Did you know that Einstein didn't speak until he was older (supposedly around the age of 7) and even then he didn't speak clearly until the age of 9?
When i think about Daniel and how he is going to be 4 years old in a mer 23 days, i think about Einstein. Daniel is SUCH a smart little boy and understands so much, yet he cannot communicate verbally. He makes lots of noises, but nothing that sounds recognizable. I can see it in his eyes how much he knows and understands. He points to things that he is curious about and things that he wants. He takes things apart and puts things together very well. He is a perfectionist. He likes things certain ways and he doesn't like his hands to be dirty. He likes helping me clean up and put things away. He stares up at the clouds and points to them as they float by. I can tell he wants to know what they are and why they are floating. When we read books he points out things he knows and he's very curious about things he doesn't know. He will point at an object repetitively to make us say it over and over... like he is storing the word for a later purpose.
In our current culture we are trying to teach a 2 year old how to read and sticking them in preschools so that they can get a jump start on education. I really like this article that was written by a homeschooling mother of 5. I must admit that I've been caught up in the current system of thinking.. My oldest son is 5 and he can't tell the difference between a E and an F".. i HAVE to work harder with him. Or so and so's kid is 2 years younger and they can already count to 50 and Joshua can only count to 20. That is such a dangerous path to go down, comparing your child and not letting your child be a child at all.
Also, What happened to developing character? Is our culture so caught up in being educated that we've overlooked teaching our children to be honorable men and woman who stand up for what is right and true. I know I'm going on a bit of a rabbit trail here, but I would much rather have my sons be able to show compassion and mercy and stand up for injustice rather then be men full of knowledge, but no wisdom or character at all. Oy! So back to Daniel. I know God has HUGE plans for my little boy. I know that one day my little boy is going to burst forth in speech, proclaiming praises to his Lord. Since Daniel was a toddler many have called him a worshiper,running around with his hands up in the air. :) When i was pregnant with him I had many prophetic dreams of times to come and I really feel God has put a special blessing on Him. I just need to cling to the promises of the Lord and love my little boy FULLY where he is at, speaking or not. A lot of days are hard, but i know that the biggest testimonies are usually those that have gone through hard trials. SO i just pray that God gets us through these harder times and helps us raise our little boys with integrity and grace so that they can grow up and be even greater then what we even imagined, not in the ways of academics, but in the ways of the Lord.
1 comment:
I agree with you so much. Somebody asked recently what we had been teaching Rilla. It sparked a (good) longer conversation, and things came up like colors and numbers, but the real answer is: godliness. patience. love. discipline. joy. sharing. We want our children to know that God is good, to know that He is their only hope, and to know how to love others. There is always that pressure there to teach them things that will impress other people. Yet it is truly their character that matters most. We are called to teach them the fear of the Lord, and to speak of Him and teach them of Him in all that we do. Right now I am especially convicted by the importance of teaching obedience as a foundation for all that is to come. Learning the alphabet will happen sooner or later, but it's taking the opportunities to teach our little ones about Jesus and the importance of obeying Him that really makes the difference. Keep up the good work, and know that your labor for the Lord is not in vain.
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