Day three:  Genesis 2:15-17 and 3:1-13 tells of Satan’s offer to Eve.  It was a good offer to her, I believe, because she saw wisdom as a good thing.  She probably wanted to know what God knew so she could be closer to him.  This was a good thing in her eyes.  I doubt she sat and thought about  just what wisdom she would gain but saw a chance to learn from God.  This is very appealing – exactly what Satan was going for.  My primary sources of input in my life are: spouse, music, co-workers, books, tv, friends, family.  I believe I am careful in some areas about evaluating the input and seeking to discern Truth from error and not so careful in other areas.  I do tend to run most information through God in prayer but I don’t run my actions and habits through prayer.  I have friends I love dearly that I will swirl downward into gossip without a moment’s hesitation.  I don’t even realize what’s happening until the conversation is finished.  I guard my ears by only listening to Christian music.  But, error can creep in from many sources and I don’t always recognize it.  A time when I made a wrong choice without stopping to consider the cost and the consequences: there have been so many.  LOL  A major one happened when we first moved to Iowa.  I was a sahm with a 6 mth old son and my husband worked all day managing a restaurant.  He provided for us and we had everything we needed.  However, I was bored.  I had no friends and I was in a new city.  My son was getting older and more interested in playing with toys.  So, what would a new mom do?  Why, get him toys of course.  Lots and lots and lots of them.  Toys he played with once or twice.  Decorate the room he didn’t use.  Take him shopping just to get out of the house and buy just because it seemed like I could possibly use this in the future.  I went nuts.  The next thing I knew, we were $20,000 in debt with no way of getting out.  We wanted to buy a house.  Not a chance.  It felt too good to come home with bags filled with stuff.  If something broke slightly, replace it.  If something didn’t fit exactly right, get a new one.  If it just was really pretty, I deserve this.  I love getting gifts and this was my way of passing the time and making the move easier for me.  I’d often hide things from my husband only to tell him about them weeks later.  “Oh, I’ve had this for awhile.”  I knew I shouldn’t spend like that but no one told me to stop it.  Satan told me over and over how good I would feel if I just bought that one thing.  My son would play for hours on end and I could get projects completed if I just got this bouncy thing.  My son’s IQ would rise if I would just get him his own computer.  Oh, and it hooks up to the tv so of course you need a bigger one of those.  It never ended and I listened to every word.  I believed that my son was too small to realize what was happening.  I believed that my husband wouldn’t be affected if I just didn’t tell him.  I paid the bills so what was the big deal.  What I needed to do was confess to my husband what I was doing and why.  He needed to hear that I was struggling and needed his help.  I didn’t want to bother him but I had no one else to turn to so continued that path.  I needed to remember that God will provide what I need and I needed to learn contentment.  Even now, I hear Satan and others telling me I need a new house.  “The one you have is good for now but you’ll need one as the children grow.  The rooms will need to get bigger and there will be the vehicles to think about.  You should do this now rather than wait.”  I have to constantly remind myself that when/if it’s time to get a new house, God will provide a way to sell this one.  I need to wait for His timing not mine.  Currently, I hear deceit in the area of homeschooling.  I have people telling me that my children “need more math” or “can’t read.”  I know this is so beyond not true it’s laughable.  But, it hurts me.  These statements tell me that I’m not doing it “right” and that i’m not capable of knowing if there’s a problem with my child.  They demean my self confidence and make me doubt the path God has laid for my family.  These come from Satan and not from God.  I know God wants us to homeschool our children.  We have been in constant prayer about this path since our children were born and there is no doubt this is where they belong.  I know these kids.  They are smart, creative, capable, independent, loving, cooperative (most of the time), thoughtful, imaginative children that usually act more like short adults than other kids their age.  These people don’t know my kids.  They see them MAYBE once a year.  How in the world do they know they need more math?  They take apart computers and reprogram them with several operating systems.  How in the world do they know they need reading help?  They are currently reading several chapter books at once and love to tell the rest of the family what’s happening in the story.  They write their own stories and illustrate them all day if we didn’t have other things to accomplish.  They are great people.  These are children of God and they deserve the respect of others – adult or child.  I need to remember that and know in my heart that these people mean well and truly want the best for my kids.  Their best and my kids’ best are obviously not the same thing.  I will stick with God’s best for them – no matter the comments that hurt.