LEARN FROM YOUR MISTAKES
March 19, 2021
Prayer: Father, never let me forget that to be a great teacher, I need to be a great learner. Amen.
Scripture: You did not choose me, but I chose you. John 15:16 NIV
Can we decide on and make changes to our attitudes and behaviour which will show we have learned from our errors? I have put this question to more pupils than I can remember, but sometimes I have had to ask myself the same thing. Currently there is a TV advertising campaign running for a slimming product. The well-known lady fronting the whole thing does not look as if she especially needs the product, but you never can tell. The slogan is “Change one thing.” It’s good advice. I do not succeed when I try to change everything in my life, but when I make one alteration and work at it, I have more success.
For most teachers life is pressurized enough, isn’t it? When we add to it the dimension of being one of just a few Christians in our school, or perhaps the only one as far as we are aware, our perception of what is at stake rises. We can end up putting ourselves under far more pressure than is good or necessary for us, and I think this results in an incorrect view of God, His purpose, and our place in it.
We need to remember where our desire to serve and love the Lord comes from in the first place: from Him, right? If He had not looked for us initially, we would never have responded. He has always been infinitely more zealous to show His love and life to everyone than we could ever demonstrate. The fact that He chooses to use weak and flawed people is wonderful, and we should never lose sight of that, but it doesn’t all depend on us, which means we can relax and rejoice in His power and goodness.
So when you feel the spanner (wrench) has been well and truly thrown in the works, check through your feelings to see if you are looking at the situation from the wrong perspective. If you are, find a way, and some help if necessary, to access God’s perspective. It’s always better.
Adapted from the book To Infinity and Turn Left: Exploring God’s Purpose for Christian Teachers by Graham Coyle, available from Amazon. [email protected]