This morning while I was washing my face I happened to glance up to the top of the mirror. My dad had tacked a small scrap of paper, as he often does to remind himself of something, reading Family write book. Since my father wakes up earlier than the rest of us to go to work, he often writes instruction and vision for his family, mostly my brother, to read. It’s encouraging to have a father who’s not so brainwashed to think in a box regarding his family working together! For some girls this might seem like more rules to bind them, but for me, that is the most exciting thing! And I have made his vision my own.
You see, when a father catches a vision it reforms his whole family. From the time I was born, my parents knew that they would homeschool me and any more children they might have. Granted, the vision has grown enormously since that first decision, but they understood the dangers of sending me to the world’s school. But homeschooling isn’t an end in itself. Just teaching us the same things taught in the schools today won’t help. Something more drastic must be done or we will continue to lose 80% of our children like the average evangelical family. My parents had a vision for discipleship: every hour of the day. Not only did they remove us children from the schools, but they removed us from the Sunday schools as well to learn alongside them in church. “What about socialization?” you might ask. Are you kidding? Do you think that being with peers of your own age (and gender for that matter) for the majority of the week helps you relate to a world of different ages, genders, and cultures? Instead they encourage us to talk with both the adults and the children of our church. In fact, some of my best friends outside my family (my family are my “best” friends of all) are the older girls and women of the church. Am I saying all this to be prideful? Of course not, rather I desire to give thanks to God for revealing his will for our family to my father. Your father’s vision might look different, but as long as you continue to give him your whole heart-you will be blessed. (One great book on this subject is Upgrade, by Kevin Swanson.)
What’s his vision for our future? All of us children will be homeschooled through high school. They have taught us for our whole lives, why would they give up in the most important part of our life, when most children are leaving the faith? My father also understands the dangers of sending his girls of to collage. But if we don’t go to collage will we stop learning after high school? I would say not! Our whole lives are a learning process so even if we aren’t doing book school we will be learning. I don’t know if some of us girls will try to get a degree from home, or will just learn on our own, but I do know we will always be under the protection of our father or husband.
Will my brother go to collage? I’m not sure, but even if he does he will be placed under the authority of a family or church. Or he might feel God calling him to some hands-on vocation where he would be mentored. Our church has set up a discipleship center for young men that he might be a part of. I don’t know, but he be creating a vision of his own as he grows to be a man.
My parents strongly believe God’s will for most people is to get married. Marriage is God’s normative way of ministry. One of our parent’s main goals form us is to prepare for marriage while still under our father’s roof instead of preparing for making money and finding out we don’t know anything about marriage. But as my parents have learned from the scriptures and the godly men and women God has put around them, dating isn’t God’s way of meeting your future spouse. Instead my father has chosen for us what many call courtship. Although that term isn’t mentioned in the bible there are examples of a similar process as well as the fact that it has been used throughout history.
Although the process is different for everyone, courtship’s main point is getting to know each other under parental supervision. This controls the emotions and helps the couple tell the truth to each other, since the people who know them best are sitting in the room, and engaged in conversation. Some of the great resources that have taught us about his are So Much More, by Anna Sofia and Elizabeth Botkin, Before You Meet Prince Charming, by Sarah Mally, and The Courtship Series, by Mr. and Mrs. Castleberry.
My parents didn’t go to the pain of raising us in the nurture and admonition of the Lord for Christianity to only last one or two generations. Their main vision is for us to marry a godly spouse and raise up godly seed. They want us girls to be homemakers ( see Titus 2) and helpmeets for our husbands as they take dominion for Christ, whether that be on the mission field in Africa or building a family farm in Tennessee, or taking dominion of the filming industry, and the list goes on and on. (Another book that has encouraged me as a young woman is Joyfully at Home, by Jasmine Baucom.) They also want my brother to be a prophet, priest, and provider for his own home. (See What He Must Be, by Voddie Baucham)
The encouraging thing about this all is that this reformation of the family (Also see Family Reformation by Scott Brown, The Second Mayflower, by Kevin Swanson, and Family Driven Faith, by Voddie Baucham.) will last for generations. I owe a lifetime of gratitude to the Lord for pulling my father out of a non-believer family and giving him “a vision for the next generation” as Kevin Swanson likes to say it. One of my ancestors on my father’s side in the late 1800’s was a great Christian leader. The sad thing is, although he spent his life in ministry, I don’t believe he handed the faith down to his children. Because of that failure, he left many generations after him in unbelief until God pulled my father out.
His vision surpasses even his children’s marriage. It’s true, for us girls, that we will no longer be under his authority when married but rather under our husband’s and his vision. But hee desires us to leave a vision to our children and grandchildren. He wants us to leave a legacy upon our deathbed that those who both hear of our death and come to our funeral know that this wasn’t an ordinary death. This was the precious death of a saint crossing the river. We need not fear upon the day of death but rather have the greatest hope and joy ever known for we are only to pass into the arms of our Savior and live with him forever and ever. I can’t say I’m anywhere close to leaving such a legacy, but such goals and expectations only encourage us more. I trust it will encourage you as well.
My father’s vision extends farther to how he wants our family demolishing strongholds right now in the more practical sense, but I trust you come away encouraged, as I was this morning, that there are fathers out there making a difference for the next generation. I encourage you to be thankful for such men and strive be men and women of great vision for the ages to come. At such words I can’t help but be filled with hope. I trust you are too.
