Thomas Pollack Anshutz
"I am a part of everything that I have read."
God made us people of words- Jesus calls himself "The Word." Words have power to give life, to inspire, to make wise, to teach, to transform and to redeem. How important it is that you become the conductor of godly influence in your children's lives by exposing them to the best people who have ever lived. Reading hundreds of biographies to my children established a foundation of understanding leadership and greatness because their souls were bathed in spiritual and character richness. I agree with Teddy Roosevelt, my children are indeed a part of everything that they read.
To have read them hundreds of books automatically meant I couldn't do other things--I used very little traditional "school" curriculum. It was a choice of faith. Everything I read about all studies of what created intelligence in children, what built vocabulary, what created great thinking, pointed to reading great books, insightful authors and capturing imaginations with great literature.
Because I wanted to expose my children to the best writers, stories and thinkers, I built their education on these principles. If I was going to homeschool, I wanted to capture the imaginations and interests of my children. But I also wanted to seek to cultivate what was best spiritually, morally, and mentally for my children. And so I took a step of faith and used read books instead of age-graded books.
Of course each year, each child would accomplish one grade of math according to their age, but apart from that and hand-writing appropriate materials, and simple short grammar lessons, all of the rest of our formal schooling was accomplished through reading outloud, discussing and writing about great books. I looked for boy books and girl books that all of my children could read and become inspired by living with the words of these stories. Today, I know you will love hearing about 2 newish books that my friend recently shared with me.
Have you ever wished there was a book that could inspire your "young man" with real live heroes? Eric Metaxas's new book, Seven Men, and the Secret of Their Greatness, is historical, inspiring and riveting. The perfect book to read as a family, little by little, to discuss each man and his decisions, attributes and decisions that influenced the outcome of his life.. (Or to give to a graduate, or read to your young son.) In this day and age, all of us need to hear biographies of really great men who finished well.
Young adults these days are facing a culture that is constantly changing it's moral compass and lacks models of integrity and courage. Eric Metaxas, New York Times best selling Author of Bonhoeffer, has just come out with this incredible book our whole family loved and I wholeheartedly endorse. 7 Men and The Secret of their Greatness, will not disappoint you!
It is a collection of short biographies of George Washington, William Wilberforce, Eric Liddell, Deitrich Bonhoeffer, Jackie Robinson, Pope John Paul II, and Charles Colson. You will find in it's pages seven Godly men who followed God's destiny for their lives and how each man's choices impacted history. I know you will enjoy it as much as we did. This is a book you'll want to add to your home library.
This Father's Day I gave my husband a book that has been long over due for Father's to share with their sons. As a mom, one of my roles is to scout out helps for my busy husband to use as a jumping off point for conversations.
I hit a gold mine when I came across a new book by best selling author Tommy Newberry and Curt Beavers, I Call Shotgun. This is a compilation of 64 letters written by 3 godly men to their sons. Just a few of the titles are... Value your time, Appreciate What You Have, Seek God First Everyday, Celebrate Other People's Success,
If you want to raise young men with godly character, intentionally influencing them is a must and this is a great way to start. This is a fabulous book for teenage sons and Dad's. (I am even sending it to Nathan and Joel to read!) I love the biblical principles laid out in such a personal way. It shares a father 's caring heart to mentor his son without being preachy. Moms, this is a great handbook for fathers who want to pass on wisdom to their sons and aren't sure how to go about it.