Friday, September 4, 2009

Obama's address to the student's

So I'm hearing this debate all over the radio and T.V. about "Should you let your child watch the Obama stay in school speech".  So I decided it was time for me to write my first ever blog and have it pertain to this issue. 

I send my child to a government funded public school. I'm called three times, with a recorded message from the school board and school, and they tell me that I can opt out of, letting my child watch the President of the United States, address the students. Of course my moral values prompt me to say "Of course I will opt out, because President Obama will be using this, encouraging speech, to put his political views and immoral values on my child". Then as I got to thinking about it, praying about it and researching what the speech is suppose to be about and I thought "I will absolutely let him watch it". Now of course people are thinking, "it's because it's a stay in school speech" or "you don't want him to get treated different if he's taken to a seperate area of the school" but that is not the case at all. Our 5th grade son is the third child that we have had go through the public school system and we have seen so much influence on our children through this system. Our children, as early as elementary school, are exposed to media, sex, drugs and other people's moral values that are different than ours almost everyday in the public school system and then I think, "My work is about reaching people who struggle with these issues and I am exposed to these influences almost everyday too, and because I surround myself with Godly wisdom I'm able to be strong and influence the people I reach out to."  So I decided that I will let him watch this speech, because if I don't, there will be people with strong political and moral values that are different than my own and they will be certain to expose my child to their opinion. If I don't allow him to watch it, then how will I be able to discuss with him what is "right" or "wrong" about the speech. President Obama has earned enough  of my trust that I'm pretty sure he will not go and say outrageous things that would just shock my child. (Regular T.V. shows and commercials do well at that all by themselves) So I will review the speech on Monday and the lessons that they want to teach and I will talk to my child about the speech and lessons when he comes home from school on Tuesday. If James and I as parent's are not the main influence in our son's life then there are others who will want to step in in do it for us and I'm certain it's not one's we would approve of either. If this speech was all I had to worry about being the influence in our son's life going to public school then I would be jumping for joy. Now don't get me wrong, I'm not saying I want our 10 year old son to be exposed to things like evolution, teacher's opinions, other children who want to express their values and opinions because they have parents who are non conservative or have no relationship with Jesus but since he does go to a government funded public school it's going to happen, so we have to make sure that we teach and instill our faith and moral values to him and make sure that we, along with the wise, Godly people we surround ourselves with are the people that he looks up to for guidance and wisdom on all the issues that he will be exposed to for the rest of his life. I look forward to Tuesday's speech and discussing it with my son.