As water reflects a face, so a man’s heart reflects the man. (Prov. 27:19)

Applied to teachers, Proverbs 27:19 would say, “so a teacher’s heart reflects the teacher.” 

As teachers, we need to do the right things, but our hearts need to be right as well.  “All a man’s ways seem right to him, but the Lord weighs the heart” (Prov. 21:2).

I already wrote an article on the MinTools.com site about Why the Condition of a Teacher’s Heart is So Important.  Now I want to consider some traits that ought to be in a teacher’s heart.

Teachable Heart  (attentive, listens, observes) 

Prov. 10:8; 22:17; 23:12; 24:32

Enlightened Heart  (wise, discerning)

Prov. 15:14; 16:21; 23:15

Aligned Heart   (walks in truth; trusts in God, not self)

Ps. 86:11; Prov. 3:5-6

Caring Heart  (loves, compassionate)

Prov. 3:3; 1 Pet. 1:22

Humble Heart   (not proud)

Ps. 51:17; 131:1

Earnest Heart  (sincere) 

Col. 3:22;  Heb. 10:22

Righteous Heart   (pure, maintains integrity)

Ps. 15:1-2; 51:10; 119:80

Steadfast   (firmly established)

Ps. 57:7; 112:7

 

Remember, “a teacher’s heart reflects the teacher.”

To answer that questions, start by praying something similar to the following verses:

Test me, O Lord, and try me, examine my heart and my mind.  (Ps. 26:2)

Search me, O God, and know my heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts. (Ps. 139:23)

Then get specific in your prayers about each of the heart conditions in the above acrostic, particularly in how it relates to your teaching.  Ask:

• Do I have this kind of heart?
• Why do I need this kind of heart in teaching?

Then ask God to more fully develop this heart within you.

This entry was posted on Wednesday, March 17th, 2010 at 7:50 am and is filed under Teacher Training. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.