Thursday, August 20, 2009

a tornado warning



Hey y'all,

We had ourselves a little tornado warning in our county today. Actually, the storm in question was a bit north of us, so we were fine, but there were some other storms over us ~ I didn't take any chances. I asked each kid to grab a pillow and a small blankie and head downstairs to the basement. I stayed upstairs, with the baby in my arms, checking the weather channel radar and looking at the skies. (yes, I'm neurotic, thank you)

After one storm had passed, and another was on it's way, Isaac brought up some questions about sin, Satan, bad things that happen on this earth, does God always protect Christians, etc. It was really amazing!!

At public school, when there's a tornado warning, you get to sit in the hallway with a book over your neck, excited to just be out of class. Afterwards, 2nd graders don't really get to hash out their fears about God, sin, natural disasters, and Satan. Yet today, we were able to do just that. And while Isaac voiced his concerns and put into words some of his feelings, the little ones also got to listen ~ they may not understand everything, but they are getting introduced to some of this stuff just the same.

Amazing!!




**and no, I'm not saying public school kids don't get to have indepth conversations with their parents - of course they do - I'm just emphasizing one of the great parts of hs'ing: I'm right there, ready to listen when they have questions or concerns. We get to tackle the really tough stuff head on, right then, when they are thinking of it. I don't have to worry about who is answering these important questions when they pop up and I have less to UNDO, in regards to incorrect teachings they might pick up elsewhere.

I know we all have our reasons for the decision we have made regarding our childrens' schooling. I just know that this reason, being right there for the BIG questions, is a huge factor in our decision. Thank you Lord for today!! (even with the scary storm) Thank you for the chance to BE THERE.

Wow~ what a blessing!

8 comments:

Unknown said...

Well our children go to a private christian school. And my hubby and I both went to public school. We weren't raised as Christians, but Catholic. We went to Sunday school and church etc growing up. we weren't bumbarded w/outside "forces" that swayed us from our faith.

Lori, did you get your cable back???

Unknown said...

Well, that's really not what I was talking about...but, okay...

Cable? Um, you mean did we decide to get cable tv again? No, we gave up the tv and feel it was a good decision. After baby #5, we just don't have time to sit and watch the tube anymore. We still like to watch a netflix movie here and there though....plus the kiddos have some movies they enjoy.

Speaking of which, I need to go finish a movie with my kiddos and then get them off to bed ~ later...
Lori

Unknown said...

No, from this, I guess I didn't understand... where did you see it?

"checking the weather channel radar and looking at the skies."

the weather channel here is only available thru the cable or satellite company.

Dean B. said...

Who said anything about getting bombarded with anything??? Overt anti-God or anti-Christian messages to public school kids is rare, but it does happen. It may be in the form of celebrating Earth Day and mentioning Mother Earth or Gaia, it may be teaching that creation or intelligent design is not an scientific option, or it may come in form of kids being ridiculed by other kids for their faith.

The bigger issue, I think, is related to Discipleship - something as believers in Christ we are ALL commanded to be part of (Matt. 28:16-20). The more time I have with them, especially when they are young, the more likely it is that my faith will become their faith and will stick as they get older. (Of course it will change, but the roots of faith start with our parents and childhood experiences.)

Also, there is the issue that education is NOT separate from morality. Education is about indoctrinating our kids with certain beliefs, values and mores. The public school uses the paradigm of secular humanism, Christians should be focused on a Biblical Worldview. As that becomes set, how kids experience and interact with life is filtered through that belief.

My wife's blog about how she took the experience of a storm to talk about Sin and bad things happening to good people is just one example of how to produce that Biblical WV.

This blog entry, nor this comment, are not meant to attack, but to explain where "Michigan Momma" and I come from, at least in a VERY small nutshell.

Danielle said...

My guess would be that she probably was watching the Weather Channel radar on the computer.

As far as the rest of the post, I can completely appreciate what you said, Lori. I do think it is awesome to be right there to be able to answer your childrens' questions directly when things like this happen. My kids go to public school and I see no shame in that and you haven't made me feel like I should either. You were simply stating one of the things that makes you so happy that you do homeschool your kids and if you can't be proud of what you're doing for your kids, you shouldn't be doing it. You clearly do feel like homeschooling is best and I think that is awesome.

Unknown said...

Thanks Danielle!! That's EXACTLY what I was trying to say about the hs/public school thing.....we all make our decisions - this just happens to be one of the reasons involved with our decision. To see it really come to fruition, to go through the experience of being right there to answer Isaac's questions as he is trying to understand about God, Satan, sin....it was just amazing!! It's even better than watching him as he finally "got it" in regards to phonics!! ;)

Oh, and yes, I was looking on-line at www.weather.com It's where I'm always keeping up on the weather, especially when there's a storm or two and I'm being neurotic~
Lori

Tina said...

From tornado to how we school our children...not bad Lori! Way to go. One of the wonderful things about this country is that we get to choose. We choose what is right for OUR family, at THIS time. We each have a God-given responsibility to raise our children in the nurture and admonition of the Lord. How He guides us to do this is different for each family, and for each season that we're in. Right now, it's me at work and Christian school for my children. Another year He might call me to quit and be home with them and teach them myself. All I can say is, we need our kids to learn about our faith, our worldview, and how to share that with others. This can happen just as successfully at a public, private, or home school. It just depends on the parents. I went to public school my entire life, but I had a strong, Christian upbringing, and was able to share my faith with others that I met. I think it's a shame when we think our particular way is the only way. It's between God and you. You must obey what HE says. And I appreciate that Lori has never put anyone down for their beliefs. She's just joyously celebrating what she's experiencing. Keep it up. Love ya'.

Morgan said...

I like checking weather on the computer too. When you have the weather on tv, the kids (at least ours) get kinda worked up. The news stations seem to LOVE bad weather because they can make it seem so much worse than it really is.

Watching the weather through radar online is very helpful in keeping the drama out and staying informed.

I have to say, though, I am slightly jealous. I live in tornado alley where we are *supposed* to get tons of tornados and severe weather, but alas, this year has been downright boring. We haven't recieved any tornado threats this year! Bummer considering now we actually have a real basement to go to.

It's just been WAY too cool this year here to have much nasty weather. It's been the coolest summer my family can recall in the past 30 years!

BTW- I remember being crunched down in a hallway at school during a tornado warning. Not fun.