Be The Teacher

There is coming a day when you will see God face to face. On this day, you will stand before the Lord and He will say, "Well done." or "Depart from me."  The God of all creation will evaluate your faithfulness to Him while you walked this earth. God will be the final and righteous judge. We only get one life. One chance to get it right. We have to be so in tune with what God's Word says about true faithfulness that there's no way we are mistaking what the world says is faithful with what God says is faithful. Proverbs 14:12 says, "There is a way that appears to be right, but in the end it leads to death." I don't want to be faithful in all the wrong things. The world says, speak what you want. The Word says, speak with grace. The world says, live as you please. The Word says, live as God pleases. The world says, follow your heart. The Word says, follow God's heart. The world says, do what feels good. The Word says, do what is rig...

Hi all! I usually post on Sunday night so ya'll will have a fresh blog post to set you up for the week. However, I've been so sick I'm just now getting around to posting. I've actually not been in my classroom to teach one day this week. And tonight and tomorrow are PT conferences!! AHHHH. I'm having to reschedule. So if you think about it, say a prayer for me!! We are in the 6th week of our delve into the fruit of the Spirit. So far we have talked about love, joy, peace, patience and kindness. Today we are going to talk about goodness. I think goodness is one part of the fruit of the Spirit that we have a little trouble wrapping our minds around. The definition of goodness seems a little obscure. Maybe because its meaning isn't as cut and dry as joy or patience. Or maybe it's because we use the word "good" so flippantly in our vocabulary to describe so many things. Goodness Defined So how DO we describe goodness? Merriam-Webster uses t...

Ever heard of Kid President? This is his quote. :) Kindness Matters Have you ever been cut off in traffic? Called a name by a classmate? Have you ever been purposely left out or ignored? Do you have an inconsiderate co-worker? Or a family member that makes you feel inferior? When I was a kid, my my dad would tell me "Just kill them with kindness, Kristy." This advice changed my life. At first my motives behind my actions on this were more harsh than kind. I wanted to get back at them. But, the longer I've used my dad's advice the less harsh my motives have become because I've seen the proof of the power of this Biblical truth: Kindness changes hearts and minds.   You say, "Yeah, Kristy. It's not that easy. Showing kindness is really hard when someone has hurt you." And I'll say right back, "I totally agree!" Being kind to an offender is one of the hardest things I've ever done. Honestly, I can't say that it gets any easier each ...

Welcome, friends! Happy Sunday! I hope that you've rested, spent time with family and gathered together with other believers today. This week is our 4th week in our closer look at the Fruit of the Spirit. Before I begin, let me tell you that the Lord allowed me to be tested on the peace that I blogged about last week. I so cheerily hit the post button last Sunday night feeling calm, cool and collected. Then came Monday. Monday tested my peace like no other day I've had in a very long time. Thank goodness the rest of the week eased up a bit but Monday proved to me that if I'm going to have the guts to put it out there (even on a blog), I better have the guts to back up my talk with some action. I also proved to myself that the peace of Christ does live in me and I'm never alone. So on to this week's fruit! Patience. For the first time in my entire life I practiced patience by being really "patient" in researching our topic this week. Ok. So I procrastinated...

Peace. What comes to mind when you hear the word? Go ahead and say the word out loud and formulate a thought in your mind. Did you say it? What came to mind? Some of you may have thought of a beauty pageant contestant speaking on world peace. You may have thought of a peace sign or a bell bottomed someone holding two fingers in the air. Or maybe you thought of a sleeping baby or a rolling stream. Maybe your mind took you the opposite direction and you thought of the lack of peace we have in our world. Political unrest. Wars. Famine. Racism. Peace is one of those things that everyone wants but no one really knows how to get. And if they do figure out how to get it, they can't figure out how to keep it. Lots of people think that living a peaceful life is living a life without problems.  If we could just get rid of our stress, if we could get our finances in order, if we could get away from that annoying family member/coworker. But, this can't be further away from the Biblical vi...

This is the second post in our fruit of the spirit "teaching style" series. And today we're talking all about JOY! First let's talk a little bit about what joy actually is. I think a lot of us get joy and happiness confused. Having joy is so much more than just being happy. Happiness can waver with your moods and emotions. Happiness can be easily taken away depending on situations and circumstances. But joy, my friends, is rooted in something much deeper than our feelings or our experiences. True joy is rooted in Christ. And when you have a joy that is rooted in Jesus, with that joy comes hope; with hope comes assurance; and with assurance comes peace. When we live lives full of peace, assurance, and hope in who we are because of Who we serve, joy is ours for the taking.  John 15:11 says, "I have told you this so that my joy may be in you and that your joy may be complete." This passage speaks of two joys. The joy of Jesus and our own joy. And Jesus implies ...

This week begins our nine week dive into the Fruit of the Spirit "teacher style". Last week we talked about what it takes to be a truly great teacher. I think we can agree that it takes more than a really great communicator who is knowledgeable in their subject area. It takes heart, mission, and most of all love. Which brings me to this week's subject! Love is a powerful force. We know that love is what absolutely makes a difference in our homes, our jobs, and our schools. Love has the power to change hearts and minds and can ignite a fire in our souls.  And true genuine love will be the force that transforms our classrooms. Not only will it penetrate the hearts of your students but will define you as a teacher. Yet, sometimes it's hard to show genuine love to the kid/coworker/administrator that is acting so unlovable. During these times we must remember that love isn't a feeling but a decision you make to forgive the offenses, endure the hardships, persevere thro...

If I were to ask you what characteristics a teacher would need to have to be a great teacher, what comes to mind? Someone who is well spoken? A person who is knowledgeable on the subject they are teaching? A great motivator? I absolutely think of all those things and more. But when I think back on my experience as a student, the teachers I remember the most were the teachers who had characteristics beyond their exceptional teaching ability. I remember the teachers who showed great patience with me when I just didn't understand a lesson. I remember the teachers who always made me feel important. I remember the teachers who came to my basketball games to see me play and the teachers who took the time to eat lunch with me and my friends every once in a while. I saw Jesus in all of these adults who had such a huge impact on my life.  I want to be that kind of teacher. I want to be the hands and feet of Jesus with my students. But how? I think the guide to being a great teacher lies in ...

I know this is the beginning of the school year. I know a lot of us are fresh as a daisy and ready to start off the year with a spring in our step and a smile on our face. However, there may be a few who are already overwhelmed. Whether it's the stress of getting your room ready or the uncertainty of a new position, you already feel a little stale. For the latter, this post is for you right now and in the moment. But you fresh flowers better save this one for around Christmas because you'll need it! Or sooner! Being a Christian doesn't automatically make our lives easier. It's a nice thought that God would take away our struggles when we begin to follow Him but that's not His plan for us. Why would we need Him if we didn't have problems? We wouldn't. Struggle maintains our need for God and our need for Him maintains our relationship with Him. I'm pretty sure not many would disagree that we, as public educators, are quite familiar with struggle. We strugg...

"Because of the LORD's great love we are not consumed, for His compassions never fail. They are new every morning; great is Your faithfulness." Lamentations 3:22-23 One thing I have always had an unbridled obsession with is new school supplies. My roommate in college thought I was downright crazy when I described the giddy feeling of pure bliss I get when I walk into Office Depot. Honestly, I thought I was alone in this seemingly odd fascination with new pens, new pencils, and oh my goodness new notebooks - which I fancy on the deepest of all levels - until I became a teacher. And come to find out, there's a whole tribe of us!! When I entered the teaching world I met so many other people who are emotionally overtaken by new school supplies. I even met a girl in college who bought some perfume online that smelled like new crayons. And it actually smelled like new crayons! And she wore it regularly! This is no lie. I may or may not have strategically chosen my seat in c...