Teachable Spirit

TEACHABLE SPIRIT

Do you know what that means? It means you are willing to listen and learn. It means you are open (not naive) to growth. Whether that is education/skill/career growth or spiritual/biblical/christian growth.

I've been a teacher in ministry for over 15 years. I've taught hundreds and thousands of lessons to adults, children, and teens. Whether it was as a volunteer, part-time minister, or in a full-time capacity. I've had the honor of teaching for God. I've learned alot about teaching others and learning myself from others or through teaching/leading.

It's frustrating when you are in a position of leadership and teaching when you have students or people who aren't willing to listen. I'm not saying, they aren't hearing, but they aren't listening. I'm not talking just about trouble-makers and people goofing off, a lot of people just have the attitude "they know it all", "they don't need to learn", or they "don't care".

It's hard to teach someone, that isn't willing to learn. It's hard to be a teacher/leader if you aren't willing to learn and grow yourself. None of us have arrived. None of us "know it all". Life is a journey of learning, growing, maturing, and discovery. Many people miss all or part of those things.

Some people go to church so long, they stop learning. They still go to church, but they stop growing and learning in their faith and in God's word. Some people become so entranced by the world, they don't see a need for God, let alone learn about Him or what the Bible says about their lives. Some well-meaning christians(or are they?) get to a point where they think they finally "know" everything or they are doing others (or God) a favor by trying to prove others wrong, tear them down, judge and condemn them all in the name of God. Young people come to church or they skate through youth group and never take their faith serious and then fall away in college.

I'm not trying to paint a negative picture, I'm trying to be honest. You can't improve, do better, or grow if you aren't honest or try to make something pretty that isn't. The fact is, you stop learning, you stop growing. You refuse to learn, you refuse to grow. Some of us have stopped growing. We may still go to church, read our bibles, and get caught up on all the latest religious books or fads, but are you still teachable?

Ofcourse, my main goal in this article is to get people to never stop learning about God. If you are seeking, new to God, or still trying to figure out whether you believe in God or not, then you need to learn all you can about God's Word(The Bible), find a church, start going to bible studies, classes, and listening to sermons and talk with friends you know are committed christians you respect.

If you already go to church and claim Christianity, your job is to continually learn. Respect the authority of your pastors, elders, and leaders. Don't go to church looking for something wrong or waiting for the Pastor to say something that you don't agree with, but have a teachable spirit. Your job is not to always be right and prove everyone else wrong and criticize every little thing. Even if you are a pastor, elder, or Sunday school teacher reading this, you still need to learn and grow everyday. All of us do. The goal of church is making disciples and reaching the un-saved. The goal of the Bible is to be our spiritual map and the goal of the Holy Spirit is to be our spiritual guide. Take advantage of these things, don't abuse them, let them all teach you.

Are you teachable? Are you willing to learn? Are you hindering others from learning because of your negative attitude? Even if you are a CEO, Sr. Pastor, Chairman of the Elders, Super Athlete, or most popular kid in school, we all need to learn, improve, grow, mature, and develop into the person God wants us to be. Where are you? Are you teachable? It's time we all start growing, but the key is your openess and willingness to grow and learn from your mistakes.
"The health of the apple tells the health of the tree. You must begin with your own life-giving lives. It's who you are, not what you say or do, that counts. Your true being brims over into true words and deeds." Luke 6:44-45(The Message).