Following God's Call to Homeschool

What if the path you never planned to take is actually the one you were meant to follow? Join me, Audrey McCracken, on Grace From A Home, as I share my unexpected journey into homeschooling—a decision made by faith, despite initial skepticism, including from my husband, a public high school  principal. Over the next four weeks, we'll discuss how homeschool can be a discipleship tool.  This episode opens the conversation by telling how our homeschool journey began.

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Homeschooling as a Calling

Audrey McCracken 1:13

Hello friends , welcome back to Grace From A Home . I'm Audrey McCracken . Happy New Year . I'm so glad to be back with you again this week . Thank you for being patient and waiting on me . I had a brief two-week delay in getting back with you . We just had a lot of things we're trying to wrap up at the end of the year . My husband and I were able to get away for a few days and that was wonderful . We went to Wilmington , north Carolina , and spent two nights there and just had some time together . Then , when I got back , I recorded a podcast and when I went back and listened to it the audio was horrible , so I thought I can't put that out there . So here I am again doing the same podcast twice . So maybe I just needed to , maybe it just wasn't the right thing , maybe I just needed to switch it around a little bit , but I'm so glad to be back with you again this week and I really do hope that your new year has gotten off to a great start .

Audrey McCracken 2:13

I want to start the year off with a four-week homeschool series , and I understand that some of you and probably many of you that listen are not homeschool families or do not homeschool , and that's fine . I know some of the principles that I'm going to share transcend homeschooling , and it's a walk of faith , and all of us walk by faith , or at least we're called to walk by faith and not by sight , and so I want to share with you some things that are on my heart , that I've been mulling around about the homeschool life , and I hope that they're encouraging to you . You know , I loved homeschooling . I loved it , which is surprising , because it's not something I ever thought I would do . Today , I'd like to talk with you about the calling of homeschooling .

Audrey McCracken 3:05

I believe that I was called into homeschooling . I had never been around homeschoolers and so it was all new to me . It wasn't something that I , you know , burned in my heart that , oh , one day I want to homeschool my children . It really was not even on my radar , and so when I had children , I did want to be able you know , as the Lord provided to be able to stay home with them and raise them . I was not able to do that when they were very young , when we first had them , just because of financial reasons . I was a working mom , or working outside of the house , mom , I should say . And then , you know , as the years went on and we planned , I was able to put my career on hold , come home and get my children to school age . See , when they were very little , when I was still working , my church had a daycare and a school and my sister was the principal of that school and the people who worked in that school were all very close to me . Some of them , most of them , I went to church with and had known for years , and so it felt like a very safe place for my children and we were very blessed in that . But because of various reasons , that school shut down so I didn't have anywhere and you know how hard it is to get a child in daycare . Well , we worked it out . We had people watch the kids , but it was just in my heart that I want to be home with them and the Lord opened up a door for me to be able to do that . And it was not easy . It wasn't easy on us financially , but the Lord made a way and so we took it .

Audrey McCracken 4:48

And then , as I was home with them , the more I was with them , the more I wanted to be with them , and the Lord started putting people in my path . That started talking with me about homeschooling , and I had never been exposed to that world . It wasn't something that , you know , my heart had ever desired to do , but I started seeing possibilities . I think , you know , growing up , the only homeschool family I had ever been around had ever been around . They just they seemed to not want anything to do with , you know , modern society and you know that was not the kind of life I wanted to live . So I had kind of a bad connotation of homeschooling and I know homeschooling has changed so much over the years . But that was kind of what was in my head is what a homeschool family looked like , and you know that wasn't something I wanted . But as I started seeing things and seeing ways that other people were homeschooling , I thought , oh wow , that's really cool the way , you know , they have that time with their children .

Audrey McCracken 5:52

And as I prayed and it just felt like the Lord kept popping people into my life that you know , would tell me about this and that , and I think , oh , wow , I'd really love that . And so I started praying and saying , lord , is this what you want me to do ? And I felt very strongly that the Lord did , you know . And and I kept praying and I kept saying , lord , are you sure this is ? This is more than a couple of years commitment . You know this is , this is a big commitment because my thought was I will quit my job for a few years . Even my boss told me that I was welcome to come back and that I'll start my career again after they're in kindergarten , after after the last one is in kindergarten . But homeschooling , that was a huge commitment . That would be years of my life and I would have to learn something that I had no idea how to do .

Audrey McCracken 6:46

But as I prayed and I continued to pray , I felt very strongly this is what the Lord wanted me to do . And so I went to my husband and I shared this with him . Well , he was not as enthusiastic as I was , my husband at the time . He was a high school assistant principal at our local high school and I went to him and I told him I would like to homeschool our children and , like I said , he was not enthusiastic . You know his first thought was no . He asked me do you know what I do for a living ? And I said I do . But I feel very strongly that the Lord has put this on my heart and that this is how I am to disciple our children . And he really did not . He didn't see it . He did not see that and I asked him would you pray ? Would you pray that you know , if this is the Lord's will for our family , that he would show you ? And he told me he would pray .

Audrey McCracken 7:47

And several weeks got come back later and said have you prayed , what do you think ? And he said well , I've prayed , but I still I don't see it and I'm thinking he's really not praying . That's what I thought . I thought , okay , he's just thrown it up . You know , he's thrown up a prayer , but his heart's not in it and he's not listening . And so , you know , I went back to the Lord and I said Lord , you know , you have to tell Michael , you have to talk , you have to speak to my husband , and you know , and I'd come back a few weeks later . You know , what did you know ? Have you heard from the Lord ? Have you prayed about that ? Yes , I've prayed , but I don't think that's what we need to do . And I just felt like I was stuck and I prayed that way . I said Lord , here I am . You know , my heart is to obey you . I feel like you've put this on my heart . But you know my children , they have two parents . They don't it's not just me . They have a mother and a father and I , you know , I wanted the Lord to speak to both of us .

Audrey McCracken 8:49

The word division ? It's made up of die and vision Die meaning to and vision meaning to see forward into the future . And if you have two visions in the same household , then you're not walking together . You know , you're going separate places , and I didn't want that . You know I don't want division in my home . I want us to have the same vision and I want that to be the vision that God gives us . And so my prayer was Lord , give us the same vision . But it wasn't going anywhere . It seemed like he wasn't on board and I felt even more strongly every time I prayed . And so , finally , I went to the Lord and I said here I am . If this is what you've asked of me , this is what I want to do , I give my life to this . If this is what you'd have me do , I'm here , but you have to speak to my husband . And I remember reading in the Bible about Mary and Joseph , and God called Mary to a very high calling . He asked a lot of her . She took on the responsibility of raising God's son huge responsibility . And God had to speak to Joseph to let him know this is what I've asked of Mary . And I said , lord , the same God who spoke to Mary spoke to Joseph . Now , if you're speaking to me , you must speak to my husband , because we've got to do this together in unity Amen .

Audrey McCracken 10:19

I could have manipulated , I could have pressured him , I could have gotten angry , but see , none of those things bring the fruit that I wanted . I wanted unity . I wanted us to know that we're doing what God asked of us , and I didn't want to live that kind of life . I wanted God to speak and so I decided to fast . I did a 40-day coffee fast . And you may think , well , that's not a fast . Well , I love coffee . I'm running a coffee shop . It was important to me , it was a sacrifice to me . So I knew it would be important to the Lord . You know anything you give up for the Lord , that is important to you , it's important to him . And so for 40 days I prayed and fasted coffee and I just asked him to speak . I said I need you to speak to Michael or me , and I did not pray , lord , change Michael's mind . I prayed , lord , show us the way , shine your light on us that we can walk in unity . And I lay this at your feet If I'm wrong , if I'm hearing wrong , please speak to me . If Michael is not hearing you , please speak to him . But let us be , let us walk together in unity so there's peace in our home .

Audrey McCracken 11:38

After the 40 days , after my 40 day fast , nothing changed . He still didn't see it . And so I said , lord , I'm going to go with him , I'm going to . I believe you've spoken to me , but this , these are not just my children , they're our children and I believe you to speak and I will be very honest with Michael . But I'm not going to push this . I'm going to submit this to you and to him . And so I went to Michael and I told him . I said I trust you to make the right decision . I feel very strongly in my heart this is what God has asked of me . But these are not just my children , they're our children and I submit this desire in my heart to homeschool them and I just want you to know that I'm willing to do this . But you have to hear from the Lord , and if you're not hearing that , then I'm going to go with what you think God is asking us to do with our children . And what I did was I laid the weight on him and I said it's your decision to make , but I am willing and that was it .

Audrey McCracken 12:48

Well , time came for me to register my oldest in the kindergarten . I went and got the paperwork to register him for kindergarten and then I told my husband I've got to go to the pediatrician and get his immunization record for the school . And he said , no , I don't want you to do that . And I said well , why not ? I mean , I need it . If I'm going to register him for school , I've got to go get that . And he said , no , I think you need to homeschool him . And I was just . I was blown away because that's the first time he'd ever said anything like that . And I said well , are you sure ? And he said yes , he said I was praying the other day and I really felt like the Lord said this is what I've asked Audrey to do . And I was so thankful because there was no manipulation , there was no argument , there was no tension . There was no tension , it was just this is what God has asked you to do .

Audrey McCracken 13:48

But he did give me a couple of stipulations . He said , you know , as you know , he was at this time he was an assistant principal and he said I want us to try it year by year and see how it goes . And he said I want to be able to have a voice in this and if at any time I feel like they're not getting what they need , I will reserve the right to say I think they need to go to public school . And I agreed to that . And he said I want them to go through standardized testing . I want them to be tested on the same schedule as public school so we can judge where they are , where they lay in , you know , in their grade level . And I said yes , I will do that . So that's how we started and I did not know anything . I just kind of dipped my toe in it and just started going that way .

Audrey McCracken 14:51

You know , there are so many reasons to homeschool , just as many reasons to homeschool as there are families that homeschool . You know , everybody who homeschools has it has a different reason or a different story . That's just a little bit of our story , but for me it was more of a calling than a reason . I really felt like this is what the Lord asked of me . Now I want to tell you that I have friends who have children in the public school system and I believe that's where God spoke for their family , and I think that's wonderful and I know their children , their children love Jesus , and I think that's wonderful and I know their children . Their children love Jesus , their children love the Lord , and they've done a great job of teaching their children how to love Jesus and to maneuver in the world . Parents who will tell you out and out that it is always God's will to homeschool , and I so don't believe that .

Parenting and Faith

Audrey McCracken 15:52

I believe homeschooling is a calling . He has a unique plan and puzzle for every family and we have to figure out . What are you calling us to do , lord ? And it's not always what people around you are doing , and we have to be able to have ears to hear what is God saying and have to have the courage to step up and do it . And for you , that might be sending your kids to public school when it's everybody around you homeschools , or might be , like me , deciding to homeschool when everybody around you is in public school and they're doing fine , they're doing great .

Audrey McCracken 16:29

But the point is , what is God calling you to do ? What is God calling us to do as a family ? And that applies in so many different areas . We are in the world , we're not of the world , and when I remember , as a young mom , learning how to homeschool , trying to figure out you know how , does God want me to do this ? One of the things that he impressed on my heart is I want you to do this by faith .

Audrey McCracken 16:58

I don't want you to homeschool out of fear , and I have met families who I believe that fear is their driving force to homeschool , because they're afraid of the world , they're afraid to let their kids out there , and so they're going to homeschool them to keep them from all the bad things . But see , that keeps us in that mentality that you know we are less than , or we are weaker than the world . And it's not true . I homeschooled my children out of faith . That you know , at home I will be able to disciple them , I'll be able to teach them , I'll be able to pour into them so that I can release them into the world . And they're prepared , they're ready . You know , we're not afraid of the world . We're in the world . We're not of the world , but we're not afraid of the world , because greater is he that is in us than he that is in the world . And so I saw possibilities and I'm so glad that I took that road . You know , I know it was the Lord . I know where he guides , he provides , he always gives us enough grace , and he always did .

Audrey McCracken 18:05

And now you know , and I will tell you , another big transition was when they decided to go to high school , because we had always told them , you know , we want you to make decisions . We wanted to teach them early to start making decisions for their life , because we didn't want to be the ones always making the major decisions , and so , you know , appropriate decisions . We tried to give them an opportunity to say what they wanted to do , and one of the biggest for all three of them was do you want to go to high school or do you want to continue to homeschool ? And they had a . And I understand we have a unique situation . My husband is now the principal at our local high school , where they attend , and all three of them decided at our local high school where they attend , and all three of them decided to go to high school . Now I can't tell you I love that decision .

Audrey McCracken 18:55

There's a part of me that was just like high school would be so cool to homeschool . Because you know , now you're old enough to have big discussions and conversations . And you know and I was just I had all these books that I would love to have read with them in high school . But they made the decision to go to public school and I see them growing and flourishing there and it brings peace to my heart and it reminds me . You know , I had them for the little years and now they are with their father in public school and they are seeing things through a new light . They're seeing different things and we can't control it . We just have to do our part . We have to do what God's asked us to do and we have to release them and trust Him that he is speaking to them , that he is working in their hearts , that he's working in our hearts and that he knows what's best . That's why I believe that homeschooling is calling and I'm very thankful for the opportunity , for the grace , to homeschool my children .

Audrey McCracken 20:08

It was a wonderful time and I was able to put things in their hearts and I was able to spend that time with them and build relationship with them . That has given me a voice . You know , I have a voice into their hearts when they have important decisions to make . Now they come to me not to say what should I do . But , you know , can you pray with me ? And , yeah , sometimes they'll ask me what should you , what should I do in this situation ? But usually my answer is I can't tell you that . But I can pray with you that God would show you the right path to take . But they know that me and their dad want what's best for them and that both of us are willing to submit and say , not our will , but what the Lord wants . And because he did that when they were young and I've had to do that when they've gone , when they've entered high school .

Walking in the Father's Will

Audrey McCracken 21:07

And you know , it's not about us , it's not about how great we are or how wonderful of parents we are . It's about how good our God is , how good the Father is , and I hope that this has been encouraging for you . You know , and , like I said , I think it applies in many , many areas . It's not , you know , I want my way , I want to do it my way . It's Lord , what do you have for us as a couple , as a husband and wife , as a family ? You know , show us your plan so we can walk in it , and I believe that is a prayer that he delights in answering .

Audrey McCracken 21:47

I want to remind you that you can still purchase my book Covered in Prayer 31 Prayers to Cover you and your Children in God's Grace . You can find that on Amazon and I'll put the link in the show notes , and I'm working on some new things . So this new year I'm excited about , you know , some new projects , that I'm working on some books and other things , and in the coming weeks I hope to be able to release some of those things and share some more of those things with you . And I just want to say thank you . I really appreciate you coming each week and listening . You can probably tell I have a little cold today , but that's okay . We'll press through and keep us in your prayers because we're just like you .

Audrey McCracken 22:30

We're trying to find the Father's will and grow in grace , and I want to pray for you before I let you go today , father . I pray for these precious women who just want to hear from you , who just want to be obedient and do what you've put them here on earth to do . And I ask you , father , to shine your light on us that we could walk in the truth . And I pray , god , that you would work in our hearts , that we would be more and more like Jesus . And God , I ask you to give us ears to hear that Lord , when you're calling us in a particular direction , that we would be sensitive to that . And , lord , we just thank you . We thank you that your grace is more than enough . In Jesus name , amen .