There are many decisions a parent has to take on behalf of their children. At times, we are torn between one or the other. As Christians, however, there is one thing we should not wonder about – that is the core of what our children should learn while they are young. We need to ask ourselves what it is we want them to leave with as they fly out from under the protective shade of our wings?
Think – the answer to that is not difficult. The best heirloom we can give them is for them to be grounded in the Christian faith. Why? Well, first of all, I believe that scripture teaches us that we should do so. Secondly, as we look at the world around us, full of incredibly fast change, choice on end and ever increasing sidelining of Christians, we should want them to be equipped and ready.
Strong academics are brilliant and we should desire that our kids get the best academics possible. However, all of these are useless, if our children do not know God. Whatever choices you make for your children regarding their education, let them be choices for the future.
For us, making wise choices for their future includes that we choose to emphasise their learning of English. English is and will be the language of the world, unless one day we are forced to learn Chinese….. Our children will need it daily, in the streets, at work and as part of their witness to those around them. If you have no vision for their English competence, you are limiting them greatly.
For us that also means that they learn to interact in a cross-cultural melting pot as this is what the global village is turning into.
For us it means that we seek excellent academic standards for our children that challenge them to meet difficulties head on and with the gifts they were given, so that they might be able to provide for their families when they grow up (particularly important for boys who should one day be able to lead their households!).
For us that means that we seek to grow their creative gifts so that they might come to enjoy the Lord´s creative attributes and join in His creative beauty.
For us it means that we encourage them to engage in sports, so they learn to face challenges either alone or, ideally together in a team.
Most of all, however, for us it means that we prepare them through our living faith day by day as well as encouraging them to explore scripture for themselves and teachings about the Lord who is the One constant, the One unchanging, the One and only truth, so that they do not waver in a world of unlimited choice and Christian persecution; and that they learn how to be in community and love one another as scripture teaches us. This being our main focus, the one thing we do not compromise on.
With this focus and the future of our children in mind, we are so grateful to have Christian teachers alongside us who love on our children, challenge their brains, encourage them to take part in sports and engage them in creative arts – and, most of all, share their faith with them in word and deed, tirelessly.
I reflected on this today, as we ended our day by taking our boys to the Honour Choir concert at our school. Here they were immersed in beautiful choir and gospel music, presented by students from Taylor University and students from ICSV. As I was sitting there, I was so grateful, that the Lord has provided a unique place like ICSV in Vienna, Austria where we live. It is here, where teachers, younger and older kids from all around the world know each other, join in together and come to appreciate the talents God has given them. This, like many other Christian schools around the world, is a place that offers so much more than educational content, and its amazingly dedicate staff make it a unique community that helps us and many other parents raise our children for the future.
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