Twenty-six years and some odd months ago, I was propped up in a hospital bed with my Bible open on my lap. Just the day before, I had given birth to our youngest child.
Madison.
We had planned her name through three pregnancies. Instead, had come Stephen and Benjamin. But now Madison was here, and I was afraid to give her the name we had set aside just for her. Too edgy for 1988 I thought. So for one short day, she was Elizabeth. The little lamb posted in the hospital nursery confirmed it, but the disappointment in her father’s voice told me it was a terrible mistake.
So there I sat with my Bible on my lap, and the Lord Jesus in his kindness led me to Psalm 127 where I read:
Behold, children are a heritage from the Lord,
the fruit of the womb a reward.
Like arrows in the hand of a warrior
are the children of one’s youth.
Of course, there is more… quivers-full and that sort of thing. At the time, with four children six and under, I thought our quiver to be quite full, but this is not a treatise on biblical family planning, so that’s a story for another day.
Madison – “Son – or in her case Daughter – of the Mighty Warrior”. I still have that little Elizabeth lamb (somewhere), but from that day on, our daughter’s name was Madison.
Fast forward twenty-three years. The children were all raised (yes, our quiver had indeed been full), and I was three years out from wrapping up a career as a special education teacher. Sandwiched between that career’s earlier start and that spring day in 2011, were years spent home schooling our own. I was now a grandma of a precious boy who had been diagnosed with a rare genetic disorder – the implications of which we were yet to know. I was weary of the ever changing world of the public school system and longing for the day when I could focus my energies on educating children – particularly those with special needs – on the foundation of godly principles.
Like arrows in the hand of a warrior
are the children of one’s youth.
Warriors.
Arrows.
Winsome Arrows.
With that, the seed was planted for Winsome Arrows Educational Services. It would be another three years before I could do anything more than run a very hit-or-miss blog, but once November 2013 came around and I walked out the door of my school for the last time, I began in earnest to establish a consulting business that offers support to special needs learners in the home, school, and church. My desire is to see quality educational options available for all children as they are brought up “in the nurture and admonition of the Lord”. (Ephesians 6:3) I hope to come alongside parents with strategies and encouragement as they seek this for their special needs learners. I want to help educate the staff and volunteers in private schools and churches so they grow in confidence as they open their doors to those with developmental, physical, or behavioral challenges. And I long to be a part of strengthening the arms of those on the front line as they prepare and launch their winsome arrows for flight Godward to make their mark upon the world.
So, please forgive this unabashed self-promotion and accept a warm invitation to meet me at Winsome Arrows. While you’re there, check out the services I offer parents, homeschool cooperatives, private schools, and churches. Stop by my blog or sign up for a free subscription to Winsome Ways (weekly low/no cost teaching tips delivered directly to your inbox) where I am actively seeking contributors to both. If nothing else, shoot me a message on my contacts page as I would love you hear how God is at work in your life.
Most of all, would you pray for me? My own flight’s path has not always been true, and I need those constant course corrections from our Master Archer. May I be a willing arrow in his hands.
