Written by: Becky Hunter in Becky Hunter's Random Bits of Wisdom on January 31, 2012

One of the topics that lots of moms and dads fret over is which kind of education is best for their child? I got an email a couple of days ago from a very intelligent Christian wife and mom who asked me what my take is on various education venues and what suggestions I had for keeping her conversations with her husband civil while they hashed out where their soon-to-be students should go to learn.

I wrote her a response and as I hit send, I thought I’d share from my response with you.

Dear _________,

I certainly understand your concern about choosing the right school. I have taught in both public and Christian schools and we have two sons who attended 12 years of public school and one who attended public until 7th grade and then went to middle and high school in a Christian School, so I do have some opinions on this.

There are fantastic public, private, Christian and home schools and there are really terrible public, private, Christian and home schools. I know great Christian teachers in every one of these education venues and I know some in each that are less than effective. So a parent can’t just choose a flavor and then fail to do their homework on the specific education options in their area.

You asked if Joel and I ever had differing viewpoints on the how, when and where to educate our children?
Yes. But like you and your husband, we both wanted the best for our kids. So I researched the education options in our area —gave Joel the information—told him what I thought might be best and why—and then told him I’d be praying for him and looked forward to his decision. Both of us also reminded each other that A PARENT CAN CHANGE A CHILD’S SCHOOL AT ANYTIME! For some reason the decision about “which school is best” always felt like one that we would make and could never tweak for 12 years. Just taking off that kind of pressure can help parents find less stress in addressing this issue.

Do I just trust God that wherever our kids end up is His will?
I’m not sure we can be out of the will of God because of our school choice. His will is more about behaviors and being a blessing in whatever situations we are in. We have a responsibility to be the light in every situation-- to do the things we know to do even when we are at a loss as to what to do about some things. In this case, honoring your husband by respecting his choice for your family is something you have said that you know to do, so that is the thing you do. Confusion about which school doesn’t need to be a weight on you. You can move confidently forward doing just the part God has made clear to you.

Somehow that seems like we're not taking enough initiative.
I personally know of fantastic, Christian, dynamic, Kingdom-building adults who were brought up in public, private, Christian and home schools. I bet you do too. Don’t become so burdened with this decision that you are the “fearful” mom or the “angry” wife. Satan would love to see you miserable over this or anything else.

Hope this helps. I’ll be praying for you! You sound like an awesome woman. Introduce yourself if you ever see me standing around Northland!

Love in Christ,
Becky