The Homeschooling Father

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By Michael Farris
Founder and Chairman, Home School Legal Defense Association

Parents do not need professional training to become excellent homeschool instructors. But they do need divine empowerment if they are going to have the stick-to-it-iveness necessary to keep to the task as their children progress from toddler to adult. Every homeschooling father needs to begin to examine his duty to his wife and children by considering their need for spiritual empowerment. They are going to be mocked by friends, neighbors and relatives. They may be prosecuted by authorities. They are going to face spiritual warfare. They are going to have to do a lot of plain old hard work.

Fathers do not have the job of directly supplying the spiritual power their families need. That is God’s job. But a father has the responsibility to see to it that God’s power is flowing freely to each and every member of his family. A father is to serve as the family “pastor,” providing spiritual leadership for his home. In other words, Dad, if you want your children to be homeschooled, you must commit yourself to becoming a vital spiritual leader for your family.

A father is usually expected to provide spiritual leadership by (1) taking his wife and children to church with him; (2) praying regularly for his wife and children; and (3) conducting regular family devotions. There is no doubt we should routinely discharge all three of these duties though these tasks are simply methods not goals. In fact, when we focus on these three duties rather than on attaining spiritual goals, these duties tend to become distasteful tasks to be endured – the spiritual equivalent of home maintenance projects.

Some examples of goals for children include: My child will love and understand God’s Word, my child will be an effective witness, my child will spend daily time with God and my child will understand the power of prayer. You may be currently frustrated with your attempts to plan meaningful spiritual activities for your family. Once you have set spiritual goals for your children, it is easier to plan activities since you will need to make specific plans to reach specific goals.

If you want your children to spend daily time in God’s Word, then you need to plan activities which are designed to reach this goal. If you want your children to be effective witnesses, then you need to plan activities which will give them an opportunity to witness. Having spiritual goals and plans is not an absolute guarantee of success. But if you have no goal, you will hit it every time. The steps and actions required of a spiritual leader are not that different from the kind of leadership men are required to demonstrate on the job.

We fathers need to exercise at least as much diligence in our spiritual goal-setting, planning and review as we do on our jobs. After all, the stakes are a lot higher. God is the ultimate foundation of all our endeavors. However, from the perspective of human responsibility, your spiritual leadership is the foundation upon which your homeschooling program will be built. You want your children to succeed, so give them a foundation for spiritual success. Be a real spiritual leader.