What's that supposed to mean?

"looking intently into the law"

James 1:25

Well, I think this is going to be an interesting follow-up to yesterday's post, although I didn't plan it that way.  But that's one of God's tactics, isn't it?

So I got to work today studying Awesome Girl's science textbooks for the coming year.  And I got to thinking about the most-frequently-asked question of students everywhere:  "Why do I have to learn this; am I ever gonna use this information??"  I find this question easier to answer when it comes to math, than I do other subjects.  Even without a career in, I don't know.... engineering or something, I use math every day.  Baking, shopping, trip-planning, budgeting, etc.  Math is everywhere.

But I think with subjects like science and history, it's harder for kids to understand why they need to know what they are being taught.   If they're not planning on being a historian, or a scientist, what meaning does this material have for their lives?

Now, for one thing, there is learning to be learned from learning.  {Say that five times fast!}  Taking the steps of reading, taking notes, discussing and memorizing information is good for your brain.   School teaches perseverance, focus, goal-setting, and organization, along with the subjects themselves.

But I do want my kids to take something concrete away from every subject they study.  And today I realized that I could apply the same learning process to any subject, that I apply to learning the Bible.

And that way of studying is to read something, and then ask:

• What does this say?
• What does it mean?
• What does it mean to me?

I don't know when I learned this approach to reading the Bible, but it makes all the difference.  I talked yesterday in this forum about the difference between reading and studying, and this is part of it.  This is a wonderful approach to thinking about what you've read.   Let's look at the ever-popular John 3:16.

"For God so loved the world, He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life."   What does that say?  It says that God is love and that He loves us so much that He sent His only Son to earth, to die, and that whoever believes in Him will live eternally.  What does it mean?  It means the difference between life and death.  What does it mean to me?  It means that I have a choice, and my choice will determine my eternity.

I want to teach my kids that history, and science, and math are indeed applicable to their daily lives.   Science is about the earth they live on, and the plants and animals with whom they share the planet.  History is about the world they live in, how the peoples and cultures around them came to be.  But more than that, I want them to know that God's Word is applicable to their lives ~ every day, in unexpected situations.  His Word is science and math and history and music and art and family and wisdom and joy. And the sooner we understand that, the sooner we can apply it to our lives.

~ "Whoever looks intently 

into the perfect law that gives freedom,

 and continues in it

 ~ not forgetting what they have heard, but doing it ~ 

they will be blessed in what they do" ~

James 1:25