We live in a world where at the click of a button thousands can know your thoughts, life status, mood, relationships to others etc. It truly is amazing the technology we have these days. I find it hard when you are a born teacher to not teach. I know that sounds like an oxymoron. Teachers are suppose to teach, right? Not always. Sometimes the best teaching comes from silence, or the teacher look. Never saying a word. It is the hardest thing to master if you are a teacher, silence.
I find myself struggling sometimes that when I have a lesson that is suppose to be taught to go out and find students. I have been wrestling with that all week. "Invite people to hear the lesson," the little small voice in my head says. There is a strong matriarch teacher in my life that pops in and out when needed. She is never too far, and never too close. She has continually said to me, and I am sure to others, "When the students are ready, the teacher will come." I believe she was taught that from her strong matriarch teacher in her life, if I am remembering the story correctly.
I am probably going to debunk religious teachings in this blog, and make literal thinkers of scripture gasp. As a disclosure, the foundations of all my thinking goes back to a religious stand point. Now, I wade through the muck of man's interruption to God's intent. As a child I grew up with heavily influenced baptist doctrine. There was a lot of black and white in thinking, not much room for gray. However, grace was a word thrown around like a golden ticket, yet you do not want to use it. I can remember going door to door with tracks of "The ABC's to salvation" or "The Roman's Road to Salvation." The whole focus was to get the GOOD NEWS out and invite people to church. Then if people would come, religion would tell them how wrong they are; How they should change, what to look like, dress like, be like, because of this GRACE then Jesus would love you, and you could be saved. "NOW DO YOU BELIEVE?" Some man would ask, maybe a woman depending on what gender you were, because a woman could not minister or teach a man. However, men could teach a woman. I must laugh at those methods, now. Spread the GOOD NEWS, was the focal point. I still hear it in churches. It is funny how some think that is still what they are doing spreading the GOOD NEWS maybe as churches grow, while others are dying, or pews are being filled. I am not convinced. If you dissect the scripture in the gospel of Mark it would state, "Go publicly and say a good message to the world." I could be wrong, but what to be and not to be is not a good message. Seems to me that is called judgement and control.
On further note I do not ever recall Jesus ever needing slogans, mission statements, by-laws, constitutions, gimmicks, or activities to teach the Good News. It seemed the students were always waiting on him to show up. Crowds where there as he walked by, or maybe he just walked into the crowds already formed. I could be wrong, but I do not ever remember Jesus saying, "Now listen, once we get off this boat make sure there is a crowd. Let's shoot for 5,000. I have a great event planned with some fishes and loaves." If we embody Christ, then we also do not need an event, activity, or catchy jingle. The crowds will gather, but sometimes the students need some intimate time with the teacher if the crowds are small.
Back to my original struggle, just showing up to teach. When you know you have a great lesson you want everyone to hear it. 'Gather the people,' you think. Then you show up to teach, and you have a great history lesson, but those YOU gathered need to learn geometry. All because you wanted a crowd. Your justification then resorts to, "Am I not suppose to proclaim the Good News?" I am gonna say, "No." No, I am not suppose to proclaim the good news by gathering the crowds. I am suppose to be evidence of the Good News. I need to seek no crowds, because I am just suppose to walk in the midst of them. No matter the crowd size, when I am given a lesson the students will be ready, because I am just called to teach.
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