Who Gets the Credit?

"A man's pride shall bring him low: but honour shall uphold the humble in spirit" (Proverbs 29:23).

Feeling pride in my son's accomplishment of graduating summa cum laude from a state university wasn't difficult. As a homeschooling parent, watching my son receive his degree in anthropology was the culmination of years of schooling. No parents could have been prouder, and we rejoiced in our son's outstanding achievement. The years of homeschooling had been worth the sacrifice, and my son's award proved again that a child could be successfully educated at home.

As I thought about the days, hours, and minutes involved in homeschooling my son, I realized God was the One who should receive the greatest award. Without His loving care, protection, and provision, we would have never survived homeschooling. God's loving guidance and wisdom taught countless lessons that were never recorded on my son's report card, and the many extracurricular opportunities my son enjoyed were divinely orchestrated by God's loving hand. God knew my son's hands-on learning and creative enthusiasm would have been stifled in public school. By convicting me to homeschool, God kept my son from joining the ranks of bored underachievers. "Yes, God should be taking the credit today," I thought to myself. "He kept every one of His promises and was everything we needed as we homeschooled."

During times of success and recognition, it's easy to forget God. The story of Herod in Acts 12:20-23 is a perfect example. Not only did he steal God's glory, Herod went one step further and took credit for being God. Allowing the people of Tyre and Sidon to praise and worship him, Herod did nothing when they began shouting, "It is the voice of a god, and not of a man" (vs. 22). Herod's haughtiness and pride led to a surprising and sudden death: "And immediately the angel of the Lord smote him, because he gave not God the glory: and he was eaten of worms, and gave up the ghost" (vs. 23).

Are you tempted to puff yourself up and take credit for your child's educational success? Even though you've invested time and effort, God is the One who is going before you. He gives creativity to your lesson plans, spiritual insights to apply His Word, and the resources and physical health to accomplish each day's tasks. Simply said, your homeschooling is nothing without God. "But he that glorieth, let him glory in the Lord" (2 Corinthians 10:17).

Father, forgive me when I steal Your glory. You alone deserve the praise for what our homeschooling family has become. Today, we lift our voices in thanksgiving for Your goodness and love. In Jesus' name, Amen.