“And these words which I command you today shall be in your heart. You shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, when you walk by the way, when you lie down and when you rise up” (Deut. 6:6,7).
God thus commands His people to build up succeeding generations in knowledge, understanding, and wisdom of Him. To add another layer of living stones to the Holy Temple of His Church, thus edifying the body of believers and extending His kingdom and glory among the peoples of the earth.
In Deuteronomy 6:6,7 we see a description of potent education: formal teaching and also informal conversation. To a child’s ear, one without the other can come across as either quaint, nonsensical stories or groundless moralism. Thus, we are shown that education goes on all the time, in all settings. Parents are instructed not only to see to their children’s direct spiritual instruction, but must also show and explain to their children how to live day-to-day in the fear of the Lord.
At stake is nothing less than eternity for our children, as well as the future of the culture at large. Obedience brings blessings to individuals, families, communities, and even nations, whereas individual or cultural disobedience brings curses. It is no coincidence that the warnings against disobedience begin immediately in Deuteronomy after 6:6-9; in the Old Testament we see story after story of individual and communal victories or defeats, glories or devastation in accordance to obedience or disobedience. So established was the earthly kingdom of Israel, as well as its destruction.
The responsibility of preparing our children for Christian life in today’s world can seem overwhelming. However, as we are in Christ, He promises, “…My yoke is easy and My burden is light” (Mat. 11:30). When we approach our God-ordained responsibilities as parents with humility, dying to ourselves so that we may serve our children in obedience to our Father, we find the task of education to be light–even joyful. (Do we preach “cheerful obedience” to our kids, but begrudge teaching that math or English lesson when there are so many other things that need to be done?)
Individuals gifted in teaching truly love it. When they teach, they not only communicate a lesson, but also an attitude of joyful service. In their calling as teachers, they glorify God in their work and also enjoy serving Him.
A school, whether it is a home school or a day school, should have both aspects of education: the formal instruction and also the informal teaching of how to live out faith. If the process of learning itself is not joyful, if the relationship of teacher to student does not foster love, then the lessons will be little more than a series of joyless, pointless exercises.
A truly Christian school strives to produce graduates ready to shape their culture (at work, family, church, community, etc.) and to take their place in a Christian culture. At Deo Gloria we strive to intentionally glorify God not only in the lessons we teach, but in the very the process of learning, and in the relationships within our school. It is a training ground for the world, in which children learn the sweetness of fearing the Lord and loving one another through the little, daily tasks of life.
