To my fellow homeschool moms—are you overwhelmed with all the crying, whining, grumbling, and complaining? Do you have days when no one—not even you—wants to do schoolwork? Here's some encouragement: It's hard. Yes, that's right. Educating your kids at home is hard work. But even though it's hard, Jesus has some great advice: Take a break to rest.
In the book of Mark, Jesus sends out His disciples two-by-two. They went out preaching, healing, and casting out demons. It was very hard on them to endure all the oppositions, but they pressed on. When they returned to Jesus, here's what He said in Mark 6:30-32:
"30 The apostles returned to Jesus and told him all that they had done and taught. 31 And he said to them, "Come away by yourselves to a desolate place and rest a while." For many were coming and going, and they had no leisure even to eat. 32 And they went away in the boat to a desolate place by themselves."
What amazing advice from our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. He knows how hard ministering to your children through homeschooling can be. He knows the long hours it takes to teach multiple subjects to multiple children. And then when school is done, God knows your other responsibilities — doing chores, making dinner, etc. Not to mention making time for your husband!
Jesus did not want His disciples to continue working without breaks. That's how we become overwhelmed, discouraged, and burnt out. The design of breaks is built into every sphere of our existence. On day 7, God took a break after creating the entire cosmos. Our work week is only five days so we can take a rest on the weekends. Concerning nature, some plants and animals rest during the cold winter months. God built rest into our bodies by designing us to sleep every single night. Even when Jesus was here on earth, He would even go away by Himself to pray and to be alone.
With understanding God's design for rest, take a break mom. You need it! Here are a few ideas for rest:
• Take a break to be by yourself. Whether it's a walk alone or sitting in your camper parked in your driveway!
• Get a mani/pedi.
• Plan a ladies night with some friends.
• Go on a date with your husband.
• Pray and have personal Bible study. This is most important! This is where you find strength, hope, encouragement, and peace.
When you break, try not to spend the whole time thinking or talking about the kids! This is sometimes very easy to say, but hard to do. When you continually talk or think about your kids, you never truly take a break. One of the reasons for rest, is for your brain to rest as well. Look at it as a mommy time-out.
When my kids were all very young, I saw taking a break as almost impossible. But the more I understood and saw the value of breaks, the better my days got with my kids. Don't get me wrong, it's still hard. But taking the right types of breaks helps make my life easier and more enjoyable!
You're not the only one who needs a break. Even your kids need rest. Maybe they can play outside or stay inside and build Legos. Reward them with fun breaks so they get time to rest and recharge. Learning is hard work for little minds. Creating a healthy biblical habit of rest can help you and your children enjoy the homeschool journey!
Be blessed, my friend!