The Salt of the Earth

Posted by Peggy | 0 comments

Matthew 5:13 “You are the salt of the earth….”

I have heard this quoted to me by many a Christian parent. They want to know why I am removing my children from what they consider a mission field. I was nudged while in church this morning to contemplate this verse and its use when it comes to homeschooling or not homeschooling as the case might be.

Imagine my surprise when I read the rest of the verse. This is the verse in it’s entirety.

Matthew 5:13 “You are the salt of the earth. But if the salt loses its saltiness, how can it be made salty again? It is no longer any good for anything , except to be thrown out and trampled by men.” NIV

Wow. I had to sit and ponder that one for a minute. I had just spent a refreshing Saturday afternoon with two homeschool moms discussing one of the loves of my life – books – and naturally we talked about homeschooling and some common objections. This in particular came up.

Now I am of the belief that not every child is meant to be homeschooled. I believe our children are like snowflakes and one method of anything will not be a good fit for all of them. I believe Christian parents should pray and seek direction from God before making any choices for their children, including their education.

As I have shared before my boys are all autistic. They lack social skills. I have been told they need to be socialized more than anyone else. Well, yes. But in our experience our boys mimic the exact behavior we do not want them to mimic and they can’t easily discern the difference between good and bad behavior. I have read that in most cases, Christian youth in worldly circumstances become more worldly – not the worldly more Christ like. I have sadly seen this influence on our church youth group – some of the babies I used to diaper in the nursery have grown into sullen worldly teenagers.

I do not believe most children are prepared for the mission field. When Jesus sent out the seventy-two in Luke 10 these were people prepared for the task before them. They had specific instructions and guidance. They were adults. That being said, God has a plan for each of us.

God’s plan for our family includes home education. It’s His way of helping us stay salty.

Peggy Dalley has been married to her best friend and husband for 14 years. She uses the eclectic approach to homeschool their three sons, 12, 10 and 7. Her interests include writing unit studies, Bible study, history and she is working hard to become a Proverbs 31:10 woman instead of a Proverbs 21:9 woman.