Why I Teach: Students Are a Blessing

Why do we do the things we do?

Why do you do the things you do?

What is the core passion of your life as you serve Christ?

I teach. I plant trees I will not sit under. It is a calling and a passion, and this fall I am renewed in this. And, this week I am reminded what a blessing this is.

Earlier this week my mentor, hero, teacher, and friend Dr. Roy Fish passed away. I will write more about his life soon, but his passing caused me to reflect. And to look around. Why do I teach?  Here are a few reasons:

My new student John, a rising businessman whose firm offered to pay for his MBA at a prominent university, promoted him, and put him on a track for great success in business and economically. But there was a problem: God put the Sudan on his heart. John walked away from this career, he and his wife and two kids sold their home to move into a smaller home, and he is in seminary preparing to go to the nations.

That is a kick in the face, Mr. American Dream.

Then there are my two bodyguards as I call them, Brandon and Jon. Big, strong, athletic fellows, Brandon is military, Jon a former college football player. I met these two at orientation where they told me they felt called in the area of evangelism. They have already been with me on trips, and we will spend a lot of time together in the days to come. Brandon emailed me this week to say he really wanted to be involved in evangelism more. So, this week I put him in charge of an entire class to go into the community to witness. These men are why I teach.

Then there is Phil. Phil is older, a veteran pastor studying for the PhD in Applied Theology (N.A. Missiology) here. I participated in his oral exam yesterday. Both brilliant and wise, I remembered one reason I teach is because I yet have much to learn.  Sitting with me in this oral was Phil’s mentor Dr. John Hammett, my friend and for some time my Sunday school teacher. I teach because I have colleagues who stretch, encourage, and love me. And there with us was Dr. Bruce Ashford, my former student and now one of my bosses, who brings me such great joy every time we interact.

And then there was last night. I spoke in a converted theater in the town of Dunn, where a former student named Sean leads the ministry there. A large number of people filled the theater, mostly college aged. Many came to Christ. I was tired when I arrived, bolstered by the three men who came with me — Jon I mentioned above, a student in my classes and a student pastor himself named Josh, and my ace intern Kevin. Physically tired from a very long day, I was blessed by Sean’s love for this ministry and these people. The response last night was a tribute to a faithful pastor and the gospel’s power.

What has God called you to do? Why do you do what you do?  I am a teacher, and I am blessed.  Yes, we have some students who don’t quite get it, that guy in his late 20s who plays videogames more than he studies, the fellow who does not understand that being a man of God also means being a man — you know, responsible, mature, and so on. But I do not focus on that occasional student. God has given too many who hunger for Him and who seek to make Him famous.

And that is why I teach.