“Are you mom enough?” The haunting question hung in bold red text over a startling picture of a mother breastfeeding her four-year-old son on the May 2012 cover of Time Magazine. The issue hit newsstands and re-ignited a longstanding mommy war in American culture. We were ready to respond from a Christian perspective at desiring-God.org—but only barely.” (quote taken from the Editor’s Preface in the book Mom Enough: The Fearless Mother’s Heart and Hope edited by Tony and Karalee Reinke.)

I recently read this short book, which was a compilation of the most popular blog posts written by eight women on the Desiring God blog. The chapters explore the daily trials and worries of motherhood. As I was reading, much of what was said hit home to me as a homeschooling mom. The same question could be tweaked to ask: Are you “homeschooling mom” enough?

Here are a few nuggets from the book that I found helpful:

Motherhood is not a hobby, it’s a calling. You do not collect children because you find them cuter than stamps. You do not raise children if you can squeeze the time in.  Motherhood is what God gave you time for. ~Rachel Jankovic, page 2

Think about the feeding of the five thousand when the disciples went out and rounded up the food that was available. It wasn’t much. Some loaves. Some fish. Think of some woman pulling her fish out and handing it to one of the disciples. Her offering must have felt small. But the important thing about those loaves and those fishes was not how big they were, but whose hands they were given into. In the hands of the Lord, the offering was sufficient. More than sufficient. Even then, there were leftovers. Given in faith, even a small offering becomes great. Look at your children in faith, and see how many people will be ministered to by your ministering to them. How many people will your children know in their lives? How many grandchildren are represented in the young faces around your table now? –Rachel Jankovic, pages 6-7

These quotes seem to particularly hit home when it comes to being a homeschooling mom, too. Ever feel like the effort you put forth to educate them in any given day is never enough? I need to remind myself, just as Rachel states above, that even a small offering becomes great in the hands of the Lord. All the math lessons, writing essays, and books read will all add up to a well-rounded education one day. It doesn’t seem like much when we offer up one 20 minute math lesson to the Lord and ask Him to use it turn our child into a learner. But if we keep laying out our small offerings time and time again, the Lord will make it grow into something that is more than sufficient.

So, the question remains…are you “mom enough” to educate your children? Do you have what it takes to see your children grow in wisdom and knowledge? The following quote from Rachel Pieh Jones reminds us that we never were, nor will we ever be “mom enough.”

I am not mom enough. Never was, never will be…This war isn’t about me being “mom enough.” This war is about God being “God enough.”…God always has been, and always will be, God enough. The battle is over, whether or not I believe it, and whether or not I delight in God’s enough-ness….Never mom enough, but filled with the One who is always enough. –Rachel Pieh Jones, pages 20-21

So this week when you pull out the math textbook or sight word flashcards (again), remember that it’s your job to bring the one small fish and watch Him turn it into a feast.