What Difference Can a Teacher Make?

Carey Kinsolving
Sun, 05 Oct 2014 21:00:00 -0700
Lifestyle

"A teacher can make a difference by giving less homework, 10 extra minutes for recess, extra field trips and five popcorn parties a day," says Sara, 10.

If kids could vote for and serve as school board members, Sara would win easily.

"Teachers help us learn skills for later on in life," says Rachel, 11. "I want to be a paleontologist."
Updated: Mon Oct 06, 2014

"A teacher can make a difference by giving less homework, 10 extra minutes for recess, extra field trips and five popcorn parties a day," says Sara, 10.

If kids could vote for and serve as school board members, Sara would win easily.

"Teachers help us learn skills for later on in life," says Rachel, 11. "I want to be a paleontologist."

Without teachers, you might not even know how to spell "paleontologist."

"When Joash had a good teacher, he became a good king for a 7-year-old. If he didn't have that teacher, he wouldn't be a good king," says Jennifer, 10.

Yes, even a 7-year-old boy can rule as a king with the right teacher. The Bible records, "Jehoash did what was right in the sight of the Lord all the days in which Jehoiada the priest instructed him" (II Kings 12:2).

In the biblical book of Proverbs, wisdom is personified as crying out on a high hill to all who will listen. Wisdom is more valuable than gold and rubies, declares the book of Proverbs. Whatever you have to do to get it, do it.

In the Bible, wisdom is more than making good grades in school. It's making the right choices. It's avoiding traps that ensnare fools. It's choosing the right teachers and friends.

"A teacher can help you with special problems when you're stuck on something you don't understand," says Taylor, 9.

"Teachers can also help you reach goals," says Marshall, 10. "Your parents are teachers. They teach you what is right. God is also a teacher. He guides you to a right path. I think I would be miserable without teachers."

Jesus was the master teacher. He told stories, spoke in parables and intentionally offended religious leaders by violating their taboos, all in the course of teaching.

When Jesus left Earth, he promised to send another teacher. He said the Holy Spirit would guide his people from within. Many centuries before, the prophet Jeremiah foretold a time when God would give his people a new heart (Jeremiah 31:31-34). Although the Holy Spirit teaches Christians from within, he also instructs us through human teachers.

"My Sunday School teacher teaches us almost everything in the Bible," says Drew, 8. "I changed to much nicer. He taught us to share with others."

I'm amazed at how much three teachers have changed my life. The first one shared with me the message of life when I was 17. He told me that Jesus had paid the price for my sins and wanted me to receive his life by trusting in him as the only way to heaven.

The second one taught me how to look at a biblical text. I had different eyes after sitting in his seminary courses. The third one taught me how to write feature stories at the University of Missouri School of Journalism.

"When I was a child, I didn't know that much at all," says Salar, 10. "But after a while, you get used to learning, and you're smart. The most important thing to learn is Christ is our Savior."

Think about this: When teachers (professional or relatives) work together with God to impart wisdom to children, they can take great comfort in God's promise that their efforts will be productive.

Memorize this truth: "Train up a child in the way he should go, and when he is old, he will not depart from it" (Proverbs 22:6).

Ask this question: Are you making an investment to train and influence the children in your life?