I tend to hit the “teacher doldrums” once a semester – in October and then again in March. They are busy months smack dab in the middle of the semester. The freshness has worn off, the kids seem a little extra crazy, there are multiple demands on my time and energy, I’m not getting the needed amount of sleep, my to do list is growing exponentially, and the next break seems so far away.

My first few years of teaching, these times sent me into panic, and they consisted of tearful phone calls to my parents followed by scouring the internet for new career ideas.

I have finally realized that they come every year pretty regularly, so I am a little more prepared for them. I mean, at least I no longer head to LinkedIn and start filling out job applications…or I at least I haven’t yet. We do still have a few more weeks of March…

I begin to recognize the restlessness, the quick rise of irritation with my students and coworkers, the coldness that creeps into my relationship with God as my busyness increases, the feeling of overwhelm and resentment in wondering when I am going to fit anything else into my life except school.

Each year, God has to remind me how to handle these times of the semesters in a way that pleases Him. I can’t always control what’s going on around me, but I can certainly control my response to it.  

Fill your mind with God’s Truth

This year, especially, I have realized how much I need to get God’s Word constantly going through my head and my heart.

I need a lot less scrolling and a lot more time meditating.

When I am in the doldrums, my tendency is escapism. I tend to be so tired that I just can’t think of doing much beyond scrolling through Facebook or putting on a TV episode and entering someone else’s life for a bit.

But what I find is that those activities tend to just make me feel worse. Especially as I scroll through post after post on Facebook, I start to see things that others have, and I don’t…or I see bitter arguing among Christians… let’s just say that certainly doesn’t help a heart that’s already struggling with discontentment and anger!

When I’m not “escaping”, I tend to meditate on how rough things are or how a certain person has wronged me. Over and over again, I let those thoughts tumble around in my head. But God is teaching me that I need to replace those thoughts with meditating on Him and the many ways that He has shown His goodness to me.  Isaiah 26:3-4 has been a verse that God has really been impressing on my heart this year.

You keep him in perfect peace
    whose mind is stayed on you,
    because he trusts in you.
Trust in the Lord forever,
    for the Lord God is an everlasting rock.

Isaiah 26:3-4

Some ways to do that:

• Memorize Scripture (I enjoy using the Remember Me app on my phone – when my fingers are itching to get on my phone, I can put them to much better use memorizing Scripture than scrolling Facebook!)
• Increase your time in God’s Word – I know that right now you probably can’t even think of adding another thing to the busyness. But start small – have your regular devotions in the morning and shoot to spend just 5-10 minutes before you get into bed reading the Bible again (or use the audio method mentioned below).
• If you are an audiobook or podcast person, listen to an audio Bible, devotional, or sermon series. (Podcasts I enjoy include Revive Our Hearts, Daily Grace by The Daily Grace Co.)
• Make a playlist of praise music and play it constantly…in the morning as you get ready, play it in your car as you drive to and from work, put in some earbuds and play it during your prep period…but get your mind focused on Christ and His goodness to you.
• If you are a reader – I find that reading biographies of other Christians fans the flames of my heart and puts my circumstances into perspective. When I see their devotion to God, it makes me yearn to have that same kind of relationship! (A few of my favorite biographies: Elisabeth Elliot, George Mueller, Darlene Deibler Rose, David Boudia)

Extend Grace

Ooooh, this is a hard one.  I am an organizer – everything goes onto a list, my planner, and my phone calendar. I plan out everything, but when my plans get derailed by others…well, I am not typically very happy about it.

And usually around this time of year, that can happen a lot.

My students are extra crazy. The disorganized ones seem to be even more disorganized. Everyone is busy and trying to keep their head above water. So sometimes they forget to tell me things. Sometimes there is a scheduling conflict.  Last minute things come up. Sometimes what I had planned gets completely scratched out.

I found myself grumbling to a friend about how we extended grace to an organization, but that they never showed any grace towards us. “Grace goes both ways!” I fumed.

And the instant those words came out of my mouth, I realized that they may have felt good to say, but they certainly weren’t a picture of biblical grace.  

You see, grace is undeserved favor.

Showing kindness and a smile to someone who is following my agenda isn’t grace…that’s natural! Anyone can do that!

Grace is showing kindness when you have messed up my agenda or wronged me. It’s not “deserved”, and it’s a reflection of the undeserved kindness that God has shown to me (Romans 3:23-24, Romans 11:6).

When I feel that irritation coming, I need to be quick to hear what the other person is saying and slow to speak (James 1:19-20).

I need to take a deep breath & go to the Lord in prayer, begging Him to help me show the same grace to others that He has exteded to me.

Go Back to the Basics

 When everything feels like it’s about to go spinning out of control, go back to the basics of who God is. He is in control of every situation (Is. 46:8-10), and He loves me with an everlasting love (Jer. 31:3). Each disruption, each frustration, each challenge that comes my way today has been allowed by my loving Father. So I can step forward in His strength to meet them.

Go back to the basic of Why am I here?  God has you in your school, your classroom, with these students and coworkers for a specific reason – to glorify Him. We glorify Him when we are loving and serving others, not when we are snippy and irritable.

In light of eternity, it’s far more important to extend grace to those around me than to maintain my perfectly scheduled day. In light of eternity, it’s more important to love my students than to have that perfectly executed hands-on lesson.

When the doldrums hit, it’s hard…but because of Christ, we can still glorify God through them. We can still have joy and love those around us.  Christ lived on earth, too, and He knows the temptations that we face. He successfully ran this race, and He invites us to come to Him for the strength we need to navigate difficult times.  Run to Him today…and tomorrow…and the next day. Though you might be running on fumes at this point in the school year, His grace and strength never run out!

For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but one who in every respect has been tempted as we are, yet without sin. ¹⁶ Let us then with confidence draw near to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need.

Hebrews 4:15-16

The first day back to school I was so proud of how my students did with handling their masks. Okay, maybe we can do this! By day 2, one student had figured out she could stretch the mask to make it cover her entire face and the rest of my students were enjoying using their masks for playing cops and robbers at recess. 

This past week in History, we were going to be talking about how industry changed after the Civil War.  As I usually do for this lesson, I bought all of the ingredients for making a snack mix by utilizing an assembly line…and then realized that even with masks and clean hands, this probably wasn’t the wisest idea and nixed it – so I now have an abundance of fruit loops and marshmallows if anyone needs them!

While I have been so thankful for the opportunity to be in-person in my classroom this fall, I have found that things are not normal. Perhaps you are also teaching in person; perhaps you are virtual; perhaps you are hybrid. Whatever your situation, teaching this past year has looked different from how it has before.   Forget the “new normal”, I just want to go back to the “old normal”!

As the school year marches on, my heart yearns for the day when a simple cold, tummy bug, or lice were the biggest health concerns in my classroom. I am tired of worrying over every cough and sniffle, wondering if I need to call in a sub. I want to take my kids on field trips. I want them to have their desks back in collaborative groupings instead of spaced out.

For those of you doing virtual or hybrid learning, there are so many things I know that you miss and yearn for – from simpler lesson plans to high fives to seeing that lightbulb moment in class.

For many, this year has been more than just having to rethink how you teach. Perhaps you or a family member has lost their job; maybe you have lost someone you love; maybe you or a family member has received an unwelcome diagnosis. “Normal” seems like something that will never be true for you again. While suffering always exists, for me it has seemed heightened with everything else that is going on in our world.

My heart grows heavier and heavier as I look around me and face the uncertainty of the future. At times, I can feel the panic rising as I realize that I truly am not in control of anything.

But God is.

The One who created this world, the One who loved me so much that He gave His Son to die for me, the One who has promised to put an end to all pain and suffering one day (Rev. 21:4)…He’s in control. That hasn’t changed. This “new normal” has actually been a blessing – a hard blessing – but a blessing, nonetheless, because it is reminding me of how much I need God.

Instead of looking at the circumstances around me, I have seen the importance of needing to keep my gaze fixed on Him.

              For God alone my soul waits in silence; from him comes my salvation. He alone is my rock and my salvation, my fortress, I shall not be greatly shaken. (Ps. 62:1-2)

As I read this passage, I asked myself how I would honestly answer the question, “what is my soul waiting for?” What is it that I am wanting desperately and don’t have? My heart immediately cried out, “normalcy!” And I realized that normalcy has become my new god. The hope of returning to normal is what thrills my heart. The fear of not returning to normal is what overwhelms my heart. I have set my hope in “normal” as if that is my savior! If we can just get back to normal, everything will be okay!

But the Psalmist knows that when we put our hope in anything other than Christ, we will be disappointed. We will be let down. The Psalmist specifically says that his soul waits for God alone. His confidence is in God, not God plus a change in his circumstances.

God alone is my hope…not the hope of a return to normalcy.

God alone is my rock…In this time of uncertainty, He is the only certainty. His love hasn’t changed and never will. His sovereign control hasn’t changed and never will.

God alone is my fortress…the One that I can run to when my heart is overwhelmed.

From the end of the earth I call to you when my heart is faint. Lead me to the rock that is higher than I. (Ps. 61:2)

When your heart is overwhelmed with how to teach your students through a computer screen, run to Him.

When you feel the weight of new expectations and standards bearing down on you, run to Him.

When the panic begins to rise and choke you, run to Him.

Things aren’t normal and probably won’t be for a while…but because we know God, we can persevere with joy and peace. You’re not alone. You’re not forgotten. You’re not at the mercy of circumstances. Our sovereign God is in control of all and is waiting with open arms to give you the strength and comfort that you need.

              God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble. Though the earth be removed, and though the mountains be carried into the midst of the sea. (Ps. 46:1-2)

              For I the Lord thy God will hold thy right hand, saying unto thee, fear not, I will help thee. (Is. 41:13)

   When thou passest through the waters, I will be with you; and through the rivers they shall not overflow you. (Is. 43:2)

It  was another request. Another need that had to be met. My Martha spirit smiled and said, “sure”, while my heart inwardly sank a little bit. But it was fine – I could make it work. After all – I WAS here to serve. I jumped into the new task while juggling my other responsibilities. But soon, my eyes strayed from my tasks to those who appeared to be sitting on the sidelines. Wait. Why weren’t they being asked?

Soon that passing glance became an outright, intense, searching stare. Why weren’t they doing all of this, too?

Maybe you are the teacher who always stays late while the teacher next door is out by 3:15.

Maybe you are the teacher who is on several committees while other teachers are never asked.

Perhaps you pour yourself into your students all week long only to be found diligently serving during the Sunday services every weekend, while other church members never sign up for the nursery or junior church rotation.

Or maybe you feel like you are working as hard as you can, but you aren’t seeing results. Your eyes enviously go to that successful teacher or friend, and you kind of wish that God would give you the same success.

Teachers typically have servants’ hearts, but if I can be honest, sometimes my eyes can go from serving to wondering why others aren’t serving as much as I am. Do they not see the needs? Does no one think to ask them to help instead of me?

And, soon, instead of my  service being a joyful ministry for God & others, it becomes a heavy burden. A burden that only grows as the weight of resentment is added to it. My burden seems so much greater than theirs – why aren’t they sharing the burden?  

While there are a whole slew of issues we could discuss – the importance of saying no, facing our own Martha spirit, etc. The Lord recently convicted me of my need to get my eyes off of others & onto the job that He has given me. Certain seasons are busier than others, and in those seasons, I can choose to serve God joyfully or resentfully compare my busyness to that of others.

God brought to mind the story of Peter when he first met Christ after the resurrection in John 21. Christ is on the shore while the disciples are fishing. Christ gives them a miraculous catch of fish, and they realize that it is Him standing there on the shore. Peter literally throws himself into the water to try to make it to Jesus as fast as he could. I can only imagine the desperation of Peter – he had denied Christ three times before Christ was crucified.  He never got to say sorry. Now, Christ is risen from the dead & standing right there on shore, cooking them breakfast!

Christ tells the disciples to bring some of fish they had caught – good old Peter, as usual, goes all out – dragging 153 fish to shore…I guess he was pretty hungry! But as I read the verse, there was a detail I had missed before – apparently (but not surprisingly!), this net was pretty heavy with all of those fish. But as Peter drags it in, John specifically mentions that the net didn’t break.

“So Simon Peter went aboard and hauled the net ashore, full of large fish, 153 of them. And although there were so many, the net was not torn.” 

John 21:11

Now I don’t know why those details were included – the number of fish and the fact that the net didn’t break. But when I read it, I see Peter carrying a very heavy burden..and God helping him to sustain that burden by not allowing that net to break apart.

In verses 15-19, Jesus & Peter have a discussion. Three times Jesus asks Peter if he loves him. Three times, Peter answers, “yes”. Then Christ gives him some important & probably overwhelming tasks. He asks Peter to feed & shepherd his people. He then tells Peter that he is going to face a difficult death that would result in the glory of God.  In following Christ, Peter is going to bear a burden much greater than a net full of fish…but God is going to sustain Him.

Phew. I can only imagine how heavy that must have been to take in. Aaaanndd, yet, Peter immediately turns and looks at John. And He wants to know what God’s plan is for Him. Is he going to die, too?

I don’t know Peter’s motivation in asking this question. I can’t get in his thoughts, but I can’t help wondering if he was like me.  Is John going to suffer, too? Do you have a hard & heavy burden for him, too? Are you going to ask him to do as much for you as I am going to do?

And I love Jesus’ answer.

Jesus said unto him, “if it is my will that he remain until I come, what is that to you? You follow me!”

John 21:22

What is that to you? You follow me!

Jesus lovingly but pointedly redirects Peter’s focus. Don’t worry about him and what I have for him. You follow me!

And He says the same to me as he observes my wandering eyes and heart. Stop looking around at others – both their burdens & their successes.  Rachel, follow ME! Your burdens may be great, but my strength is greater. Stop comparing & keep your eyes fixed on me. Trust that I have given you everything you need to serve me.

My restless soul would rather look at others & what God has called them to do…but true peace and joy only comes from keeping my gaze steadfastly on my Master.

You keep him in perfect peace  whose mind is stayed on you, because he trusts in you. Trust in the Lord forever,  for the Lord God is an everlasting rock.

Isaiah 26:3-4

When I am comparing God’s plan for me to His plans for others, I am going to struggle with pride and resentment. But when I look to Christ, acknowledge His plan for me, and trust that He will sustain me in what He has called me to do…other people quickly fade into the background.

It’s not a competition. I am not a martyr serving alone. Christ has lovingly scripted out a plan for me – my job is to follow Him, and trust that He will carry me every step of the way. His plan for others is none of my concern – it shouldn’t have an effect on my service for Him!

When your eyes start to wander from the task God has given you, when you are putting in the long hours seemingly alone, when you are asked yet again to serve instead of others,  when you struggle with not seeing success, let Christ’s words to Peter echo in your own heart.

What is that to you? You follow me!

There are moments when I step back & look at my classroom and think, “wow, I am doing a good job!” Okay, sooooo to be honest, that’s a pretty rare event. I would say it’s about as rare of an event as all of your students having a sharpened, ready-to-use pencil in the month of January. It can happen…but it’s a pretty remarkable and blessed event when it does! Usually I am looking at my classroom and thinking, “man, I am so bad at this.”

Teaching is immensely daunting. Teaching will quickly expose your fears, insecurities, and your sinful flesh. How do we respond when we face…

• a mountain of paperwork & red tape to work through?
• an angry email from a parent?
• how academically low your class is & how far they have to go?
• a  struggle with a student who outright defies you?
• juggling personal problems while still being there for your students?
• the feeling that we genuinely have nothing left to give.

As I was praying through Psalm 62 the other day, the Lord reminded me of the secret to being unshaken in any area of my life, including teaching. I saw how David faced difficult circumstances, yet twice in this passage, he repeats, “I shall not be shaken.” How I long to have that kind of security and confidence! Instead of riding the roller coaster of emotions when difficult circumstances come, I want to stand undaunted, unshaken, as David did. But the secret of being unshaken has nothing to do with what an incredible man David was…the secret had everything to do with Christ. I realized that I,too, can be undaunted because…

1. I am provided for in Christ

For God alone my soul waits in silence;
    from him comes my salvation.
He alone is my rock and my salvation,
    my fortress; I shall not be greatly shaken.

Ps. 62:1-2

God has already provided for my greatest need in saving me from my sin. As David said, my salvation rests in God alone. My standing in God’s eyes is not based on my students’ achievement test scores, my patience, my teaching ability, or how many students I can “rescue”.  When I was His enemy, He unconditionally loved me enough to send His Son to die for me…that love hasn’t changed now that I am His child! The most important identity in my life is that I am a child of God. Nothing that teaching throws at me can ever shake that reality! So while there are days when I will feel like a horrible teacher,  I can be unshaken knowing that my teaching doesn’t define my value or who I am. Certainly, on those bad days, I should step back & examine what made me have those feelings -are there areas I can & should improve?  However, I don’t come crashing down into despair because on my very worst day, God still loves me, and I have a home in Heaven with Him.  He has already taken care of my greatest need.

If that wasn’t enough, He promises to meet all of my needs (Phil. 4:19)!  He tells me that He will provide strength (Is. 40:31), He will provide wisdom (James 1:5), and He will be with me (Josh. 1:9).

2. I am protected in Christ

He only is my rock and my salvation,
    my fortress; I shall not be shaken.
⁷On God rests my salvation and my glory;
    my mighty rock, my refuge is God.

Ps. 62:6-7

I love how David refers to God in this Psalm – God is His mighty rock, his refuge, his fortress. David would not be shaken because he was clinging to Christ as His security. Christ was His hope. His soul waited for God…not the approval of others, a relationship, a job, or a change in circumstances.

In verses 3-4, David observes how people have attacked him when he was  already in a weak state. He felt like a leaning wall or a tottering fence as they tried to take him down. He felt betrayed. I think we can sympathize to an extent!

Have you ever received an upset parent email when everything else already felt like it was crumbling? Or had a power struggle with a student when it’s already been a tough day? How can we be undaunted when more trouble comes on top of everything else?

By realizing that our hope must be in Christ & not anything or anyone else.

If I cling to the approval of others, that parent email will devastate me. If I cling to the hope of being a perfect teacher, then that power struggle or student failure will crush me.

But if my hope is in God & His promises to me, those issues can be dealt with knowing I am secure in His family, He loves me, and this is part of His master plan for me (Jer. 29:11, Rom. 8:28-29). Sure, it still isn’t easy…but it’s not the end of the world.

Trust in him at all times, O people;
    pour out your heart before him;
    God is a refuge for us.

Ps. 62:8

Also, when those tough times come, God invites me to pour out my heart before Him. Just think about that for a minute – the God of the universe not only allows us to speak to Him, but He actually wants us to share every single detail and emotion with Him! As an elementary teacher, I am especially in awe of the vast love that God demonstrates to us in asking us to pour out our hearts before Him. I have been on the receiving ends of stories from students that seem like they will never end, and I can fall into the habit of just smiling & nodding, “mmhmm”, as they share every teeny tiny detail of their day at the park. When I asked them about their day,  I was thinking more about the highlight reel since there are several more students waiting to tell me about their day. So when I think about God having many children clamoring for Him,  and yet He still asks me to run to Him & tell Him everything (not just the condensed version!)- my heart is overwhelmed (and also a little convicted).

3. I have the power of Christ

Once God has spoken;
    twice have I heard this:
that power belongs to God,
¹and that to you, O Lord, belongs steadfast love.

Ps. 62:11-12a

After reminding us again that we shouldn’t be putting our hope in anything else (v. 9-10), David finishes by reminding us that power belongs to God.

This teacher can breathe a sigh of relief when she realizes it is not up to her to rescue every child that walks through her classroom door. I am not the savior in this story. The power to change Darren’s stubborn heart, the power to help Lisa have a breakthrough in this math unit, the power to have any impact on my students — none of it depends on me! In fact, when I try to save them all & solve all of the problems in my own strength, I end up exhausted, frustrated, and definitely shaken. But  I am only the tool – God is the One who supplies the power. His power is at work in my students, and He is also at work in me. On the bad days, I can be undaunted knowing that He is in control…not me.

So whatever challenges you are facing…you don’t have to ride the emotional roller coaster with its exhilarating highs and debilitating lows. God is your refuge & strength. Pour out your heart to Him, and receive the comfort & grace that only He can give.

                Each year my church hosts a missions conference. Growing up as a missionary kid, I always have loved missions conferences.  Each year as I hear the stories of the missionaries, see their pictures, and observe how God is  working around the world– well, let’s just say I am usually ready to pack up and go to the mission field! This past year I was also reading a book by Katie Davis Majors who went to Uganda and adopted 13 girls as a young single woman…so it was probably fortunate that I had a contract and a group of kiddos that needed me right here to keep me from booking an airplane ticket and heading across the world!

                Most weeks don’t find me in Uganda or Peru – they find me in a regular classroom in North Carolina. I walk into my classroom each morning and see the mess. I see my students bickering with each other. I feel the slump of discouragement over an afternoon of lessons that were boring & fell flat.  I see the lesson plans, the emails, the grading…and sometimes, I wish that I , too, could go to the other side of the world and do great & exciting things for God!

                Despite all of the awesome inspirational teaching posters & t-shirts about the impact of teachers, most days I don’t feel like I am doing anything particularly “great” in my classroom. Yes, I know I am helping to train the next generation – that maybe I could even be teaching a future president of the United States – but, right now, I can’t even get him to memorize his 4 times table….so yeah, most days I’m not quite sure how much I am actually contributing to the future!

                But God reminded me recently that the mission field isn’t a passport and an airplane flight away. In fact, He has graciously brought the mission field right through my classroom door! When I remember that my classroom is an opportunity to show my students Christ on a daily basis for 180 days a year, I realize that my mission field has some unique resources and experiences for doing just that!

Unique Resources

                One unique resource that we have in our mission field is time. Think about how much time you spend with your students in a year.  For an elementary teacher, your students are with you 7 hours a day for 180 days a year…that is 1,260 hours (by the way, that is just traditional school hours – coaching, afternoon clubs, or tutoring? Add a couple hundred more hours). I think it’s pretty safe to say that most missionaries don’t get to spend that much time in a year with those they are trying to evangelize or disciple!

                You and I have approximately 1,260 hours to minister to our kids. Isn’t it amazing how that time fills up? On the one hand, it sounds like so many hours…but then you try to start fitting in all of the curriculum and realize the hours aren’t nearly enough time! We have this gift of time, but it is so easy to misuse it. We rush, rush, rush – getting our kids through the lessons, getting them to where they need to be on time, rushing…when sometimes, we need to slow down.

                That student meltdown that just made you late to PE? That student who caused a delay in math class because he accidentally spilled his water bottle? The student argument that requires much time and counsel to solve out in the hallway? If you are like me, these issues can test my patience.  I can easily view them as hindrances to all that we have to get accomplished in our limited hours. But when I realize that God has given me the gift of time with my students, and my ultimate goal with that time is to point them to Christ…well, no longer are those situations hindrances – they are opportunities. They are opportunities to minister to my students – perhaps in the counsel I give the arguing students or the student with the meltdown; or perhaps it is a kind & gracious response to the accident instead of snapping out in impatience. Those 1,260 hours are ultimately God’s time – so I need to surrender my to-do list & remember that His agenda is far more important than mine!

Unique Experiences

                Our students get to see us at our best and our worst. They see the lessons that go splendidly. They also see our reactions when our lesson falls flat and when we are having our buttons pushed for the millionth time by that one particular student.

                By the very nature of the amount of time we spend with our students, we have the unique opportunity to live life right alongside of our students. They watch how we respond to that other teacher that we aren’t particularly fond of. They watch how we respond on the bad days. They observe how we handle stress. They see how we react to their misbehavior. And as they watch us, they are learning from us. While it is an incredible opportunity, it is also an overwhelming one! It is an opportunity that should find us on our knees each morning, pleading with God to enable us to live out Christ’s example before our students.

                We also get to help our students face their own difficulties.  Think of some of the issues that your students are facing right now – divorce, poverty, a sick loved one, a parent who has lost a job, bullying. These are all major issues that our students are facing, and we get to help them walk through them! Even the “little” issues aren’t little to our students. While I want to go around the world and meet the “big” needs of people, I have to remember that my fourth grader’s  friendship tiff, struggle with long division, or sick family pet is a very big issue to them. I can choose to lovingly listen, point them to Christ, and pray for and with them. But can I be honest? Sometimes it is easier to love people halfway around the world than the students God has placed right in my classroom. See, those people around the world are a hazy abstraction. Their problems and burdens aren’t affecting me and my day, whereas my students’ problems do affect my day and my busy to-do list.  But when I show love to my students, I am showing love to Christ.

                In Matthew 18, Jesus displays His special love for children.  As the disciples clamor over who will be the greatest in Heaven, Christ pulls a child from the crowd.  He points out the faith and humility of the child. He further goes on to say that…

                Whoever receives one such child in my name receives me (Matthew 18:5)

When I love my students, I am loving God…and there is no greater thing that I can do on this earth!

Bottom Line: My Classroom is a Mission Field

Our classroom is a huge mission field. So what does this recognition mean for us?

1. Remember your purpose – you are there to glorify God. You glorify God when you love your kiddos and show Christ to them. If you are in a Christian school, you have the unique privilege to use academics to point your students’ eyes to their amazing Creator. For those in the public school, you may have to be more creative – but you are a walking testimony to those kids of what a Christian is and what kind of God you serve. When I keep the big picture in mind,  many of the hindrances that I am tempted to be irritated with become opportunities.  

2. Remember to love your kids: Yes, we need to get the curriculum covered. Yes, we need to juggle the crazy schedule of grading, lesson planning, conferences & meetings, and tutoring.  As the pressures mount & demands scream for our time & energy, it’s easy to overlook the most important part of the job – our kids that Christ gave His life for.  So, sometimes, it’s okay to get a little behind on the grading or curriculum if it means an opportunity to love our students.

3. Your work matters: I think (I hope!) everyone would heartily agree that a teacher’s work matters. But as Christian teachers, our work matters for eternity.  In the daily grind of addition & subtraction facts, historical timelines, and research papers; we can so easily lose sight of this. You aren’t just teaching those kids academics or how to simply be “a good person”. You are pointing them to Christ, and what job could ever be more important than that?

So, if God is clearly calling you to go around the world – certainly get that passport & get on the next flight out! But, if God is calling you to stay right where you are in your classroom – that’s not a lesser call at all. All of us are sharing the greatest opportunity in the world – showing our amazing God to those He places in our lives.  

We will not hide them from their children,
    but tell to the coming generation
the glorious deeds of the Lord, and his might,
    and the wonders that he has done. (Ps. 78:4)

She was one of my brightest students.

She was a hard worker, and her report card evidenced it.

But when she met long division…well, she had met her match.

I explained and re-explained. I tried to break it down into simple steps – okay, let’s just look at this step by step.  See, our next step is to subtract. What is 5 minus 4?

I don’t know.

She was stuck. Long division was just too hard. And since she wasn’t going to get it, there was a mental block firmly in place that wouldn’t even allow her to do what she had already had known how to do since 1st grade.

Long division is the math unit that comes up every year with great fear and trembling. For many of my students, it is just straight up hard. They wonder if they will ever get it – and I don’t let on, but I secretly wonder, too! Hey, maybe it’s okay if they don’t get it…they can always use the phone on their calculator, after all! Or maybe I’ll just let the 5th grade teacher deal with it!

But year after year, I teach it. I know that my students need it.  And when my students start to get it after much blood, sweat, and tears (and that’s just on my end!), it’s so rewarding.  What initially felt impossible to them is now something that they are capable of doing.

I understand…after all, we have all been in those places where God has given us something that simply just seems too hard to handle in life. And sometimes we know to take the next step of obedience – but just as my student was so overwhelmed that she couldn’t process a simple subtraction problem, sometimes I get overwhelmed and feel like giving up. And as I was reading through Hebrews 11 the other night, God reminded me of how it is possible to be faithful and to persevere in those times.  These “Heroes of the Faith” listed in Hebrews 11 were remarkably ordinary people, like you and me. They would have had fears and feelings of their own in the situations that God had called them to.  Now, the Bible doesn’t always mention what they thought, so I can’t say what exactly went through their minds – so I want to proceed with some caution. The thoughts below are certainly not inspired!  But I have found that it is good for me to put myself in their shoes and think about how I would have felt if God had called me to do the same things.

Think of Abraham- willing to give up the most precious thing in his life, his only son that he had desperately yearned for all of his life, the son that had only come because of a miracle of God…and now God was asking him to kill that son.  Can you only imagine the thoughts & fears that must have run through his mind?

But Lord, he is my everything. I can’t give him up. What will my wife say? What will others think? How could you ask me to do this? This is too hard. This is too much.

Think of Moses leading God’s people against the powerful nation of Egypt.

How will Pharaoh take me seriously with this speech impediment? What if these people don’t listen to me? What if Pharaoh decides to kill me? What will happen to my family? What if I fail? This is too hard. This is too much.

Think of the nation of Israel as they came to the Red Sea and how trapped they must have felt with the sea in front of them and the angry Egyptian army behind them.

What if we are taken back to Egypt as slaves? What if we are killed out here? What if my choice is going to end up harming my family? This is too hard. This is too much.

How were they able to faithfully obey & serve God when He brought them up against such difficulties? Because they knew and trusted God despite what their fears and feelings may have said.

The secret to faithfulness is knowing my God and believing His promises.  When I come up against something that is too hard and too much, I  have a God that is more than enough to help me through it.  When I am weary and don’t feel like going on, it is easy to take my eyes off of God and allow my circumstances to become bigger than He is. But there is no circumstance that is bigger than my God.

Have you not known?Have you not heard?The everlasting God, the Lord,The Creator of the ends of the earth,Neither faints nor is weary.His understanding is unsearchable. He gives power to the weak,
And to those who have no might He increases strength. Even the youths shall faint and be weary,
And the young men shall utterly fall, But those who wait on the Lord shall renew their strength;
They shall mount up with wings like eagles,They shall run and not be weary,
They shall walk and not faint. (Isaiah 40:28-31)

My lack of faith stems from focusing on the temporal problems instead of my eternal, all mighty God and His promises.

Just as all of those men & women of Hebrews 11 couldn’t be faithful on their own, there is no way that I can be faithful on my own. But I don’t have to depend on myself -my strength, my wisdom, my patience. I just need to turn to God’s promises and choose to trust them regardless of how I feel.

You see, I have many feelings, and they are very real feelings…but that is all they are – feelings. I need to remind myself of the facts from God’s Word.

• I feel weary, but my God has promised to strengthen me (Is. 40:31)…so I can be faithful.
• I feel that I have no wisdom to deal with my circumstances, but my God has an abundant supply that He has promised me (James 1:5)…so I can be faithful.
• I feel that my circumstances are overwhelming, but my God has promised that He is sovereignly working every single detail out for my good and His glory (Rom. 8:28-29)…so I can be faithful.
• I feel that I can’t love others as I ought to, but my God is the source of love and will help me (I John 4:7)…so I can be faithful.

Faith isn’t a feeling . It’s a choice. It’s a choice to trust and step out in obedience, even when I don’t feel it or it doesn’t make sense.

I don’t know what circumstances that God is bringing you through – difficulties at work,  a struggling marriage, loneliness, a child who has wandered away from God, or a diagnosis from the doctor.  I don’t know what it is that you are telling God right now is too hard and too much. But I DO know that because of God’s faithfulness and through His grace, we can be faithful in those circumstances.  God’s promises didn’t let down those “Heroes of the Faith” of Hebrews 11, and His promises aren’t going to let us down.

When you feel things are too hard and too much, you are in great company – you are in the company of thousands of men and women who have gone before you and finished their race here on earth. And they are now in Heaven, where their faith has become sight. If they could talk to us, I can only imagine the encouragement they would give us – Don’t give up. It is worth so much more than you could ever imagine. God was faithful to me, and He will be to you, too! Keep your eyes on Him!

Our circumstances may feel that they are too hard and too much, but our God is more powerful and more than enough to help us face those circumstances.  His faithfulness is the secret to my faithfulness and endurance.

Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us also lay aside every weight, and sin which clings so closely, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us,  looking to Jesus, the founder and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is seated at the right hand of the throne of God. (Hebrews 12:1-2)

Congratulations on surviving the fidget spinners and water bottle flipping of the 2016-2017 school year!

I don’t know about you, but if I never hear the thwap of a water bottle hitting a table,  it will still be too soon.

I head up our day camp during the summer, so I am still hearing the whirring of fidget spinners…but I am hopeful that by August, that will have passed on as well (fingers crossed!).

While I certainly acknowledge that there are some students with legitimate needs for some type of fidgets, I know that in my class they were more of a distraction.  I lament how my students can’t just be quiet and still at times – they always have to be busy DOING something.

And I realized the other day how much I have in common with them in my spiritual life. I can also get so easily distracted!

It is amazing how when I sit down to spend some time in prayer & the Word how many distractions pop up. Notifications on my phone.  The dryer stopped & I need to unload & fold the laundry. I didn’t RSVP to that party e-vite. I just remembered that ingredient that needs to be put on my grocery list. I need to get my hot glue guns  & put them in my teacher bag so I don’t forget them for tomorrow’s activity. My to do list runs through my mind as I try to pray. My Bible reading tends to get rushed because of all the things clamoring for my time & attention.

Driven to Distraction by Doing

Sometimes I am just distracted by my DOING for God.  I don’t know about you, but every time I read the account of Mary & Martha in Luke 10, I always get a little bit defensive of Martha. Just like Martha, I am kind of irritated by Mary’s  just sitting there amidst the hustle and bustle. Hello, Mary – there is stuff to do! Get with the program! We would all love to sit at Jesus’ feet, but somebody’s got to get the food ready. When Jesus rebukes her, I feel her pain.  I can imagine myself in the kitchen commiserating with her after the fact.

I think Martha truly wanted to make a wonderful meal for Jesus.  This was her gift – her way to serve Him! And that desire to serve wasn’t a bad thing…but she got distracted when she took her perspective off of Christ and put it onto the performance itself. I can only imagine Martha running around the hot kitchen, stirring this, tasting that, directing a servant here, trying to sweep up the mess over there.  And the thought comes – where is Mary?  Why isn’t she in here helping? She bustles off to find little sister and finds her sitting at Jesus’ feet.  Maybe Martha returned to the kitchen to continue working , but she begins to mull over her thoughts. The more she thinks about it, the angrier she gets until she finally marches out to Jesus and practically demands Him to tell her sister to help her.

Oh, Martha, Martha.  I can only imagine all of the thoughts that are running behind that demand…

Perhaps a feeling of unfairness- I would love to visit with Jesus, but somebody has to get all of this work done!

Perhaps a feeling of disappointment that her service doesn’t seem to be noticed or appreciated. 

Perhaps an indirect accusation of Christ Himself – don’t you care that I am busy serving you and she is just sitting here? Can I get a little help?

I can imagine, because I have had the exact same thoughts. I run around serving Christ with my gifts – and at first, my service may be truly stemming out of love for Him…but then I get distracted. Out of the corner of my eye, I notice that someone else isn’t being asked to do as much as I am doing. Someone else is getting more attention.  Someone didn’t seem to show any appreciation for the help that I gave them. And just like Martha, I let it simmer until I am thoroughly upset and my joy in service is gone.

And then Christ turns to Martha and gently rebukes her.

 But the Lord answered her, “Martha, Martha, you are anxious and troubled about many things,  but one thing is necessary. Mary has chosen the good portion, which will not be taken away from her. (Luke 10:41-42)

He saw and knew all that she was doing for Him. But in her performance, she was missing out on the relationship.  That meal she was stressing over was temporary – it would be done and over within a few hours and would be followed by many more meals. But Mary’s love for Christ evidenced itself in sitting quietly at His feet,  just enjoying His presence.

Do you ever just sit and enjoy God’s presence?

Or are you so busy DOING for Him that your relationship with Him is rushed and pushed to the backburner?  That you are lashing out at those closest to you as you feel the stress of your to-do list growing? Even though you are serving Him, you don’t have any joy?

You make known to me the path of life; in your presence there is fullness of joy; at your right hand are pleasures forevermore. (Ps. 16:11, emphasis added)

When we are stressed out & have lost our joy in serving, we need to come to a screeching halt. We need to remember what life is all about – it’s all about loving God and glorifying Him (I Cor. 10:31). If I am stretched so thinly serving Him that I don’t have much time to invest in my personal relationship with Him, I am too busy. I have lost sight of the main thing & become distracted.

What does this look like in our lives?

While I want my classroom to be a fun and engaging environment,  that  can’t be my ultimate goal.  If my goal is to love & glorify God in all that I do, then how does that apply to my classroom? Well, it means loving my students and investing in relationships. It means teaching them the information that they are supposed to know at their grade level – to meet the expectations of my administration as well as helping my kiddos to see God in each subject.

Can I accomplish those goals by sometimes doing a lecture & worksheet lesson instead  of spending hours prepping a simulation complete with historically accurate costumes? Yes! Now I certainly want to strive to have exciting and interesting lessons, but it’s okay if not every single lesson is Pinterest-worthy!

Or what about that family in our church that I want to take a meal to?   While I want to serve others in the body of Christ, can I still glorify God by simply taking a pizza and a bagged salad to that family instead of the roast beef, homemade bread, vegetable casserole, and three layer chocolate cake?

I am not saying that we lower our standards – there are times and places where we CAN take the time to plan that elaborate classroom activity, where we CAN make that full roast beef meal for the family. But, it is okay to keep it simple, too!

Service or Performance?

How can we tell if our service for God has morphed into a performance for God and thus become a distraction?

1. Check your Relationships

Are you finding that because of your service, you are missing the ministry to those closest to you? Your family? Friends? Students? You just feel that you don’t have enough time or energy for them or you find yourself lashing out in anger and impatience?

 Most importantly, how is your personal relationship with Christ? Are you so busy serving that you are struggling to find the time to meet with Him without being rushed?

Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit by itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in me.  I am the vine; you are the branches. Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing. (John 15:4-5)

2. Check your Reactions

Would you rather not take a meal at all if it can’t be an amazing homemade one? How do you react if that classroom activity went off course? If that family didn’t gush in praise over your meal? If you are tempted to react in anger or moping, that is a sure sign that there is something deeper going on in your heart. 

…For out of the abundance of the heart his mouth speaks. (Luke 6:45b)

3. Check your Heart

Why are you doing this in this manner? Is it so that your students will think you are an awesome teacher? So that family in the church will know what a great cook you are? Are you trying to impress God? Remember that your identity isn’t found in your performance – it’s found in Christ! 

If you realize that you have become distracted, there is hope! Run to Christ and confess it to Him (I John 1:9).  Look at your heart- is there a continuous thread of pride running through  that needs to be dealt with? Is there unbelief over your identity in Christ? Has love for other things pushed out your love for Christ?

As much as we can all sympathize with Martha, we need to learn from Mary! Don’t let your service for Him become a distraction!