Budget Constraints
In economics, a budget constraint "represents all the combinations of goods and services that a consumer may purchase given current prices within his or her given income". Home educators often feel the pressure of having only one income or a dual part-time income because of their choice to make themselves available to their children. This can feel like a cruel consequence of a choice not to take advantage of the pro-offered schooling system, and parents can end up wondering if their children wouldn't be better off in school after all, because it seems that marvellous opportunities are out of reach.
The task of raising children is often daunting. Home educating them, more so. The task can regularly feel too big, and it is easy to fall into the trap of thinking that the problem is a lack of some important ingredient or resource needed for success, especially if other significant people (family, friends and sometiems the children themselves) think so too. Then the confidence problem increases because the parents end up feeling like they would do better if they just had more money - but as they don't this perception leaves them feeling discouraged and incompetent.
God however asks a question: "What do you have in your hand?" Instead of focusing on what we don't have, God calls us into a place of recognising what it is that we do have. By shifting focus, we trade discouragement, frustration and disappointment for creative opportunity.
God asked this question of Moses in Exodus 4. Moses felt completely inadequate for the task God had given him, that of taking the people of Israel out of Egypt, and he was offering all sorts of explanations as to why he was not the best person for the job. At that time Moses was just a shepherd, and what he had in his hand was a shepherd's staff. Nothing very valuable at all. But as we know from the rest of the story, that shepherd's staff was to be very significant indeed. With it Moses parted the Red Sea, brought water out of a rock, and defeated enemy armies.
When God asked Moses what he had in his hand, He drew his attention to a resource that he already had, a resource that He could and did use. God regularly does the same for us. So the question is not so much 'What are you lacking?' as 'What do you have?' Unfortunately we often find it easier to answer the former question than the latter.
What is in your particular hand? What makes you unique? As Leif Hetland puts it, 'What is your special sauce?' What is the flavour you bring to the space and people around you? What you have may seem ordinary, and in comparison with what others seem to have, it may seem like nothing much at all. Chances are, you are right! What you have may well be inadequate to meet the needs around you.
In 2 Kings 4 there is the story of a woman, a single parent, with two sons. And she really was at the end of her resources, to the extent that her sons were about to be sold as slaves. Elisha the prophet asks her a very similar question to the one God asked of Moses: "Tell me, what do you have in your house?”. She replied that she had nothing at all, "...except a small jar of olive oil.” It is interesting to see that the answer to her problem lay in the very thing that she thought was of no account. That small jar of oil was going to be the source of all that was needed. As we know, Elisha instructed her to collect lots of jars and pour her little bit of oil into them. She must have thought Elisha's advice rather peculiar, but she did as he said. And as she began to pour her oil into the jars she had collected, a miracle happened and all the jars were filled with oil. It is astonishing what God will do with our little bit of resource if we walk in faith with Him. Maybe it is helpful in this context to see our children as jars, and as we pour our oil, small though the supply may be, into them, we can have confidence in God to multiply it into everything they need.
Probably my favourite story, and one that has often encouraged me, is the one about the little boy who gave his lunch to Jesus. He only had a few loaves and fishes; enough for his own lunch. And yet, Jesus used it to feed a multitude. Many times in my life, when I felt like I wasn't enough, didn't know enough, or didn't have enough, I have drawn courage from this story; courage to take my little to Jesus and to ask Him to multiply it for me. And He has. I have discovered that when I put what I have in my hands into His hands, He blesses it and makes it be enough.
And so for each one of us, this question "What do you have?" is a good one to ponder. And it is a far more useful question that the alternative: "What are you lacking?" Ask God to remind you what He has given you, who you are, and what your particular gifts and abilities are. Chances are that in the 'oil' you have discounted there is something that you can use to provide goodness for your family, in a direct or an indirect way. God equips people in so many different ways. Each of us is unique, and what we are able to give to our children is as unique as we are. As you recognise what you have in your hand, and offer it to God in faith, He will multiply it, sometimes in unusual and surprising ways. I think God really likes to work with what is in our hands. What you’re going to be, is going to come out from what you have or are now.
In economics, a budget constraint "represents all the combinations of goods and services that a consumer may purchase given current prices within his or her given income". Home educators often feel the pressure of having only one income or a dual part-time income because of their choice to make themselves available to their children. This can feel like a cruel consequence of a choice not to take advantage of the pro-offered schooling system, and parents can end up wondering if their children wouldn't be better off in school after all, because it seems that marvellous opportunities are out of reach.
The task of raising children is often daunting. Home educating them, more so. The task can regularly feel too big, and it is easy to fall into the trap of thinking that the problem is a lack of some important ingredient or resource needed for success, especially if other significant people (family, friends and sometiems the children themselves) think so too. Then the confidence problem increases because the parents end up feeling like they would do better if they just had more money - but as they don't this perception leaves them feeling discouraged and incompetent.
God however asks a question: "What do you have in your hand?" Instead of focusing on what we don't have, God calls us into a place of recognising what it is that we do have. By shifting focus, we trade discouragement, frustration and disappointment for creative opportunity.
God asked this question of Moses in Exodus 4. Moses felt completely inadequate for the task God had given him, that of taking the people of Israel out of Egypt, and he was offering all sorts of explanations as to why he was not the best person for the job. At that time Moses was just a shepherd, and what he had in his hand was a shepherd's staff. Nothing very valuable at all. But as we know from the rest of the story, that shepherd's staff was to be very significant indeed. With it Moses parted the Red Sea, brought water out of a rock, and defeated enemy armies.
When God asked Moses what he had in his hand, He drew his attention to a resource that he already had, a resource that He could and did use. God regularly does the same for us. So the question is not so much 'What are you lacking?' as 'What do you have?' Unfortunately we often find it easier to answer the former question than the latter.
What is in your particular hand? What makes you unique? As Leif Hetland puts it, 'What is your special sauce?' What is the flavour you bring to the space and people around you? What you have may seem ordinary, and in comparison with what others seem to have, it may seem like nothing much at all. Chances are, you are right! What you have may well be inadequate to meet the needs around you.
In 2 Kings 4 there is the story of a woman, a single parent, with two sons. And she really was at the end of her resources, to the extent that her sons were about to be sold as slaves. Elisha the prophet asks her a very similar question to the one God asked of Moses: "Tell me, what do you have in your house?”. She replied that she had nothing at all, "...except a small jar of olive oil.” It is interesting to see that the answer to her problem lay in the very thing that she thought was of no account. That small jar of oil was going to be the source of all that was needed. As we know, Elisha instructed her to collect lots of jars and pour her little bit of oil into them. She must have thought Elisha's advice rather peculiar, but she did as he said. And as she began to pour her oil into the jars she had collected, a miracle happened and all the jars were filled with oil. It is astonishing what God will do with our little bit of resource if we walk in faith with Him. Maybe it is helpful in this context to see our children as jars, and as we pour our oil, small though the supply may be, into them, we can have confidence in God to multiply it into everything they need.
Probably my favourite story, and one that has often encouraged me, is the one about the little boy who gave his lunch to Jesus. He only had a few loaves and fishes; enough for his own lunch. And yet, Jesus used it to feed a multitude. Many times in my life, when I felt like I wasn't enough, didn't know enough, or didn't have enough, I have drawn courage from this story; courage to take my little to Jesus and to ask Him to multiply it for me. And He has. I have discovered that when I put what I have in my hands into His hands, He blesses it and makes it be enough.
And so for each one of us, this question "What do you have?" is a good one to ponder. And it is a far more useful question that the alternative: "What are you lacking?" Ask God to remind you what He has given you, who you are, and what your particular gifts and abilities are. Chances are that in the 'oil' you have discounted there is something that you can use to provide goodness for your family, in a direct or an indirect way. God equips people in so many different ways. Each of us is unique, and what we are able to give to our children is as unique as we are. As you recognise what you have in your hand, and offer it to God in faith, He will multiply it, sometimes in unusual and surprising ways. I think God really likes to work with what is in our hands. What you’re going to be, is going to come out from what you have or are now.
By His power He has given us everything we need for life and righteousness
~ 2 Peter 1:3
But we have this treasure in jars of clay to show that this all-surpassing power is from God and not from us...
~ 2 Corinthinans 4:7
But God has chosen the foolish things of the world to put to shame the wise, and God has chosen the weak things of the world to put to shame the things which are mighty.
~ 1 Corinthians 1:27
~ 2 Peter 1:3
But we have this treasure in jars of clay to show that this all-surpassing power is from God and not from us...
~ 2 Corinthinans 4:7
But God has chosen the foolish things of the world to put to shame the wise, and God has chosen the weak things of the world to put to shame the things which are mighty.
~ 1 Corinthians 1:27
So how do we apply these ideas?
Instead of thinking sadly about what you are not able to give to or do for your children, focus on what you do have. For starters, there are hundreds of children who would give up virtually anything to have a stable, secure home and the attentive warm regard of their parents. Your children have this.
Then, get creative. There are lots of 'free' opportunities. Craig earned a good income during our home educating years, and yes, it did mean there was money for extras. But so many of the things my children look back on with warm nostalgia were not the paid for/expensive things at all... camping in the garden; making a fire and roasting marshmallows; lying under the stars and seeing which we could identify; nature study, explorations and play outdoors; hiking and walking (so many wonderful places to walk in the UK); owning and caring for a pet; me reading aloud to them (we did this every day - we ploughed through hundreds of books); baking and cooking sessions; movie nights with popcorn; art & craft activities...
Modern life is way too busy and pressured and the more you can offer your children opportunities for peace and tranquility the better. Doing lots of activities is not always a good thing.
In a nutshell, ‘home’ is something you are equipped to give and if you were to put it on a balance scale, and all the other attractive activities you wish you could give your children on the other side, you would still find the home side heavier. I home educated 5 children and the oldest is now 30 and I have 3 grandchildren and life has shown me this is true. And growing up in a damaged family meant I never had a sense of home until I married my husband and really, there are few things more valuable. So please don’t entertain any more ideas that your children are missing out or that you are not enough for them... rather celebrate all the wonderful opportunities your loving care has to build strength in their hearts.
Instead of thinking sadly about what you are not able to give to or do for your children, focus on what you do have. For starters, there are hundreds of children who would give up virtually anything to have a stable, secure home and the attentive warm regard of their parents. Your children have this.
Then, get creative. There are lots of 'free' opportunities. Craig earned a good income during our home educating years, and yes, it did mean there was money for extras. But so many of the things my children look back on with warm nostalgia were not the paid for/expensive things at all... camping in the garden; making a fire and roasting marshmallows; lying under the stars and seeing which we could identify; nature study, explorations and play outdoors; hiking and walking (so many wonderful places to walk in the UK); owning and caring for a pet; me reading aloud to them (we did this every day - we ploughed through hundreds of books); baking and cooking sessions; movie nights with popcorn; art & craft activities...
Modern life is way too busy and pressured and the more you can offer your children opportunities for peace and tranquility the better. Doing lots of activities is not always a good thing.
In a nutshell, ‘home’ is something you are equipped to give and if you were to put it on a balance scale, and all the other attractive activities you wish you could give your children on the other side, you would still find the home side heavier. I home educated 5 children and the oldest is now 30 and I have 3 grandchildren and life has shown me this is true. And growing up in a damaged family meant I never had a sense of home until I married my husband and really, there are few things more valuable. So please don’t entertain any more ideas that your children are missing out or that you are not enough for them... rather celebrate all the wonderful opportunities your loving care has to build strength in their hearts.
