Devotionals can help Bible teachers maintain the kind of focus that gets them beyond the mere mechanics of teaching to “being” someone who God is pleased to use to make a difference in their students’ lives.
How Devotionals Provide Encouragement that Helps Bible Teachers Maintain the Right Focus
Devotionals provide a means of teacher training that goes beyond teaching skills needed to attending to their hearts and walk with God, reminding them of their need to tap into God’s power. As such, devotionals can address some key factors related to Bible teaching.
1) The Practice of Accountability
James 3:1 says “… we who teach will be judged more strictly.” Teachers therefore need to be challenged to guard their words and examine their lives.
Devotionals will often help Bible teachers look at what’s happening inside, at the core of their being, so their actions line up with God’s desires. “For out of the overflow of the heart the mouth speaks” (Matt. 12:34). The heart, according to Proverbs 4:23, “is the wellspring of life.”
Encouragement: Focus on the heart and you shouldn’t have to fear accountability.
For more on accountability:
2) The Principle of Sowing & Reaping
“A man reaps what he sows” (Gal. 6:7-10). What a teacher sows into his/her own life will have a way of spilling out onto others. Those who do not take time for spiritual growth opportunities, or personal enrichment, will soon have little to offer.
Devotions should provide the teacher with a time of reflection about what they are sowing into their lives and teaching.
Encouragement: Focus on feeding your spirit and you will have something to share.
For more on sowing & reaping:
3) The Priority of Being Over Doing
God’s recruitment criteria is the person of the heart, not one’s skill or appearance. “The Lord does not look at the things man looks at. Man looks at the outward appearance but the Lord looks at the heart” (1 Sam. 16:7).
Devotionals can serve as reminders for Bible teachers that who they are matters to God, not just what they do. This kind of encouragement spills over into what they do in the classroom.
Encouragement: Focus on what’s on the inside and you will soon be doing what you should do.
For more on “being”:
- Being Versus Doing: Which is most important in ministry?
- Teacher Acrostic – What’s in Your Heart?
- Bible Teacher Qualities
Using devotionals geared to Bible teachers can encourage and enrich but also provide challenges sometimes needed to move to the next level not only in teaching but especially in one’s walk with God.