"The well-trained mind"

I've recently dove into this book, my friend Cynthia mentioned it being an excellent home-school resource. The Author is Jessie Wise and Susan Wise Bauer, in case you wanted that info. Any way, it has been so good for me. As I suspected, I do not have a well trained mind, in fact I am prone to mental laziness. The book didn't define that for me, but in desiring for my children to have what the book is describing, it was clear to see where I was lacking, and the Holy Spirit convicted me of such mental laziness. It has been so good to have such a conviction. Our pastor used a quote recently about conviction, I must share it.

“What is conviction of sin? It is not an oppressive spirit of uncertainty or paralyzing guilt feelings. Conviction of sin is the lance of the divine Surgeon piercing the infected soul, releasing the pressure, letting the infection pour out. Conviction of sin is a health-giving injury. Conviction of sin is the Holy Spirit being kind to us by confronting us with the light we don’t want to see and the truth we’re afraid to admit and the guilt we prefer to ignore. Conviction of sin is the severe love of God overruling our compulsive dishonesty, our willful blindness, our favorite excuses. Conviction of sin is the violent sweetness of God opposing the sins lying comfortably undisturbed in our lives. Conviction of sin is the merciful God declaring war on the false peace we settle for. Conviction of sin is our escape from malaise to joy, from attending church to worship, from faking to authenticity. Conviction of sin, with the forgiveness of Jesus over our wounds, is life.” Ray Ortlund, Jr – Commentary on Isaiah

Isn't that great!!

So back to what I was saying, I am a "hard worker" by definition. I can't think of anyone who knows me that would be even tempted to say "That Appollo Schloss, she's lazy!" B/c my physical work ethic is "well-trained" and has been for most of my life. God used my parents who are hard workers to spur this in me and other physically demanding activities such as athletics to train me. Not to mention being the wife of a military man, filling Mike's shoes in his absence however short or long is not an easy task. But I can't say so much for my mental life. B/c I'm the only one who knows of it, I'm the only one I'm accountable to. I started bad habits for this early in my life, being perceptive enough to know exactly what I needed to do just to get by in school, and other activities. Leaving this area unchallenged for much of my life. I can tell taking on the project of home-schooling is not going to allow for such sluggish mental behavior. And why should it? If I am expecting my children to perform in such a manner, why shouldn't I lead by example. So please pray for me as I am newly aware of this need for change in my life, and not exactly sure where to start implementing changes, as I see such a great need in many areas. I know God's grace is sufficient and He will supply my every need. He is so kind like that!