Homeschool Resource Guide

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From Despair to Dancing

by Kay Bindrim

We run our school year from June to March because we like to be out in the spring. So as I write this, the new school year is looming on the horizon. With a newborn, a consistent lack of sleep for several months and everything falling behind because of that, I was in desperate need of some time with the Lord this morning. Here is an account from my journal of how God refreshed my heart and changed my perspective:

Good Morning, Lord! Oh, I hear the baby starting to cry. I’ll be back . . .

Ok, diapers are changed. Little ones are dressed and fed. One child is in the tub and one is unloading the dishwasher. Whew. I don’t know how much time I have so I will get to the heart of the matter. I am tired and in need of some perspective. I have three weeks until our new school year starts. The house is in desperate need of attention. Spring cleaning and decluttering projects have gone by the wayside with the arrival of our newest blessing. The new curriculum is piled up and begging for a home, but I’ve yet to go through last year’s stuff to make room. The blank plan book stares at me every time I walk in the den. The thought of schooling a junior high child while starting one in kindergarten poses challenges.

"Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For My yoke is easy and My burden is light." Matthew 11:28-30

Rest! Yes, that’s what I need. The 3:00 a.m. feedings and lack of sleep are not helping. Being forty and having a three month-old was not what I envisioned when we started this homeschooling journey. I am feeling my age these days! (A deep sigh goes up from my heart.) But sleep is not the kind of rest you are talking about. Oh Lord, there are days I feel like I am not equipped to do this anymore. But in my heart, I know that is not true.

The truth is if I come to You, You will gently restore my weary soul. Your yoke is easy and your burden is light. If I feel a heavy yoke, perhaps it is because I am taking on the wrong yoke. Consequently, if I fill my days with the work You have designed for me (Ephesians 2:10), the yoke is easy. My burden is lightened when I remember You will not entrust me with responsibilities then leave me unequipped to handle them.

You say "come to Me" and promise rest for my soul when I do. If I feel weary, it is a signal to my heart that I simply need to come to You. A mother with a newborn doesn’t always get the luxury of an extended quiet time, but if I turn my heart to you in those brief, quiet moments of the day, You will bestow rest and a new perspective. That is a promise.

With a new perspective, I see that I am overwhelmed with blessings and not with housework. I am overwhelmed with Your goodness in giving me children and the privilege to teach them. I am overwhelmed with Your love. This is a season I want to embrace—with all its challenges and with all its joys. There will be time to declutter. There will be time to clean. But now is the time to love, to instill, to play, to learn, to shape and to mold.

Well, my time is up. The four year old is trying to dance with the baby, but instead of telling him to stop, I think I’ll go join them.

Kay and her husband, Tommy, have five children and began homeschooling in 2000. They operate Bindrim Testing and Educational Services and have served on the executive committee of their local support group and the NCHE Board. They enjoy encouraging other homeschool families.
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