Teacher Appreciation

^"7Remember your leaders, who spoke the word of God to you. Consider the outcome of their way of life and imitate their faith."

- Hebrews 13:7

   Today at FCC Erwin we had a Teacher Appreciation lunch to honor those that have served in the education ministry of the church over the past year. It was a great time but a little awkward for me to lead it, without knowing those being honored for more than a couple months. I still enjoyed it and think it was needed, but how much can I truly say or feel in appreciation of people I am just getting to know? Genuine teacher appreciation can only come from those who have benefited, either directly or indirectly, from the impact a teacher has made on a student and what that student does as a result.


   That got me thinking about the verse above, and my experiences as both a student and a leader. When I was in 11th grade, my first and at that point only youth minister, Rich Franz, left to pursue another opportunity. The youth group put together a plaque with a picture of ourselves (we were so humble :-D) and Hebrews 13:7 on it as a farewell gift. I dare say that for most of the youth group that was about as much appreciation as they were prepared to give. Their lives moved forward with Rich remaining little more than a memory dusted off occasionally with old photos. 


   For me (and at least a couple others I know of) a plaque wasn't nearly enough to show my full gratitude. I felt the impact of his ministry and observed the quality of the life he lived and so I wanted to model my life after the example he (and others) set. Rich is not the only reason I am in ministry today, but without him being the right person at the right time, my life would be much different. It has taken time for me to begin to see the depth of the impact one person can make on another. Every time I have an opportunity to make a difference in the life of someone else I can trace it back to people like Rich who led me to Christ. I'm sure he also has his own story of who he can trace his faith back to.


   At the end of 2009 (and a couple other times too), I found myself in his shoes as the youth minister leaving a group of students. The youth group gave me a goodbye DVD with photos of good memories and messages about the impact I made on their lives. It is probably all the appreciation some of them are prepared to give, and I will just become a dusty memory in their life one day. For the record I love the DVD, but what I would really appreciate is to see their lives lived in the faith I modeled, because it was modeled to me, by someone who had it modeled to them and so on. 


   I want that not just for them and the joy it would bring to their lives personally, but also for all the people they could potentially teach throughout the rest of their life, and the people that those people could reach in turn. One day in Heaven, do I think I'll get to meet all the people who can trace their faith back to me in an overwhelming display of how important my life was? No. I would hope we'd all be worshiping the God who makes any of this mean anything significant instead of worrying about something like that. All I'm trying to say is that there is something amazing about the life cycle of being a student of some and a teacher of others and how God uses both to increase His glory.


   What are your thoughts on "teacher appreciation"?


   In what ways have you shown appreciation to the teachers in your churches and the teachers who have personally shaped your faith?