish desires OR we could spend one day a week serving others in love. We have chosen to donate one day a week for the Lord's work....to serve others as He served others on earth!

Our Plan This Year

School will be "as usual" using the various chosen curricula Monday through Thursday. Because of our yearly schedule, we usually finish our seatwork (worksheets) by noon, as well as our history/science lessons. This frees our afternoons for reading, projects, outdoor explorations and fun...or chores that call for our attention and mastery! :)

Since our academic school work is completed by Thursday afternoon, each Friday morning we will spend the morning at our local abortion mill ministering to mothers who are either not aware of the truth of abortion or just feel alone, as if there is no other way out. We plan to show up and show Jesus and the truth and hope that He offers us all! This particular ministry is also our family's ministry, as we also serve this way on some Saturdays with Mark.

This particular community outreach fulfills these verses:

Psalm 82:3-4 "Defend the cause of the weak and fatherless; maintain the rights of the poor and oppressed. Rescue the weak and needy; deliver them from the hand of the wicked."

Proverbs 24:11-12 "Rescue those being led away to death; hold back those staggering toward slaughter. If you say, "But we knew nothing about this," does not he who weighs the heart perceive it? Does not he who guards your life know it? Will he not repay each person according to what he has done?"

We have been blessed to see babies saved this summer through this ministry, as we simply stood on the sidewalk praying, handing out literature and talking to these moms. Our children have benefited much (more here and here). They have learned to speak and sing publically on a microphone, to have compassion on those being led astray, etc. The list goes on and on...

After our ministry on Friday mornings, we will break for lunch and then either do another activity out in the community or go back home to work on a project. These projects and activities will include:

• Making Linus Blankets
• Purchasing and delivering baby supplies to moms in need
• Bell ringing for the Salvation Army
• Volunteer at a friend's mission service for Guatemalan orphans (helping organize local soccer clinics to raise money for the orphans)
• Canned Food drive donation - Collecting and Donating
• Picking up trash on the road or at parks
• Volunteering at the Operation Christmas Child Packing Center
• Assembling boxes for Operation Christmas Child
• Donate to Samaritan's Purse's Gift Catalog to save lives and end suffering around the world
• Tree/flower planting in the community
• Salvation Army Angel Tree collections and donations
• Angel Tree Prison Ministry collections and donations
• Toys for Tots collections and donations
• Making and deliverying cookies to the EMT, fire and police departments
• Writing letters and sending care packages to the military
• Making a schoolyard habitat in our yards for community beautification and science projects
• Donate Stuffed animals for emergencies
• Cards, cookies and songs to nursing home patients…between our family and the other family who plans on doing the same, we have enough kids to put on a program!
• Make table decorations for nursing homes
• Collect children’s books for children’s hospital
• Volunteer at JAARS
  

This list is just the beginning of our project ideas! If you have a community service idea that would work for families and multiple age groups, please do leave a comment, as our list is not complete!

Summary

We are very much looking forward to this year! ACADEMICALLY - Our plan is to learn above and beyond what is required academically, applying ourselves to our school work and to develop our strengths and improve on our weaknesses! EXTRACURRICULAR - Our plan is to participate in all activities to which we have committed, while making every opportunity to apply ourselves to learning the most we can from each activity. COMMUNITY OUTREACH - Our plan is serve our community for JESUS, remembering that we are witnesses for Him in all we do! 1 Peter 4:10 "Each one should use whatever gift he has received to serve others, faithfully administering God's grace in its various forms."

What do YOU have planned for this academic school year? Have you thought about adding regular community service outreach to your schedule?

Who's Afraid of the Big Bad Baby?

Reposted from August 2007

From Mary Pride's book, "The Way Home."

"What freedom do babies cost us? Do they interfere with our freedom to love and serve God? No; they interfere with our freedom to indulge in ‘the lustful desires of sinful human nature,’ as Peter puts it, ranging from common childhood selfishness to full-fledged adult depravity.”

“These men are springs without water and mists driven by a storm. Blackest darkness is reserved for them. For they mouth empty, boastful words, and, by appealing to the lustful desires of sinful human nature, they entice people who are just escaping from those who live in error. They promise them freedom, while they themselves are slaves of depravity – for a man is a slave to whatever has mastered him.” 2 Peter 2:17 – 19

“Babies tie us down only if our hearts are yearning to be elsewhere.”

“Perhaps God will give you the same number of children whether or not you coat yourself with sludge or sheath your husband in rubber. In that case, why go through the discomfort of contraception needlessly?”

As for world overpopulation and ZPG (zero growth population)…”Despite the congestion near the urbanized sea-coasts, most of the planet is still largely empty. As Felice points out, ‘We could put the entire world population in the state of Texas and each man, woman and child could be allotted 2,000 square feet [the average home ranges between 1,400 and 1,800 square feet] and the whole rest of the world would be empty.”

As for the provision necessary for a new baby in a home….”The Lord doesn’t give you a little lamb without giving you a pasture for him.”

“I won’t say that in a day like ours when evil is called good, and good evil, we won’t be persecuted for embracing motherhood wholeheartedly. But as Jesus said, ‘Rejoice in that day and leap for joy, because great is your reward in heaven. For that is how their fathers treated the prophets.’ Luke 6:22, 23. Now is the time to make the most of our opportunity to bear children for Christ…”

“Isaiah 8:11-15 says, “The Lord spoke to me with his strong hand upon me, warning me not to follow the way of this people. He said: ‘Do not call conspiracy everything that these people call conspiracy; do not fear what they fear, and do not dread it. The Lord Almighty is the one you are to regard as holy, he is the one you are to fear, he is the one you are to dread, and he will be a sanctuary; but for both houses of Israel he will be a stone that causes the men to stumble and a rock that makes them fall…Many of them will stumble; they will fall and be broken, they will be snared and captured.’ Why should we stumble at God’s teachings? Let us say like Isaiah, ‘Here am I, and the children the Lord has given me (Isa. 8:18). The Lord is the one worth fearing. The Lord is the only one worth dreading. Not snide neighbors. Not anti-baby activists. And definitely not babies.”

Family Banning and Planned Barrenhood

Reposted from August 2007

From the book by Mary Pride, “The Way Home.”

Creating the Unwanted Generation

“But into whose hands did God entrust the message that children are a blessing? The church. And who for the past thirty or forty years has been denying this very message by endorsing family planning? The church. And when the church came out in favor of family planning, it produced certain effects. Outside careers became truly possible for women…along with this came a decreased dependence on her husband, leading to marital stress…all because children are no longer considered a blessing.”

“As long as Christians maintain the same hedonistic lifestyles as the world, thereby showing that what really matters to us is our own comfort, our supposed concern for the unborn will appear either irrational or hypocritical. Only by living consistently can we make the kind of prophetic, authentic statement the world will hear.”

“The two methods Christians use to plan their families – (1) spacing and (2) limiting family size – both have one thing in common: they make a cutoff point on how many blessings a family is willing to accept. Can anyone find one single Bible verse that says that Christians should refuse God’s blessings? Children are unqualified blessing, according to the Bible. But the only way the world is ever going to know this is to see Christian couples who are willing to have and enjoy large families.”

“…All this talk about, ‘That’s all we want – just two (or four, or one)’ is incredibly discouraging for the already-born sons and daughters, who have to listen to their own parents explain how children (meaning them) are too much trouble to want more.”

“Spacing is an attempt to usurp God’s sovereignty by self-crafting one’s family…..By discarding. month after month, our opportunities for reproduction, we are not only limiting our family size but limiting God’s opportunities to choose the best children for us. God can, of course, override our attempts at birth control. But he much prefers to cooperate with us, and does not usually choose to beat us over the head with unwanted blessings.”

The Wanted Family

“…trust and obey...If God is willing to plan my family for me (and we Christian all do believe that God loves us and has a wonderful plan for our lives), then why should I muddle up his plan with MY IDEAS? Only God knows the future.”

“It is foolish to assume that because I am fertile today that I will be tomorrow.”

Evangelism Through Reproduction

“Let’s say that Christians are 20 percent of the U.S. population. If each Christian family had six children, and the humanists, feminists and others kept on having and average of one…then in twenty years there would sixty of us for every forty of them. In forty years 90 percent of American would be Christian! That is without outside evangelism. All we’d have to do would be to have children and raise them for Christ. Even if Christians were only 2 percent of the population (which I think is more accurate), then in two generations, at the reproduction rates I already mentioned, we would be over 40 percent of the population.”

“Among Planned Parenthood’s ‘examples of other proposed measures to reduce U.S. fertility’ are: ‘increased homosexuality; chronic economic depression; requiring women to work and providing few child-care facilities; compulsory abortion of out-of-wedlock pregnancies; compulsory sterilization of all who have two children – except for a few who would be allowed to have three; confining childbearing to only a limited number of adults; and stock-certificate type permits for children.’”

“What kind of example have we been? What kind of example will we be? Will we teach our daughters about woman’s role, about the dignity of bearing children, about God’s sovereignty over our bodies? Or will we assert the right the ‘right to control my body,’ that cornerstone of self-worshipping feminism? Will we humble ourselves, admitting that we have sinned? Will we pray and see God’s face? Will we turn form our wicked ways and embrace our role as willing, even joyous, mothers of children?”

Meeting the Needs for a Mom who Chose LIFE!

The Metzger children with the supplies for Baby Victoria

Our family has been so honored to be able to meet a precious little girl (now 2 months old) whose mother chose life for her, after encountering pro-lifers at a local abortion clinic. Because there were willing servants who sacrificed their time and comfort to offer help and support this mother, and who were brave enough to show her the horrible truth of abortion, little Victoria is with us today!

Amanda and Victoria

We first met Victoria at the abortion mill one day when we were out ministering to other mothers. Her mother had brought her by to encourage us to keep on doing what we were doing and to thank us for being out there. What a blessing that was for our family! We have never been the same since we were able to meet this little one!!

After meeting Amanda and Victoria, we wanted to put feet to our pro-life beliefs and back up our offers that we make to other mothers while counseling them to choose life. We and the Wilsons (close family friends who minister alongside us at the clinic) chipped in to buy some necesseties for them. Even though many would assume that Amanda and Victoria would be the blessed receivers of this "kindness", I have to tell you that we have received far more blessings and encouragement from being able to lend a hand like we have done through this donation! It is WE who are blessed!!

Remember, if you have not taken some real, consistent action by making yourself available to minister to moms at abortion facilities THIS is why we need to be out there! Don't put it off any longer. Lives are at stake. Women like Amanda just need to see that there are people willing to be there for them; they need to see the truth and see Jesus through our walk - not just our talk!

If you would like to help donate to our support of Amanda and other mothers like her, who have chosen LIFE over DEATH, please feel free to contact me by e-mail me about needed items or feel free to send money to be used for this particular part of this ministry. You can send me money through PayPal and/or reach me at this address: carolinametzgers@earthlink.net

Need Assistance for Mom who Chose Life for her Baby!

The children and I are taking over a HUGE load of diapers and formula for a mother who chose life for her little girl, Victoria (pictured above), who is now 2 months old. This mother could really use help and our resources are limited.

I am willing to buy her more diapers and formula and drive them across town to deliver them, but my funds are not ideal. If anyone would like to donate some money toward buying diapers or formula for this mother and baby, and put FEET to your pro-life beliefs, I'd be more than happy to accept some PayPal donations. Most people would rather forget the moms after they make the choice for life, but we want to show her Jesus and how He provides! I know...the internet can be a strange place, but most of your have followed our family's pro-life ministry and homeschool life. I hope that we can show this mother REGULARLY that we mean what we say when we offer up help and assistance to these moms faced with a life and death choice.

If interested, please send donations (with VICTORIA - the baby's name - in the subject line) to: carolinametzgers@earthlink.net

Thank you!

Baby #9 - 12 weeks old!

Turtle Fun...An Eastern Box Turtle makes for GREAT Homeschool Science!

Kaitlyn found this box turtle by the chicken coop today, so we "adopted" it for a day or two and are learning LOTS about south eastern box turtles. Check out our photos of "Timmy" and the links below for more turtle fun!

General Information on Box Turtles:
Document Your TURTLE...Science fun!
Citizen Science - Survey a Box Turtle
Eastern Box Turtle Information Sheet
Wikipedia on Box Turtles
North American Box Turtles
North Carolina's State Reptile!
Science Fair Projects on Turtles
Follow someone's box turtle project

Arts and Crafts:
Ornate Box Turtle Coloring page
Turtle Craft
Paper Mache Turtle Craft
Turtle Magnet

Care of Box Turtles:
Box Turtles as Pets
Box Turtle Care
Box Turtle Care on Healthy Pet

Books on Box Turtles:
North American Box Turtles: A Natural History (Animal Natural History Series)
The Box Turtle Manual
The Guide to Owning a Box Turtle

The Importance of Family Ministry

I know that most moms, especially ones of young children, are in a continually harried state of mind, most of the time, just trying to juggle meal planning, child-training, and laundry, but there is also a most important addition to that usual to-do list…family ministry!

Go Here to read the rest of my latest article on The Importance of Family Ministry on the devotional site, At the Well.

Children and the Dominion Mandate

Here is yet another CONVICTING CD from Vision Forum! It's amazing to learn how the West is not even reproducing itself! We will soon - in just a few generations time - be outnumbered by Muslims! Amazing and jaw dropping!!! This information cannot be missed by Christian couples! ~ Lisa Metzger

Click here to read more about this CD and/or to purchase it!

Do you desire to be a FRUITFUL VINE, as described in the Bible?

Reposted from April 7, 2008

"Your wife will be like a fruitful vine within your house; your children will be like olive shoots around your table." Psalm 128:3

Psalm 128 describes poetically a beautiful picture of a happy and blessed BIBLICAL family! However, many Christian women do not want to be "fruitful" and "within" their homes. Is your heart content to be where God wants you to be or do you long for the things of this world, which amount to nothing when all is said and done?

I, for one, want to be where God placed me, because that is where true contentment and happiness lies. God wants what's best for us! After all, He's our father and he desires to bless us when we obey. Will you take that step to surrender your life and WILL to God? It is a choice, as well as a calling. This calling, however, is to all women. No one is excluded. The choice is ours. We have a choice to obey and a choice to walk away from God's best and to spend or lives earning those earthly treasures and making ourselves happy. If only some of you precious women realized that the happiness you find when obeying God is BETTER than the happiness of this world. My heart breaks for those who will never come to that understanding! You are missing out on so many blessings! Your decisions have eternal consequences!

Mama Archer blogged about the olive tree and it’s little olive shoots on her blog. It is a precious illustration of that Bible verse in Psalm 128. Please click here to read her post.

• Please pray and meditate on what GOD wants you to do with your life!


• Does God want women to be homemakers who surrender their "right" to family planning to Him?


• If you believe that God does not want this control over our family planning, then what Scripture can you provide that says that we should have "control" over our fertility? There are none that I have seen at all! Many can twist the verses to make them what they want to say, but you must consider the original Hebrew/Greek AND the surrounding verses to really see and understand what the writer wanted to portray.


• Please, consider God's say on this very important subject before making a hasty decision based upon human wants and desires.

So-called "Legalists" Examined what Paul Had to Say? Was this a good thing?

Reposted from April 29, 2008

Acts 17:11 "Now the Bereans were of more noble character than the Thessalonians, for they received the message with great eagerness and examined the Scriptures every day to see if what Paul said was true."

[These were more noble] eugenesteroi. This literally means more noble by birth; descended from more illustrious ancestors. But here the word is used to denote a quality of mind and heart. They were more generous, liberal, and noble in their feelings; more disposed to inquire candidly into the truth of the doctrines advanced by Paul and Silas. It is always proof of a noble, liberal, and ingenuous disposition to be willing to examine into the truth of any doctrine presented.

[In that] Because.

[They received the word ...] They listened attentively and respectfully to the gospel. They did not reject and spurn it as unworthy of examination. This is the first particular in which they were more noble than those in Thessalonica.

[And searched the scriptures] That is, the Old Testament. The apostles always affirmed that the doctrines which they maintained respecting the Messiah were in accordance with the Jewish scriptures. The Bereans made diligent and earnest inquiry in respect to this, and were willing to ascertain the truth.

[Daily] Not only on the Sabbath, and in the synagogue, but they made it a daily employment. It is evident from this that they had the Scriptures; and this is one proof that Jewish families would, if possible, obtain the oracles of God.

[Whether those things were so] Whether the doctrines stated by Paul and Silas were in accordance with the Scriptures. The Old Testament they received as the standard of truth, and whatever could be shown to be in accordance with that, they received. On this verse we may remark:

(1) That it is proof of true nobleness and liberality of mind to be willing to examine the proofs of the truth of religion. What the friends of Christianity have had most cause to lament and regret is, that so many are unwilling to examine its claims; that they spurn it as unworthy of serious thought, and condemn it without hearing.

(2) The Scriptures should be examined daily. If we wish to arrive at the truth, they should be the object of constant study. That man has very little reason to expect that he will grow in knowledge and grace who does not peruse, with candor and with prayer, a portion of the Bible every day.

(3) The constant searching of the Scriptures is the best way to keep the mind from error. He who does not do it daily may expect to "be carried about with every wind of doctrine," and to have no settled opinions.

(4) The preaching of ministers should be examined by the Scriptures. Their doctrines are of no value unless they accord with the Bible. Every preacher should expect his doctrines to be examined in this way, and to be rejected if they are not in accordance with the Word of God. The church, in proportion to its increase in purity and knowledge, will feel this more and more; and it is an indication of advance in piety when people are increasingly disposed to examine everything by the Bible. How immensely important, then, is it that the young should be trained up to diligent habits of searching the Word of God. And how momentous is the obligation of parents, and of Sunday school teachers, to inculcate just views of the interpretation of the Bible, and to form the habits of the rising generation, so that they shall be disposed and enabled to examine every doctrine by the sacred oracles. The purity of the church depends on the extension of the spirit of the nobleminded Bereans, and that spirit is to be extended in a very considerable degree by the instrumentality of Sunday schools. (from Barnes' Notes)

Do we do this today, as Christians? Do we examine our teacher's and preacher's words to see if they are TRUE to what the Bible says? Generally, no. If we do, we tend to be labeled as legalists. How sad!

In the above verse it says that the people who DID hold Paul's teachings to Scripture were "of more noble character"! Wow! And why don't we want to be of more noble character, again? Ahhh, because the label we would earn is so negative.

If our attitude is one of obedience, rather than one of just following rules and regulations, then we are not legalists, but we are seeking to be holy as He is holy (1 Peter 1:16). Will we ever be holy on this earth? No. But shouldn't that be our goal? Yes. For THAT is what pleases God! I don't know about you, but that's what I want to do!

That said, think on this....

• What does the Bible say about controlling family size?

What does the Bible say about limiting the number of children God sends you?

What does the Bible say about birth control?

What does the Bible say about children being the ultimate of blessings?

Does your attitude toward accepting as many children as the Lord would send you align with Scripture?

Does your church's attitude toward accepting as many children as the Lord would send align with Scripture?

Does the attitude of most Christians accepting as many children as the Lord would send them align with Scripture?

That is pretty scary if we're believing what society and other Christians have to say regarding an eternal decision such as that. Nowhere in Scripture does it point that WE should be rejecting, preventing or withholding the blessings of children! In fact...all it says is that GOD controls the opening and closing of the womb! God was the one who was always said to have prevented children from being conceived! God was the one who was always said to have blessed people with the conception of a child!

Have you closed your womb to God? Can He overcome that closure? Yes. But generally, God works with the natural rules of science set in this world by Him. Are you preventing God from blessing you? Check Scripture on that (nothing else, JUST Scripture) and see where God stands on that subject.

Beautiful Quote by Florence Nightingale

"If I could give you information of my life, it would be to show how a woman of very ordinary ability has been led by God in strange and unaccustomed paths to do in His service what He has done in her. And if I could tell you all, you would see how God has done all, and I nothing. I have worked hard, very hard, that is all; and I have never refused God anything."

Florence Nightingale

She never refused God ANYTHING! Wow! That's what I want to do. My life is but a vapor. Why shouldn't it be devoted entirely to HIS PURPOSE for my life? To submit to Him is to surrender my body and my will for His Will!

One area I surrender is my womb. God never creates mistakes, so I will trust in Him to create eternal souls at His discretion. After all, who can know me better than my own Creator? I do not know what's best for me. Only God knows and so I will leave the creation of new little ones in my womb to God, and GOD ALONE!!!

Firefly Fun!

Be ADVENTUROUS this summer and explore the world of FIREFLIES! This activity is free and makes for GREAT family fun! Read about Firefly Fun HERE!

Large Family Scavenger Hunts!

Tips on keeping track of all the children, as well as great resources for having your own scavenger hunt! Read about Large Family Scavenger Hunts HERE!

Large Family Homeschooling Support

Do you ever feel a bit unusual because the size of your family so greatly outnumbers other homeschooling families you know? Do you wish for more support in homeschooling many, but have no one to brainstorm with on homeschooling solutions and ideas? Read the rest HERE...

Free Homeschool Classes!

Free homeschool classes for moms on The Homeschool Blogger HERE!

Looks like fun!

Should Children Be Salt and Light in Public School?

Studies have found that between 70-88 percent of teens who profess to be Christians are leaving their parent's faith by the time they are in their second year of college. Other studies have shown that 85 percent - the vast majority - of Christian teens do not hold a Biblical world view. Yes, there is the 12-30 percent who do graduate with their faith and beliefs intact, but Christians parents should not want to take that huge risk in light of God’s Word!

When taking into consideration the argument that children should be sent into the public schools to be salt and light, one needs to look a little closer at the passage from which this argument originates. Matthew 5:13-16 "You are the salt of the earth. But if the salt loses its saltiness, how can it be made salty again? It is no longer good for anything, except to be thrown out and trampled by men. You are the light of the world. A city on a hill cannot be hidden. Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before men, that they may see your good deeds and praise your Father in heaven."

In this particular section of the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus is telling Christians to be the salt of the earth, while also warning them that if they lose their saltiness, it will be gone forever. They will be thrown out (transliterated: "violently thrown out") and trampled on (transliterated: "rejected with disdain"). The section where it says, "loses its saltiness" is actually transliterated from the Greek as "being foolish" or "to act foolishly." Jesus, then, rhetorically asks how they can be made salty again, if they have lost that saltiness. Once they have lost their flavor, they will have forever lost their reputation for being salty and will be no further use in the furtherance of God’s Kingdom. All is lost.

If most Christians agree that the Bible never contradicts itself, then we should all be in agreement that we are completely able – though maybe not willing - to follow each and every command and heed all warnings given to us in Scripture. Deuteronomy 6:6-9 says, "These commandments that I give you today are to be upon your hearts. Impress them on your children. Talk about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up. Tie them as symbols on your hands and bind them on your foreheads. Write them on the doorframes of your houses and on your gates." We cannot obey this commandment if we send our children out to school, because we would be unable to be with them but for a fractional part of a day. If Scripture is in harmony and not in contradiction of itself, then God would require that both Matthew 5:13-16 and Deuteronomy 6:6-9 be used in conjunction with each other, instead of in conflict. Are we unable to minister as a family unit to others - still being salt and light - while teaching our children the Lord's commands while we sit at home, when we walk along the way, when we lie down, and when we get up? Why is there a need to let children go out on their own, with the tendency to be foolish or to lose their flavor, when there are wonderful and Scriptural alternatives to sending them out while they are still spiritually immature?

Just as my brother and I were salt and light in our family’s ministries when we were homeschooled as children, so are my nine homeschooled children. Instead of being sent out to minister to others on their own, without parental instruction and protection, they minister alongside my husband and I in various ways (pro-life ministry, witnessing, etc.). We are all called to the mission field. We are all called to be salt and light. However, in order to live out Deuteronomy 6:6-9, children should be salt and light with their families, so that the parents are able to teach, train and protect their children from losing their “saltiness” while still ministering to the world under our protection and guidance. We are to be in the world and not of it. We are to be teaching our children why we are not of this world; how and why to spiritually combat that which is of this world; and how and why to put feet on those beliefs! That real-life ministering under the parental guidance, as described in Deuteronomy 6:6-9, brings spiritual maturity not found within church pews or public school hallways. As Christian parents, we must live in this world while showing our children the WHAT and WHYs behind what we believe. Without that understanding and continual guidance, which cannot be done if children are out of the parents’ Biblical coaching and mentoring 5 days a week, they will leave home with a poor Biblical worldview. When we include them in learning the practicalities of living out the faith, we can actually observe our children living out their faith while we are guiding them in the world. After that period of initial training, we can watch them slowly head out into the world. That is when they can be salt and light on their own. But for now, under our guidance, while also being salt and light, is where they belong.

Another important consideration when using the salt and light argument to argue for the freedom to send children out under the godless instruction of another is the foolish propensity of children. If Proverbs speaks frequently about children being naturally foolish, why would we send our half-grown children out to be the salt and light without our consistent direction and instruction, which is spoken so highly of in that same book of the Bible? When they are able to be mature, stand their ground unceasingly, while eloquently and decisively defend their faith as in 1 Peter 3:15 - ("Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have."), then they are mature enough to be out on their own, consistently free of their childish folly warned about so often in Proverbs.

We must also consider and meditate about the meanings of the below verses in relation to sending our children to be under another’s instruction, guidance and mentorship for 7 to 8 hours, 5 days per week, 9 months per year.

Luke 6:39, 40 "Jesus said: "Can a blind man lead a blind man? Will they not both fall into a pit? A student is not above his teacher, but everyone who is fully trained will be like his teacher." Do I want my child to sit under a "spiritually blind" person for 8 hours a day? Do I want him to emulate that teacher and accept the godless curricula as normal and acceptable instruction? Maybe my child will come out of it as the 12-30% who are STRONG and STAND FIRM to the faith, but do I want to take the risk that he will not, especially after considering what Jesus stated about salt permanently losing its effectiveness? I take this warning very seriously.

Proverbs 22:15 "Foolishness is bound up in the heart of a child; The rod of discipline will remove it far from him." Some children are very responsible and sensitive to the Holy Spirit. These children would do well being salt and light at young ages, but how long might it take for that salt to start to lose its flavor? This verse clearly states that children are naturally prone to foolishness and giving into foolish things, albeit less and less as they spiritually mature. I do not want my children, as sweet and godly as they are, to give in to foolish temptations, lose their saltiness and maybe even determine that their faith is not “for them" at some point in their future. Until they show complete spiritual maturity, our children will be salt and light while under their parents’ instruction.

Jeremiah 10:2 "Learn not the way of the heathen."

Proverbs 13:20 "He who walks with the wise grows wise, but a companion of fools suffers harm."

Psalm 1:1 "Blessed is the man who does not walk in the counsel of the wicked or stand in the way of sinners or sit in the seat of mockers."

Our family has chosen to let Scripture live out harmoniously in our home. We allow our children to live out Matthew 5:13-16, being salt and light to a dying world, while Mark and I obey the command given to us in Deuteronomy 6:6-9, perpetually instructing our children of the ways of God. Our desire is to follow Job 23:11-12, "My feet have closely followed His steps; I have kept to His way without turning aside. I have not departed from the commands of His lips; I have treasured the words of His mouth more than my daily bread."

The Metzger Family...

Is it sinful to try to conceive more children?

Reposted from June 9, 2008

Since sometimes we struggle grasping the idea of children being gifts from God, here's another way to look at it. Assume you have a special hiding place where your husband habitually leaves sweet presents for you. Say, a little box on a shelf in your closet. One day, he finds that you screwed the box closed and then wrapped duct tape securely around it in your best efforts to keep him from putting any other gifts in there. He still COULD [put the gifts in the box] but he definitely got the message. He would get the impression that you obviously didn't like his previous gifts (if he had already given you any). So much so that you didn't want another one. If you had just gotten married and you both knew that he was PLANNING to put gifts in this little box and he found it in the above described way, he would probably be hurt that you didn't even want the first gift from him. "She doesn't think I can give her good gifts!" he would think to himself. However, how would he feel if you put that box right where he could see it, perhaps even leaving it open, eagerly waiting for his gift! YOU cannot put the gift there, but you can certainly do your best to remind him that you LOVE his gifts and are EAGERLY awaiting another one! Now, think of the husband as God and the special box as your womb.

Keep in mind that God is God and not a man who doesn't always get us. He knows what is best for us, He knows what we need, He is our provider, our protector, He gives us all that we need and never gives us something that would destroy us but gives us "every good gift".

Kelly Leinbach

Nancy Leigh Demoss - Have You TRULY Sought God's Will on Birth Control?

Reposted from July 9, 2008

"You probably pray and seek God's wisdom on many issues, but have you sought God's will regarding the size of your family? Who do you trust more with these type of decisions....God or you? Is Jesus Lord of EVERY area of your life?"

This week on Revive our Hearts with Nancy Leigh DeMoss they are doing a program on "A Full Quiver".

A Full Quiver Part 1

God's Provision for Children Part 2

You can read the transcript of the program, or you can listen. There is a "listen" button above the transcript on the right.

I know this tends to be a touchy subject for a lot of Christian couples, but I encourage you to listen to this interview conducted by Nancy Leigh Demoss. It is precious! No worries, nothing is shoved in your face, but it is very eye-opening to most women! :)

The Christian’s Duty to Love Children

Reposted from July 15, 2008
Taken from HERE!

It grips my heart with anguish every time…every time a professing Christian exhibits the opposite of God’s heart concerning children…the overt result of a world-conditioned-mind, rather than a mind that has sought to know the ways of God. “Shew me Thy ways, O Lord, teach me Thy paths.” This was the cry of David’s heart, a man after God’s own heart. Oh shouldn’t it be ours too!

Anyone with a large family (3 or more children) has experienced the comments, sometimes sheer curiosity, sometimes sheer ridicule. No matter the intention, the reactions of others reveal a thinking process that has so evolved from God’s original design for families, that His purpose is hardly acknowledged in the Christian community. While my heart does ache for the many of His people who have not accepted children as the blessing He meant for them in their own families, perhaps the greater grief comes from their refusal to embrace His design and support those who do. As I often ponder the negative reactions of Christians to large families, I keep hearing the words of Scripture, and I wonder on what authority they have based their religion. God’s Word is so explicit about God’s heart toward children. Consider the following and really ponder the meaning of these words:

“Lo, children are an heritage of the Lord: and the fruit of the womb is his reward.” Psalm 127:3

If I had an apple tree that bore only 1 or 2 apples, I would not consider that to be a healthy tree, or by any means one that was a “reward”. The “fruit of the womb” implies proliferation and an abundance of reproduction.

“As arrows are in the hand of a mighty man: so are children of the youth. Happy is the man that hath his quiver full of them:” Psalm 127 4, 5

If I were a warrior, I would certainly want more than an arrow or two in my quiver. The Bible says the man who has lots of children will be happy. That is such a different thought than the one given by most people today!

“Thy wife shall be as a fruitful vine by the sides of thine house: thy children like olive pants round about thy table. Behold, that thus shall the man be blessed that feareth the Lord.” Psalm 128:3, 4

Olive plants, fruitful vines--again the picture is fertility and abundant reproduction. This is considered a GOOD thing by the Lord!

“And did not he make them [husband and wife] one…and why one? Because he desires godly offspring.” Malachi 2:15

Yes, one of the main purposes of marriage is to produce children.

So, if I am a Christian, do I not desire to have the mind of Christ? Do I not ask with David, “Lord, teach me thy ways!”? And if so, what must my response be to those who have allowed God to be sovereign over the area of children in their lives? Can I uphold the name of Christ on one hand, and blaspheme his Word on the other? (“That the older women may teach the younger women to love their husbands and children…so that the word of God be not blasphemed.” Titus 2:4,5) If God said be fruitful and multiply, and have lots of children, why on earth are His people being criticized on this point by His own people?!

A further debate lies in the very invention, promotion and outcome of current birth control methods. God did not invent birth control; we did. And when we did, were we not saying, in essence: “God, when you created our bodies, you messed up. See, I am wise enough to know that I am not supposed to have a bunch of children. But you forgot to create a shut-off valve. So, in my superior wisdom, I must intervene and correct that which you failed to do.” You see, birth control and medicine are two opposite entities. Medicine is used for promoting health and life, a practice Jesus himself condoned. God did not create sickness and death, they are a result of sin. Birth control, on the other hand, is a preventer of life; it seeks to impair what was not broken. It takes a perfect creation, a normal function, and alters it to prevent it from functioning according to its design.

Birth control was first promoted by a radical, diabolical feminist named Margaret Sanger, who was determined to “release women from the bondage of motherhood”. She also believed that monogamy in marriage was ridiculous and thought women should be able to do what they wanted, when they wanted, and with whom they wanted. Well, she came a long way in accomplishing that purpose through the widely accepted use of artificial birth control methods. The rate of infidelity and divorce has soared since that time around 1960 (A tragedy that was predicted and strongly fought against by the church during the campaign of Sanger). (Another note about the birth control pill: most oral contraceptives have multiple strategies for preventing children, including an abortafacient method that sometimes allows conception, but prevents the fertilized embryo from attaching itself to the uterine wall, resulting in a spontaneous abortion unbeknownst to the mother.)

While it is not my intention to debate the moral ethics surrounding birth control, I felt compelled to share those few things in order to explain how far from God’s thinking we have gotten. It is not only normal but expected for a Christian to practice the above methods of child-prevention (Sanger’s idea). However, if a couple decides to believe what the Scriptures say, and accept the fruit of the womb as His reward (God’s idea), it is often treated as something akin to criminal activity. This bizarre, paradox running rampant right here in the church!

Regardless of your beliefs on the use of preventing children, if you are a believer, you cannot escape the truth about children written in God’s word. To offer anything other than support to the family not practicing birth control is anti-scriptural and is absolutely unfounded reasoning. Time or culture has not changed God’s word. He is the same yesterday, today and forever. He still loves children and so must we.

Should I have just one more child?

You will never regret having one more, but you may always regret having one less.

Can something be right for one and not be right for another, particularly concerning family planning?

Q. Can something be right for one and not be right for another concerning Biblical matters, particularly concerning whether or not to let God control the number of children He send you?

A. The belief system in which one thinks that something might be right for one person and wrong for another is called spiritual and/or moral relativism.

The definition of relativism is: A theory, especially in ethics or aesthetics, that conceptions of truth and moral values are not absolute but are relative to the persons or groups holding them.

Relativism is a very dangerous thought pattern that is fluent throughout our culture and now the Church. There are absolutes - in our culture through established laws, but especially in God's Word. The problem is that most Christians do not study intently on Scripture and truly search and search for their answers. The answers to our problems usually can be found in God's Word. One must be diligent in studying and applying Scripture, as well as questioning the traditions of others. The Bereans are an excellent example of listening to the opinion of others and then searching Scripture to see if it were so (Acts 17:11)!

"Having a clear faith, based on the creed of the church, is often labeled today as a fundamentalism....Whereas relativism, which is letting oneself be tossed and 'swept along by every wind of teaching,' looks like the only attitude acceptable to today's standards."

"We are moving toward a dictatorship of relativism which does not recognize anything as for certain and which has as its highest goal one's own ego and one's own desires." Pope Benedict XVI

Does the Bible say we must have a certain number of children, especially concerning having MANY children?

Q. Does the Bible say we must have a certain number of children, especially concerning having MANY children?

A. The Bible does not give numbers as to how many children we should have. If He had a magic number, all "quiverfull people" would each have "x" number of children, since we trust God solely for how many He sends us (note: most of us do not try to have as many children as we can...we just accept and receive as many as God sends us). However, everything in Scripture (check out Nancy Campbell's book, Be Fruitful and Multiply) does indicate very vocally (if one will truly study and look at the original Greek/Hebrew text) that God opens and closes the womb; sends children to increase territory; gives children as blessings, etc. Nancy's book really provides lots of Scripture that really opens eyes, if you really want to know God's truth on family planning...not solely a human opinion, but God's truth through Scripture.

My Helpers...well, some of them!

Our family is "big" on chore training. The Bible tells us that learning to work hard in ones youth is key to the growth and development of leaders. It is also very neat for all the members of the family to feel needed no matter how young they are. Yes, training is hard in the beginning and always takes tweaking, but overall it pays off, especially when they ASK to do chores! All the photos below are VOLUNTARY chores! Every one of them ASKED me to do them!

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Judah (19 months) helped Mommy vacuum!

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Making stewed tomatoes right from our garden (Trey, Ethan, Kaitlyn, Annalise) for winter chilis and soups! Mmmm!

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Annalise making spinach lasagna for Jake's 6th birthday

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"Work hard and become a leader; be lazy and never succeed."

Proverbs 12:24

"He who works his land will have abundant food, but he who chases fantasies lacks judgment."

Proverbs 12:11

"All hard work brings a profit, but mere talk leads only to poverty."

Proverbs 14:23

"Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for men, since you know that you will receive an inheritance from the Lord as a reward. It is the Lord Christ you are serving."

Colossians 3:22-24