How to Teach
How to Teach
How to Teach
How to Teach
It takes much more than words and even a few actions to teach someone. In order to influence someone for good, it takes a life of consistency. When our words, attitudes / feelings, and actions all point to the same thing, people will believe us, follow us, and learn from us.
As leaders, we have all learned that actions are much more important than our words. Our family, friends, coworkers, and clients are learning much more from what we do than from what we say.
We have all heard the statement, “People don’t do what you say; they do what you do.” Simon Sinek takes this truth a step further and says, “People don't buy what you do; people buy why you do it.” You see, it’s not effective or influential to say the right things and do the right things if we don’t have the right motivations.
It takes much more than words and even a few actions to teach someone. In order to influence someone for good, it takes a life of consistency. When our words, attitudes / feelings, and actions all point to the same thing, people will believe us, follow us, and learn from us.
Leaders who are followers of Jesus have a distinct call on their life. In Why You Should Be Teaching, we covered how followers of Jesus have a distinct advantage — a purpose and a calling — to teach something meaningful and life-changing to those we’ve been given to love and lead.
Leaders who are followers of Jesus, should be able to demonstrate why they do what they do in all of their life and work. Followers of Jesus should be living examples of the directions, advice, and counsel they offer to others.
Of course, we will never be perfect examples, but we can offer an example of a life of consistency that points to Jesus instead of ourselves and the things of this world. There are three keys to teaching with your life.
Know You Are Imitated
Our kids, friends, coworkers, and clients follow our example and habits more than our words. We can all think back to a time when someone is not doing what we’re teaching them to do. And we likely can find something about ourselves that is inconsistent and causing them to doubt what we’re teaching.
My driving is not consistent with how I teach my kids how to drive. I need to reform!
When we act consistently with what we recommend to others – and our feelings and emotions support that we mean it – our life becomes a witness to what we are saying.
This is why we must become doers of God's word, not just hearers (James 1:22) and talkers. The high privilege of being a witness of Christ should make us want to know God’s word better so that we can let it infiltrate our hearts, minds, and actions.
Embrace the Imitation
Everyone’s life is a witness to something. We can’t change that, so let’s build our life and become a witness worth following.
Soup Campbell is someone I’ve learned a lot from. He says, when someone asks you to disciple them or to teach them about Jesus, don’t shy away and tell them they should follow someone else, instead become, the man or the woman — the leader you need to be to guide them.
Let’s take my poor driving example. This is a great opportunity to admit my carelessness and to tell my children, and all those who ride with me of my faults, and to pledge to do better for the safety of others. Then by doing so, I become a better driver and a witness to the One who is far greater than me.
It works just the same way in the office, on Zoom or out on the job site. We can admit our weaknesses (2 Corinthians 12:9-10) and ask for help, even ask for forgiveness. This will give us purpose and motivation to become a better example for others. Asking people to help you with your weaknesses is one of the best ways to build a relationship and point them to Jesus.
Invitation for Imitation
We should invite others to imitate us. The Apostle Paul said it this way, “Be imitators of me, as I am of Christ.”- [.no-reftag]1 Corinthians 11:1[.no-reftag] (ESV)
Some might say, “That's a high bar!” And it is. Yet, it’s the highest calling we have in our life. There is no greater joy than to redeem every minute of our life and work for the glory of God as we teach others about Jesus (3 John 1:4) especially when they follow Jesus and make their faith their own.
Every moment of life and work is spiritual. Every moment is a chance to be a witness to something. So, let’s invite people to follow us and be examples. Let’s not follow the ways of the world — demonstrating how to work for self ambition, for money, for status, etc. Let’s instead follow the way of Jesus and surrender our words, thoughts, feelings, and actions to our great King so that the whole world might know Him.
Resources:
Article: Why You Should Be Teaching
Video: Called to Teach – You Ought to Teach | Howard Graham
Video: The Vital Command to Make Disciples | Roy "Soup" Campbell
Article: Leaders to Imitate
As leaders, we have all learned that actions are much more important than our words. Our family, friends, coworkers, and clients are learning much more from what we do than from what we say.
We have all heard the statement, “People don’t do what you say; they do what you do.” Simon Sinek takes this truth a step further and says, “People don't buy what you do; people buy why you do it.” You see, it’s not effective or influential to say the right things and do the right things if we don’t have the right motivations.
It takes much more than words and even a few actions to teach someone. In order to influence someone for good, it takes a life of consistency. When our words, attitudes / feelings, and actions all point to the same thing, people will believe us, follow us, and learn from us.
Leaders who are followers of Jesus have a distinct call on their life. In Why You Should Be Teaching, we covered how followers of Jesus have a distinct advantage — a purpose and a calling — to teach something meaningful and life-changing to those we’ve been given to love and lead.
Leaders who are followers of Jesus, should be able to demonstrate why they do what they do in all of their life and work. Followers of Jesus should be living examples of the directions, advice, and counsel they offer to others.
Of course, we will never be perfect examples, but we can offer an example of a life of consistency that points to Jesus instead of ourselves and the things of this world. There are three keys to teaching with your life.
Know You Are Imitated
Our kids, friends, coworkers, and clients follow our example and habits more than our words. We can all think back to a time when someone is not doing what we’re teaching them to do. And we likely can find something about ourselves that is inconsistent and causing them to doubt what we’re teaching.
My driving is not consistent with how I teach my kids how to drive. I need to reform!
When we act consistently with what we recommend to others – and our feelings and emotions support that we mean it – our life becomes a witness to what we are saying.
This is why we must become doers of God's word, not just hearers (James 1:22) and talkers. The high privilege of being a witness of Christ should make us want to know God’s word better so that we can let it infiltrate our hearts, minds, and actions.
Embrace the Imitation
Everyone’s life is a witness to something. We can’t change that, so let’s build our life and become a witness worth following.
Soup Campbell is someone I’ve learned a lot from. He says, when someone asks you to disciple them or to teach them about Jesus, don’t shy away and tell them they should follow someone else, instead become, the man or the woman — the leader you need to be to guide them.
Let’s take my poor driving example. This is a great opportunity to admit my carelessness and to tell my children, and all those who ride with me of my faults, and to pledge to do better for the safety of others. Then by doing so, I become a better driver and a witness to the One who is far greater than me.
It works just the same way in the office, on Zoom or out on the job site. We can admit our weaknesses (2 Corinthians 12:9-10) and ask for help, even ask for forgiveness. This will give us purpose and motivation to become a better example for others. Asking people to help you with your weaknesses is one of the best ways to build a relationship and point them to Jesus.
Invitation for Imitation
We should invite others to imitate us. The Apostle Paul said it this way, “Be imitators of me, as I am of Christ.”- [.no-reftag]1 Corinthians 11:1[.no-reftag] (ESV)
Some might say, “That's a high bar!” And it is. Yet, it’s the highest calling we have in our life. There is no greater joy than to redeem every minute of our life and work for the glory of God as we teach others about Jesus (3 John 1:4) especially when they follow Jesus and make their faith their own.
Every moment of life and work is spiritual. Every moment is a chance to be a witness to something. So, let’s invite people to follow us and be examples. Let’s not follow the ways of the world — demonstrating how to work for self ambition, for money, for status, etc. Let’s instead follow the way of Jesus and surrender our words, thoughts, feelings, and actions to our great King so that the whole world might know Him.
Resources:
Article: Why You Should Be Teaching
Video: Called to Teach – You Ought to Teach | Howard Graham
Video: The Vital Command to Make Disciples | Roy "Soup" Campbell
Article: Leaders to Imitate