A Teachable Moment

The following article is taken from the Granbury Church of Christ website. John Knox is a good friend who survived the Doctor of Ministry program with me. His wife Jan is a gifted writer and teacher. Her article inspires us to think about the people who taught us and the people we teach.

A Teachable Moment
Jan Knox

The miles seemed to fly beneath the wheels of the small, white car as mother and son traveled down the interstate. The Lord had granted us one last opportunity for an extended time of dialogue before I was to entrust my firstborn to the care of the college officials waiting at the end of this journey. What do a middle-aged mother and her 18-year-old son talk about for two hours while confined inside a vehicle stuffed with all his earthly possessions?

To my surprise, conversation flowed easily. We started off with the typical topics of movies, games and music. Then the discussion took a nostalgic turn as we reminisced about the various places we had lived and the people we had grown to love in those places. Somehow the subject of teachers came up, and my now “adult” son proceeded to reflect aloud about three Christian ladies he considered to be the best Bible class teachers he had been privileged to learn from as a young child.

I was struck by a couple of thoughts as he shared this revelation. One was the fact that a knuckle-headed, elementary schoolboy had not only taken notice of his Bible class teachers, but even remembered specific lessons they had taught. As a teacher attempts to impart Scriptural wisdom week after week, she sometimes wonders if it is ever sinking in. This conversation renewed my faith that all of the preparation and hard work is not in vain.

Second, as I pondered these godly women who comprised my son’s “Bible Teacher Hall of Fame,” I marveled at how diverse they were. Their teaching styles were very different. One focused on telling the stories of the Bible; another emphasized memorization and the accumulation of background information and Biblical facts, while the third utilized a hands-on, experiential approach. Yet each of them, in her own unique way, had left a tremendous and lasting imprint on my child. These teachers also differed significantly in other areas, such as age and level of formal education. In spite of their divergence, however, they all had one thing in common – they loved the Bible and had a strong desire to instill that love for God’s Word in the children they taught.

As I look now toward my own future as a teacher of the Lord, I am rejuvenated and inspired to put greater thought and effort into my task. May the Lord use me as His special instrument, “…as one speaking the very words of God” (1 Peter 4:11), to make a meaningful and eternal impact for Him on the lives of those I teach.