A Work in Progress

"Therefore encourage one another and build up one another, just as you also are doing."  

  -- I Thessalonians 5:11

"Let no unwholesome word proceed from your mouth, but only such a word as is good for edification according to the need of the moment, so that it will give grace to thsoe who hear."

-- Ephesians 4:29

Sometimes I feel like I am so focused on academics around here that I put character training on the back burner.  I let things slide because "I just don't have time right now to interupt our entire day and work on ______.  I mean, we are going to have to work really hard to get a grade level ahead in math and if the boys don't get around to all of their reading today - I just don't know.  And History - good gracious.  Sonlight has given me all these boxes that need to be checked and what if. . .  what if . . . what if."  And then finally I remember.  I remember one of the main reasons that I wanted to homeschool in the first place.  I remember how much I value and desire to raise up godly men with Christ like character.  I remember my ultimate goal -  to help my children conform to the image of Christ.  (My ultimate goal for myself - by the way.)

So, I just stopped.  I couldn't take the negative words and name calling any more.  We sat down and went over the above verses.  Again.  They know them.  I know they know them because I had them memorize them months ago.  But knowing them and putting action behind them are two completely different things.  So here is what we did.  Each little one was given some "bricks" to write edifying words on.

Then, we hung them on the wall in the playroom. 

Making our own brick wall full of words that build others up.  Hopefully, we will continue to add to our brick wall.  And I am even more hopeful that they will remember something from this lesson! And that I will always remember the importance of stopping for the truly important things.