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Dripping Springs Weekly Bulletins
Our Dedicated, Memorable Teachers
Many of us remember fondly those who taught our Bible classes when we were children. Whether male or female we recall lessons that had an impact on our lives. What makes a teacher memorable?
Is it their knowledge? Is it their personal interest in us? Their way of telling the stories? Consider the following acrostic that seeks to discover what makes a Bible teacher great in our eyes.
TEACHABLE: It is axiomatic that we cannot teach that which we do not know. Therefore, for a Bible teacher to be effective, he/she must know the Bible. We may seek easier ways to come to that knowledge, but soon we discover that an “easy” way just does not exist. The word “study” implies hard work and much time spent in learning. Paul wrote to Timothy: “Study to show thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth,” 2 Timothy 2:15. The key to that verse is the word “study,” indicating the need to be “diligent, to exert one’s self, to labor.” Teachers must first be willing to work hard to learn.
EXAMPLE: We know the value of example, and probably that should be the first lesson a teacher learns. Students, young and old, observe a teacher’s conduct to see how they should behave. A teacher will not be perfect, but a teacher must be aware of the eyes of those whom they teach. In Luke 6:39-40 Jesus emphasizes this precept:
“And he spake also a parable unto them, Can the blind guide the blind? Shall they not both fall into a pit? The disciple is not above his teacher; but every one when he is perfected will be as his teacher,” Luke 6:39-40 (ASV).
This may be part of the reason behind the warning in James 3:1 that speaks of the higher standard by which the teacher shall be judged. A teacher’s example is as important as his/her ability and preparation to teach.
ATTITUDE: We may not realize this truth, but a person’s attitude is one of the first things we notice about them. A teacher approaches any task with an attitude that has been shaped during all of their previous years. It does not change overnight, nor does that attitude become a good attitude merely by the fact that we are appointed to teach. We reflected on the need for diligence in study, but if the teacher considers his/her knowledge as already being sufficient, they will feel no motivation to study.
A teacher leads a group of students down a certain path, such path being determined by the teacher’s attitude toward their task.
If you need an attitude adjustment, take care of that before you become a teacher.
COMMITMENT: Some five centuries before Christ, a scribe named Ezra led his people back home from captivity. He knew the importance of his work, and before he began he is said to have made this commitment: “Ezra had prepared his heart to seek the law of the Lord, and to do it, and to teach in Israel statutes and judgments,” Ezra 7:10.
He was a leader, a scribe, a priest – and also a teacher. A strong commitment was essential, and Ezra made that commitment after having “prepared his heart” to be what he needed to be. Good teachers are committed to God’s truth, to proper preparation, to an exemplary life and doing what it takes to be a teacher.
HUMOR: A teacher learns pretty quickly the value of a sense of humor. If you cannot laugh with others, the task of teaching will be a virtual impossibility. In Matthew 7:1-5 Jesus drew a word picture of a man who was rebuking a person who had a small speck in his eye, though he himself had a “beam”, or a log in his own eye. You know Jesus’ lesson, but that picture must have been pretty funny, at least to those within the sound of His voice.
The ability to laugh at one’s self is of great value. We all make mistakes, but if we bristle at the discovery of that mistake, we will lose the respect of our students. A teacher must be flexible, filled with love – and a sense of humor.
ENTHUSIASM: How important is a teacher’s work? The enthusiasm you exhibit to your students and others reveals just how important it is to you and how it should be to them. The root word of “enthusiasm” includes God’s name and an attitude of fervor, energy, zeal and passion. Teachers, to be effective, must be enthusiastic.
RELATIONSHIPS with people: Having pondered the previously mentioned qualities of teachers, we realize the importance of the teacher knowing how to deal with people – both collectively and as individuals.
Honesty stands opposed to any form of “politics” or self-serving motives. Teaching is not merely standing before a group of people and expounding facts. It involves relationships that strengthen both the teacher and the student.
We have excellent teachers here, and are stronger because of them. We thank God for our teachers and their work!
Carl B. Garner
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He is the First and the Last
If I knew it would be the last time that I'd see you fall asleep, I would tuck you in more tightly and “pray the Lord your soul to keep.”
If I knew it would be the last time that I see you walk out the door, I would give you a hug and kiss and call you back for one more.
If I knew it would be the last time I'd hear your voice lifted up in praise, I would video tape each action and word so I could play them back day after day.
If I knew it would be the last time, I could spare an extra minute or two to stop and say "I Love You!" instead of assuming you would know I do…..if I knew it would be the last time, I would be there to share your day. Well, I'm sure you'll have so many more, so I can let just this one slip away.
For surely there's always tomorrow to make up for an oversight, And we always get a second chance to make everything right. There will always be another day to say our "I Love You's," and certainly there's another chance to say our "Anything I can do's?"
But just in case I might be wrong and today is all I get, I'd like to say how much I love you and hope we never forget.
Tomorrow is not promised to anyone, young or old alike. And today may be the last chance you get to hold your loved one tight.
So, if you're waiting for tomorrow, why not do it today?
For if tomorrow never comes, you'll surely regret today, that you didn't take that extra time for a smile, a hug, or a kiss, and you were too busy to grant what turned out to be someone’s last wish.
So, hold your loved one close today, and whisper in their ear. Tell them how much you love them, and that you'll always hold them dear. Take time to say "I'm sorry," "Please forgive me," "Thank you," or "It's okay", And if tomorrow never comes, you'll have no regrets about today
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