If God is Your Teacher, What Kind of Pupil Are You? — Ami Loper

What Kind of Pupil Are You?

The boy I was staring at was talking a mile a minute, spewing out every excuse in the book, all the while wearing a mischievous smirk. He knew exactly what he was doing. All his excuses for being out of his seat once again were a mere smokescreen for his real aim: disruption. Behind my closed mouth, cool demeanor and quiet eyes (with one brow firmly raised), my mind was scrambling. How do you regain control of a kid whose mouth and body will not quit? How do you not stoop to his level of insult and physical action and still make an impact?

I’m not a teacher by trade. And that day, I drove home thinking, “Thank God!” I had merely been in that sixth-grade class for an hour to teach about art and lead them in an exercise to help them create. But it gave me a reinvigorated respect for the teachers I knew.

I had managed that day, managed to discipline the boy and regain the attention of the room. I had seen right through his antics, put him in his place with a firm remark reinforced by that singular raised “eyebrow of doom.” But, boy, I did not like the way I could still hear my heart beating in my ears as I relived it on the drive home.

The most frustrating thing is that he probably would have enjoyed the lesson and learned something valuable had he not been so intent on playing this role he slipped into on a daily basis. One on one, I could reach him and have great conversations with him, but he felt that urge to perform when the crowd was there.

Education requires great teachers, but it also requires pupils who are willing to learn.

As I was pondering this in regard to our relationship with the Great Teacher (Jesus), I pictured myself and a few nameless friends sitting in a classroom while He taught.

Was I a distraction? Were my antics drawing anyone’s attention away from the Teacher?

Was I staring out the window, content with my dreams instead of the life lesson being taught?

Was I the one saying I had forgotten to do my homework? Was I giving countless excuses as to why I was always late for class? – home problems, other people not doing what I, myself, am responsible for? Was I shifting blame for my poor results?

Was I that student sitting in the back, trying to hide behind the person in front of me, hoping I was never called upon?

Was I freaking out every time I was faced with a pop quiz instead of calmly following through with what I knew I’d been taught?

What kind of a student am I? What kind are you?

I want a heart that wants to learn, to soak up the truth and the wisdom that pours from my Teacher.

I want to be able to pass the test – displaying that my Teacher is good and I have been paying attention.

"Everyone then who hears these words of mine and does them will be like a wise man who built his house on the rock.” Matthew 7:24

Check out my vlog on this subject here!

For more on how to “Be More than a Learner,” click HERE!