Good Prophets in Skirts
by Denise Sproul

Throughout this issue we have been stressing that we need to be prophets, not exactly like in the Bible—directly speaking God's newly revealed words to His people—but in bringing the Word of God to bear in people's lives. While we are not at all egalitarian about men's and women's roles, we need not be afraid to affirm that women too are called to be prophets. All of us are to be prophets as Christians — the question is: to whom are we to be prophetic? The very purpose of having authority over another is so that the Word of God can be brought to bear. When God places us, under our husband's authority, as authorities in the lives of our children, that means we are to proclaim the Word to them, washing them with it. All of us as Christians should be working on our sanctification — striving with the Holy Spirit's help to be more like Christ. When we have authority over someone, as husbands do with wives or as parents do with children, we are responsible for proclaiming God's Word to those loved ones, helping them to see what God has in mind when He tells us to be imitators of Christ.

We sometimes are tempted to mold our daughters into our own image, rather than the image of Christ. There's nothing wrong with our daughters enjoying the same things we do, whether it's music or cross—stitch, art or cooking; such, however, should not be our goal. We shouldn't be striving to make them into a junior 'us.' We want to see our daughters become women of God and our sons men of God, mighty warriors in His kingdom, more righteous than we. We should be ever vigilant in keeping that as our goal, not in the sense of trying to hurry them through growing up, but in having the end result that we and God desire ever before us. The means to the end of raising godly seed is the application of the Word to our children's lives.

How do you apply the Word? First, under your husband's authority, the Bible must be the center, the foundation, the end and the beginning of your homeschool. That doesn't mean that every single math problem has to have the explanation that, "This is orderly, sensible and the same every time because God is orderly, logical and immutable." Such, however, should be forefront in their thinking because you have talked about it regularly and have that understanding as the basis of all they are learning. Talk regularly about how your desire for them to read well is so that they can read and understand God's Word. When you pray each day before you give them their lessons, you can ask God to help the children do their best for God's glory and so that they can continually learn to know, love and serve Him better. Isn't that the purpose for which we are teaching them at home?

Secondly, God's Word needs to be spoken in the context of discipline. Every time we discipline one of our children, we need to remind him in prayer and instruction that God's Word requires discipline for disobedience, that the child might be conformed to the image of Christ, learning to repent of sin and desiring reconciliation with the one offended and with Christ. You need to help him understand, through consistency, lack of anger and verbal reminders that, "Mommy is not disciplining you because your screaming hissy fit got on her nerves, but because God's Word says we are to do all things without grumbling or complaining." We would all do well to remember that discipline is not just for times of correction, but for times of encouragement and edification. We need to speak weal to them as well as woe. We don't say, "I'm so glad you didn"t throw a hissy fit because you know that gets on my nerves." Instead try, "We are called in the Bible to have a gentle and quiet spirit, I'm so grateful to God when you show forth that trait as you did this afternoon." Especially with traits that you as their mother know are not their strong points or that they've been working on, it is important to verbally tell them when you notice them doing the right thing. What an encouragement and sign of love to them when they know that both God and Mom and Dad notice!

Third, the Word must be central to your conversation (which means you need to be spending lots of time in it yourself.) When we look at the stars we speak to our children, even if they are too little or incapacitated to understand, and say, "See how the heavens declare the glory of God? Isn't that wonderful?" I remember when our daughter Delaney was learning the first few questions of the catechism, she would regularly say something like," God made me! And He made that tulip, and the slide, and my baby doll!" What a terrific thing when our children learn through God's Word about His world and His wonderful care for them. In teaching them to memorize Scripture so that it is a constant reminder and encouragement to them we have found several sources to be helpful in schooltime and during family worship; they are For Instruction in Righteousness by Doorposts and the Memlock Bible memory system.

It may sound strange, but you can also decorate with Scripture — from framed prints of verses to cards you've written out and posted in conspicuous places for yours and others' edification. It's difficult for me to be down while washing dishes when I look up and see my index card that says, "A merry heart makes a cheerful countenance, but by sorrow of the heart the spirit is broken." (Proverbs 15:13).

We need to remember, as with the prophets in Scripture, that our authority is derived, that we are to speak the words and the wisdom God has given us, not our own thoughts and guesses. And when we do this, we do not speak with timidity. We are not being feminine when we sprinkle with the Word rather than scrub with it. We are to be bold as the prophets of old.