Month: January 2021

Ephesians 4:11-12 says, “And He Himself gave some to be apostles, some prophets, some evangelists, and some pastors and TEACHERS, for the equipping of the saints for the work of ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ” Those who are called by God to be teachers have that directive straight from God. However, to become a certified teacher for a public school, you must prove mastery in the subject you will teach. This usually means at least four years of college and some internship time. But no matter how many hours of college you attend, books you read, or times you watch “The Ron Clark Story”, a teacher learns the most from other teachers. We pass the torch through example, and comfort the new ones as they are shaped by their inevitable mishaps and mistakes. I was so blessed to have two aunts in my family, who were teachers, to inspire me, but I was doubly blessed to be placed next to some wise and patient mentors my first 3 years of teaching. They were my inspiration, my sounding board, and my comforters. Thank you, God, for each of them!

Today, I had the honor of learning from a very seasoned teacher. A wise person once told me that if a seasoned person speaks, you should listen with every bone in your body. But it wasn’t hard to listen to this woman. I hung on her every word. I knew I needed to soak up any wisdom she was willing to offer. This woman, affectionately termed “Grandma” by so many, is so full of God that her words come out in song most of the time. The Holy Spirit will do that to you…fill you up so that you are bursting forth a melody that touches everyone.

Her teaching began with some familiar methods that everyone would do well to incorporate into every part of their life; giving value to every idea big or small, encouraging us to use our voices and be brave, pushing us to think beyond what we thought we knew. Then, she did something I didn’t expect. She caused us to look at ourselves through another’s eyes in the form of a simple interview. The second question was monumental…”When did you accept Christ?” Someone was asking me what my story was.

It occurred to me that I have not told you, my dear readers, my story…so here it is:

I was six years old. I know it sounds young, but I was a highly curious child and already asking the harder and deeper questions at that age. My mother was always willing to answer my questions and tried to give me as much information as I could handle. We were driving down the road in our old pickup truck. The windows were down and a nice warm breeze was blowing in. I don’t know how the conversation started, but it somehow led to me wondering how I could make sure I go to heaven someday because it sounded so wonderful. My mother didn’t miss a beat as she explained that I only had to ask Jesus into my heart, to be my Lord, and I would be saved.

“…if you confess with your mouth Jesus as Lord, and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved;” Romans 10:9 NKJV

By the way, the best answer to any question is one that can be backed by Scripture. Thank you, God, for my mother! Right there on the bench seat of that pickup, in my jean overalls, I bowed my little head and closed my little eyes. I asked God to come into my heart and be my Lord. The moment I whispered those words, a fatherly voice gently and clearly said, “You are a child of God.” Although I was blessed with a wonderful earthly father, this was my heavenly Father speaking the most beautiful words I will ever hear.

Today, I learned that to be a teacher, we must know who we are first. Not our position in our job, our political affiliation, our socioeconomic status, or our level of sports interest…who we are in our soul. Only then, can we be the teacher God expects us to be.

Two of my students came to visit me today. They are twin boys and one is in my biology class, while the other is in my robotics class. They really just needed to pick up a kit for the robotics class, but their mother asked if the teachers were there so they could say hello. What a sweet gesture! Three of us were able to come to the front right away. It was like finding out that a celebrity had entered the building. We gathered around them and giggled like little kids because we were so glad to see students up close. Everyone was smiling and there was this electricity in the air. It was the best moment of the day.

Wow, did we ever need such a pleasant surprise today. We had just that morning sat in disbelief as our administration apologetically delivered the news that our district had come up with another of their never ending idiotic schemes. I say idiotic because I cannot think of another word that better describes the severely misguided decisions of people who are ignorant to the benefits of looking first in the direction of wisdom. They have turned their backs on God and they never consult the field experts (teachers) who are in the trenches every day and understand the students better than anyone, with the obvious exception of parents.

Today we were told that we must give the students 3 weeks of no instruction, allow them to make up ten assignments and base their grade for the semester on those ten assignments only. This is such a slap in the face to all the students who have trudged through this craziness for an entire semester and worked hard on every assignment, even when they felt like giving up. Now, the ones who chose to do nothing will still be rewarded with potentially an A and the message that they don’t need to work hard anymore because someone will always bail them out and do it for them.

At a recent City Elders dinner in Tulsa, a man was giving an illustration of socialism that resonated with me tremendously. He talked about two men, one who goes to work five days a week and one who sleeps on a park bench all day. The worker makes $100 a day. Society says the worker can live just as comfortably on $50 and decides to take his other $50 and give it to the man on the park bench, who chooses to do nothing to contribute to society. However, the worker sees that the park bench guy still gets money for doing nothing and realizes that he likes the park bench guy’s job much more. The worker quits his job and joins the guy on the bench. Now both don’t work and will have their pay pulled from someone else who works all week. That’s socialism. But what happens when everyone feels they deserve the park bench too? When we hand these children a diploma without any effort on their part, are we not merely training them for socialism? How sad.

Proverbs 28:19-20 says, “A hard worker has plenty of food, but a person who chases fantasies ends up in poverty. The trustworthy person will get a rich reward, but a person who wants quick riches will get into trouble.” These kids are headed for some big trouble in so many ways.

In this age of instant gratification, it is no surprise that people are now trying to find ways to appease the cries of our youth with unearned grades and certificates. Anything to stop their moaning and wailing. Oh no, you’re upset again because your teachers are asking you to do homework? Here, let me just put some A’s in the gradebook. Does that bring you happiness? I have seen the other side of homework and I can testify that they do forgive you and end up having more respect for you down the road when they are able to understand what their college professor or supervisor is telling them. We have to help our children. We have to love them enough to make them work hard and learn to wait, or we are helping raise a generation of poor fools.