It was a Saturday morning in April, still chilly by Louisiana standards. David Saucer, the leader of our college and career class, told us to meet him shortly after daylight and to wear work clothes. We arrived at a construction site where a small house had just been framed, and our teacher handed us hammers. We followed him and the volunteer coordinator around and helped deck the building, a Habitat for Humanity house. I don’t remember the words our teacher shared, but the memory of that morning has stayed with me a long time. Our teacher showed us the heartbeat of God by helping with the needs of others.
Guiding Students to Develop a Burden
I’m confident you have similar stories of how teachers helped develop a passion in you for reaching others, whether at home or abroad. The act of reaching others happens in a number of ways through prayer, evangelistic efforts, humanitarian service, and so much more. There is no one-size-fits-all approach, but the common denominator is a teacher or leader who guides students in that process of developing a burden and a mindset to answer the call to missions and service. You no doubt remember that teacher; now you are the teacher.
This month’s video provides a big-picture challenge and practical suggestions for how to cultivate that missions mindset among your students.
Click here or on the image below.
Resources and Links
Teaching to Transform Hearts: This book makes the case for reviving the teaching ministry of the church. It challenges us to assess our current teaching methods and effectiveness. And it gives us a wealth of strategies for breathing new life into the classrooms of our churches. As we do so, we follow Jesus’ foundational call to “go therefore and make disciples . . . teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you” (Matthew 28:19–20, NKJV).
More Than Grasshoppers: Who are you? This age-old question haunts people of every walk of life as we seek to understand our identity and purpose. This book answers that question in a fresh, engaging approach. Theological topics such as being made in the image of God, navigating flesh and spirit tensions, and living out holiness in a healthy body image and in our social media are tackled in an easy-to-read, non-technical format. This book will help you discover your identity as an Apostolic child of God. By seeing ourselves as Jesus sees us—loved by Him, made in His image, empowered by the Holy Ghost, and equipped with spiritual gifts—we can triumphantly live out the purpose He has for our lives.