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This podcast is brought to you by our friends at The Kingdom Code.

Hey everybody, this is Heidi St. John. Welcome to the Heidi St. John Podcast. Today is Monday, November 11th. This is episode number 843. It’s Mailbox Monday. I’ve got lots of questions to get to today, including some questions on homeschooling and how you can get off the bench and onto the battlefield. 

Stick around, I think you’re going to be encouraged.

All right, so you guys, first of all, thank you so much for leaving reviews for the podcast over at iTunes. I’d really want to encourage you to keep them coming. If you’re listening to this show and you’ve never taken a moment to go over to iTunes and click on the review bar and just star the podcast or actually, even better, leave a written review, I just want to encourage you to do that. It’s very important to us to help get the word out and it really encourages the staff. We read every single one of those reviews, so thank you so much for doing that. You guys are awesome.

Also, I am starting to get Christmas cards. Yes, I am. Christmas Card Palooza is on here at the Firmly Planted Family Homeschool Resource Center. You can send us your Christmas cards and a picture. We would love to hear from you and I will link back to the address in the show notes today. And I will also try to remind you before the show is over today.

If you guys have not joined me yet, at MomStrong International for the Bible study and the live teaching, which I do on Facebook for the members group on Wednesdays, this is a great time to do it. We just started the bible study. We’re just a few days into it. We started on the 11th or on the fourth, rather. We just started the Bible study. We’re a few days into it. We started on the fourth and today is the 11th, that means we’ve been doing it for a week.

So it’s a great time for you guys to get in there, especially since the holidays are coming upon us. We are studying contentment over at MomStrong International and I was just talking to some of the members the other day when I was doing a Facebook live. And she said, “Oh man, I’m so glad we’re studying this because I really have a hard time spending money. I just, I want to buy all the things.”

And I was like, “Right? Because Amazon.” Because Amazon, because it’s too easy. All I got to do is click on Amazon and go, “Oh, I really want that coffee table. Oh I really need that shirt or I really need that 60 pound bag of flour or whatever it is.” It’s all right there. And God wants us to be content. And not only does he want us to be content, He’s given us the tools to pursue contentment.

And if we’re honest, contentment goes into a lot of areas of our lives. It even goes into the gender battles, which we’re seeing play out in the schools today and in the culture. Basically we’re shaking our fist at God and we’re saying, I’m not content with how you made me. I’m going to make myself in my image and this is exactly the struggle that we’ve been having since the dawn of time, right?

Eve wasn’t content just to stick with the fruit that God gave her. Entire garden. Anybody ever have a toddler? And you can give them the entire room. You guys play with this, play with that and here, momma just bought you this awesome Little Tikes toy kitchen for you to play with. Here’s the one thing over here I don’t want you to touch and what are they going to do?

Why? Because we have a hard time with contentment and we have a hard time with obedience, which by the way falls under the fruits of the spirit. So we’re going to talk about that all month at MomStrong International. There’s a three week bible study, so you guys can be done in time for Thanksgiving. So join me at momstronginternational.com and then be sure that you join the members only Facebook group where I will be hopping in and out of there, doing live teaching and connecting with you that way.

I also want to give a big shout out to my sponsor today. Today’s podcast is sponsored by the Kingdom Code. If you guys haven’t heard about this, I want to introduce you to it. Financial freedom, which we talk about a lot here at the show, is too important to ignore or postpone. How many of you guys are postponing it? Moment of silence, right? Sometimes we hope that somebody else is going to teach our kids about finances because we’ve had such a hard time getting a handle on it ourselves, which is why I really love the Kingdom Code.

So financial freedom for our kids is the main reason that this unique money management and budgeting program was developed. So it’s one of the greatest gifts you can give your kids. It’s going to positively shape their futures and I want to encourage you to check it out. The program is based on a foundation of godly principles and money management skills.

And if you start using this easy to teach program with your nine to 13 year olds, you are going to give your kids an unbelievable jumpstart and an advantage in life. All right? So you don’t have to be an entrepreneur or a money wiz to teach the curriculum. The teacher’s guide is going to help you. It’s going to direct you through every step of the lessons and give you an opportunity to share your own ideas.

It’s also very adaptable to your own schedule. So you can build it into whatever it is your day looks like, all right? The Kingdom Code is going to equip your kids with valuable tools by using hands on activities and by teaching them entrepreneurship. I am a huge fan of being an entrepreneur. My husband and I have been entrepreneurs since we were married and I think it’s important.

Why? Why do we teach our kids entrepreneurship? Well, here’s the thing. It provides first hand experiences that build confidence and at the same time, you’re going to help your kids develop life skills, a positive work ethic. Hello! Sorely needed right now. Money skills and concern for others. The life lessons experienced by creating and building a business can contribute tremendously to their future success in life.

So let’s face it, you guys, all of our kids of course, are not going to be adult entrepreneurs, but it really doesn’t matter because the purpose of developing young entrepreneurs is to teach them life skills and money management skills that are best learned through firsthand experience.

So the Kingdom Code is the best and most comprehensive program on the marketplace for teaching young children about money management and life skills from a biblical perspective. And here’s the thing, write this down. You can visit thekingdomcode.com/heidi and they’re going to give you a coupon for free samples and 10% off your entire purchase. So remember you guys thekingdomcode.com/heidi.

All right, I want to get to your questions today. Mailbox Monday is filling up fast. I really appreciate hearing from you. We are getting a lot of questions about the culture, lots of questions about homeschooling. If you would like your question addressed here at Mailbox Monday, visit me online, heidistjohn.com/mailboxmonday.

And then what we do is, we group those questions and hopefully try to get to several different kinds every single Monday. And we’re going to begin bringing guests on to help answer your questions on Wednesdays, so lots of stuff going on here at the podcast. We’d love to hear from you, heidistjohn.com/mailboxmonday.

Here’s the first one. It comes from Christine. “Heidi, I want to thank you for your podcast. I started listening when someone posted a link to your podcast on yoga.” Christine, you are not alone. That yoga podcast has been the most downloaded podcast in the history of the Heidi St. John Podcast, so I’m glad you heard it.

“I was encouraged on two fronts. One, that you were speaking out against yoga, since it seems innocuous, but it’s not.” Absolutely true. “And two, that you were willing to say that you were wrong, but you changed your mind. I appreciate your humility and desire to follow God.”

Listen Christine, it’s really important for you to understand something about me. Because my life is very much in the public eye, particularly as it comes to the things that we address here at the podcast, I’m wrong a lot. And the Lord has been humbling me. I’ve been wrong in my parenting. Have you guys been wrong in your parenting? I’ve been wrong in my parenting.

I have been wrong in my marriage and the lord teaches us, I think, through failure, right? The key is humility and being able to say, “Okay, I was wrong.” Jay and I have a thing that we say a lot around the house and that is this, “Well that didn’t work.” Right? So we try something, it doesn’t work. What we want to do is continue to follow and honor God and that’s what I love about the listeners here at the podcast. I see a real desire to do that, so we’re walking in community with each other.

Christine goes on to say, “I’m not exactly sure how to phrase my question, but here it goes. I have noticed lately that the openness about the occult has increased. In the past year, two of my Facebook acquaintances have started to post things about witchcraft. I have decided to hide these posts as I don’t want to see them, but I’m not ready to unfriend someone in case they want to hear the gospel. I’m shocked that this openness seems to be okay and that there seems to be a normalization of the occult. So I’m wondering if you have noticed the same trend and how you think the church should respond.”

Well, the trend, it is trending and if you’ve noticed, I don’t know if you saw the news in Knoxville, but the satanic church in Knoxville is opening a satan club for children in one of the public schools in Knoxville. If you don’t believe me, I’ll link back to it in the show notes today. The occult is growing at the same time that this sexual indoctrination of our children has ramped up.

Why? Because the two of them are connected, right? This is Satan in the garden. You will not surely die. Right? Lying to parents, lying to children and desensitizing us to the danger that is the occult. So I heard from a kid the other day who said that he was playing again with Dungeons and Dragons, which hasn’t reared its ugly head for a long time.

You guys, Satan is real and the kingdom of darkness is real. The occult is dangerous and we need to teach our children that it’s dangerous. We shouldn’t be screwing around with things like Ouija Boards. It’s amazing to me. I did something that I would not recommend you guys doing, but I followed this thread the other day on Facebook from this satanic church in Knoxville, Tennessee. Little tiny Knoxville, Tennessee. People always tell me, “Oh, it’s not in the South.” Yes it is.

Okay, so little tiny Knoxville, Tennessee, and they are pushing to have this satanic club for children. And really you guys, they’re logo is a little cartoon goat. It’s terrifying. And they’re doing it under the guise of religious liberty. So now they’ve classified themselves as a church. And so as a church, they get nonprofit status. I mean, you guys can see where this is going, right?

We opened up the door to, in our country, to gay marriage. And when we did that, now we’ve got polyamory, which is coming on the scene, all manner of things. Also, you see a shocking rise in pedophilia at the same time that this fascination with the occult is rising. Why? Because they’re all connected.

So how does the church respond? That’s a great question. The church responds by teaching our people every single Sunday and throughout the week, how to interact with the culture through the grid of Scripture based on God’s word. So everything that we do should come from a position of biblical authority.

We don’t our answers for these things from the world. We get it from God’s Word. I’m going to recommend a couple of books to you. NavPress has a great book out, which I carry in the store and I’ll link back to it in the show notes today. It’s called Ask Me Anything. Ask Me Anything— and it’s fantastic.

They say it’s provocative answers for college students. Charles Colson said, “Crystal clear answers. No question is taboo. No issue is too hot.” I love this book because this guy is answering questions from a biblical worldview. So Ask Me Anything. It’s also a great primer for parents. So if you want to get ready to answer the tough questions for your kids, do your homework now. It’s so important. Never been more important.

Also, there’s another really great book by Bryan Osborne and Bodie Hodge called Quick Answers to Tough Questions. They’re talking about the bible as it relates to evolution and creation. The foreword was written by my friend Ken Ham. Absolutely fantastic. Also another great book, Grounded In the Faith by J.J., the foreword is by J.J. Packer. This book was written by an author named Kenneth Earisman and fantastic. Grounded In the Faith: An Essential Guide to Knowing What You Believe and Why.

And so the answer to your question Christine, is we inoculate our kids against the lies of the world, and at the same time, we’re inoculating ourselves by getting into the Word, which is why we started MomStrong International. To train you guys in the truth of God’s Word, to help you get off the bench and onto the battlefield.

Next question comes from a listener who wants to remain anonymous. She said, “Heidi, I’m leaning toward homeschooling and I want to. After listening to your encouraging podcast episodes and guest speakers, I really want to try. But I also work part-time and my hours change week to week. Any tips or thoughts? Thank you so much.”

So first of all, I also work. I know lots of people that work both inside and outside the home and this comes back to, are you ready for it? Where there’s a will, there’s a way. And I hear from parents all the time, you say, “Oh, I can’t do that.” You know what we’ve done with the school system? The school system in the United States of America is the great babysitter, right?

So we have our kids, “thank you Lord for giving us our kids” and then we drop them off. Okay, you guys raise them. I’m going to go to work and bring home the money. And the enemy has really made us dependent, I think in many regards, on the system, right? So we live and this is why contentment is so important. Again you guys, I can’t encourage you enough, head over to MomsStrongInternational, join us there. You’re going to grow and learn and be strengthened.

The culture has really conditioned us not to be content. So we got to have that huge house. We got to have two cars, really nice cars. So a lot of us are making car payments, we’re making house payments, we’re making payments to our credit cards. And what does that do? It enslaves us to money. And so then, we have to work.

Now I realize some of you are saying, well that’s not my situation. I have to work because of A, B, and C. So I’m not saying you’re wrong for working, but I am saying, “Oh my goodness you guys, we don’t need most of the stuff that we think we need.” And that’s the truth. And honestly, we’re sacrificing our kids to get it. And I’m not trying to hurt your feelings, so I’m going to let that sit.

So a couple things. First of all, I really do believe that we have a wrong idea also of homeschooling because we think it’s going to take us as many hours as traditional school does. And it’s simply, that’s just simply not the case. You can do in two hours a day, if you really put your mind to it, two to two and a half hours a day with your kids, what it takes the public school system or even a private school, traditional school, eight hours to do. It shouldn’t take that long.

And so a lot of parents that I know are, they’re linking arms with their friends. They’re saying, “Hey, will you watch my kid on Wednesday and Thursday afternoons when I have to go to work and then I’ll help you with this?” And, and I do think where there’s a will, there’s a way. These are our kids. And so pray about it. Ask the Lord. He will help you. But I want to say, it’s absolutely possible.

And frankly, for those of you who are working and homeschooling, go to heidistjohn.com/mailboxmonday and tell me how you’re doing it. And I will come back and read those responses because I think it’s a really important question. So thank you anonymous, for that question.

Angela. Hey Angela. Hey girl. Angela wrote, “I’m trying to do my homework and I’ve been praying about homeschooling for a while now. The more I hear about all the things that are going on in the public schools, the more I really want to try homeschooling, but I am terrified. I currently have a first and third grader, both boys. I am not that smart of a person, but I try hard and am determined to understand things. I think we’d be okay in elementary and possibly middle school, but when it comes to high school, I just worry about being able to equip them for college and all the other life lessons while being at home.”

So this is a great question, Angela. I love this question. First of all, I love that you just said that you’re terrified. First of all, I want to remind you, Luke 12 22:26. “Do not worry about your life or what you will eat or what about your body or what you will wear. Life is more important than food and the body more than clothes. Consider the ravens. They do not sow or reap and they have no storeroom or barn and yet, God feeds them. And how much more valuable you are than birds. Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to his life. Since you cannot do this very little thing, why do you worry about the rest?”

This is a great verse for homeschool moms who feel inadequate because I hear this a lot. People say to me, “Oh, I can’t do it. I’m not that smart.” Think about a system, you guys, that educates us to the point where we don’t think we can educate our own kids. They educate us and then we come out and go, “Yeah, I can’t do that.” Why not? They just educated us. We should be able to do that. Everyone knows that the student learns more, that the teacher learns more than the student.

And so I want to just encourage you not to let fear stand in your way. Psalm 27:1, “The Lord is my light and my salvation whom shall I fear? The Lord is the stronghold of my life, of whom shall I be afraid?” Psalm 52:22, “Cast your cares on the Lord and he will sustain you. He will never let the righteous fall.” So in some regards, this comes down to what we believe and who we trust.

And I just want to encourage you to trust the Lord of heaven’s armies. God will help you. Take the plunge and when your kids get into high school, I’m telling you what, you’re going to know by then. And for those of you who have high schoolers and you’re looking and going, “I just don’t know if they’re going to be socialized.” Believe me when I say, there are so many resources out there for homeschooling parents now. Your kids are not going to lack for socialization.

And homeschooling does not mean, you guys should write this down. Homeschooling does not mean that mom teaches every single subject. Usually when my kids get into high school, they’re involved in the homeschool co-op that we started. Now they’re here at the Firmly Planted Homeschool Resource Center. They’re taking things like chemistry and biology and algebra two and German and all kinds of fun things.

What homeschooling means is the parents are in charge of their child’s education. The parents are choosing how the kids are taught. The parents are choosing if they teach that subject or if they have a tutor teach it. The parents are the ones, not the school who says, “Here you go. This is what we’re teaching your child. Sorry if you don’t like it.”

All right? And so that’s the most important thing I think, for you to understand, particularly when it comes to your ability. A, I’m going to say don’t worry about tomorrow, your kids are little right now. And when tomorrow comes, believe me, God will give you the answers that you need. One thing I’ve learned about walking with the Lord these many years now, is that he’s rarely early, but he’s never late. He’s never late. And so God wants you to be encouraged.

One more really quick question. This is another anonymous. “My question is a fear of losing my children. I know every mother has some degree in fear of the loss of a child, but it eats my lunch. I’m afraid I’m going to outlive one or all of my children. I don’t know how I would move on from that kind of loss.”

Okay, so a couple things. You got to give this to the Lord, girl. Because we are instructed over and over again, I’m not trying to hurt your feelings, but this is disobedience on your part. Because the Lord instructs you over and over again, don’t worry about your life. Don’t be afraid. Put your trust in the lord, cast your cares on the lord. God says he’s our refuge and our strength. In the Bible, in Psalm 118, the Lord says, “I am with you. Don’t be afraid. What can man do to me?”

And you know why you don’t have the grace to deal with the loss of a child right now? Because it hasn’t happened to you. And if, God forbid, something like that were to happen, God would give you the grace. My husband and I have walked through many losses in our 30 years of marriage. I have walked through things that I thought, I don’t know how people stand up underneath this.

You know how they stand up underneath it? Because their foundation is secure. Their foundation is secure to the Lord. Their foundation is secure in the Lord. So don’t borrow trouble because what you’re doing really, is you’re borrowing trouble. So when that fear sets in and you start to think, “Oh my goodness”. And you can feel that spiral into anxiety, I’m so familiar with anxiety.

When you feel that spiral into anxiety, can I just encourage you? Worship is your weapon. Turn your worry into worship. Crank up the worship music, sing it out loud, turn your attention and your thoughts to the lord. Do not let yourself camp out on these thoughts of being afraid, right? Because that’s exactly where the enemy wants you to be.

Psalm 34, verse four says, “I prayed to the Lord and he answered me. He freed me from all my fears.” Isiah, 41:10, “So do not fear, for I am with you. Do not be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you. I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.” He doesn’t say, “I might uphold you if you do everything right.” He says, “I will uphold you.”

And then finally today, David’s encouragement, his admonition, his exhortation. In Psalm 56:3 he said, “When I am afraid, I put my trust in you.” I put my trust in you. I could go on and on and on. There’s so many verses in God’s word that deal with fear, but we know that Satan is a liar and he wants you to be afraid. And God said, “Do not be afraid. I will never leave you and never forsake you.”

And in fact, God will give you joy as you walk along this. So praise the lord that he gave you those children. Thank him for those children every single day that you have them and do not live in fear. That’s where the enemy wants you, not where the lord of heaven’s armies would have you be.

All right. My time is up today, you guys. Thank you so much for listening. If you want your questions addressed here at Mailbox Monday, go ahead and head on over to my website, heidistjohn.com/mailboxmonday and fill out the form there. Also, send us your Christmas cards. You can send them to me at Heidi St. John, care of Firmly Planted Family, 11100, Northeast 34th Circle, Vancouver, Washington 98682.

Want to let you guys know too, that up on the website now, we have the speak life necklace. This is a beautiful silver necklace in the shape of a baby in the womb. It’s absolutely stunning. It’s a great talking point and it’s a beautiful, it’s just a beautiful way to say that you stand for life.

You can find that at my website, the heidistjohnstore.com and you can get our off the bench t-shirt. You want people to know that you’re off the bench? I’d love to see these all over the nation. Head on over to my website and look up the off the bench t-shirt.

Also, one more thing. We have a really awesome thing happening this weekend at the Homeschool Resource Center. If you’re anywhere in the Vancouver area, tickets are going fast. We are doing the play, Anne of Green Gables. We’re doing Anne of Green Gables. It’s a great way, we’re doing it as a dessert theater. It’s a great opportunity, especially for you to bring your young girls and just have a date night.

And I’m telling you what, you guys are going to love it. You can go to fphrc.org for more information or give us a call at the Homeschool Resource Center. I hope you guys have a great day and I’ll see you back here on Wednesday. 

Write to Heidi:
Heidi St. John
c/o Firmly Planted Family
11100 NE 34th Cir, Vancouver, WA 98682

Support this ministry by donating through E-giving. You can also send donations to: 11100 NE34th Cir, Vancouver, WA 98682