Some years ago, Gallup asked, “What attribute do Americans find most compelling in the teacher they have identified as having the greatest impact on their lives?”

Over 40% of Americans describe the teacher who had the most positive influence in their lives with words such as caring, compassionate, motivating, and inspiring; while just 17% of Americans thought intelligent, knowledgeable, persistent, hard-working, and demanding were words that describe the teacher who had the strongest influence on them. (2012 Gallup Poll on Public Education)

Caring and compassionate! Quite the caricature-smasher isn’t it.

Of course, there has to be content as well; we don’t want teachers just to cuddle the little darlings all day. But I must admit, although my own elementary and high school education was a nightmare in many ways, the two teachers who do stand out in my mind, one man and one woman, were exactly as described in this poll.

They were willing to stop teaching and start talking. They would sometimes stop in the corridor and chat. In the classroom, they were firm but warm and friendly. They often encouraged with words of praise and appreciation. They varied teaching and assessment methods so that everyone’s gifts could shine rather than just the best memorizers. They were more concerned with what we learned than with what they taught. Although, their lessons didn’t seem to be so full of facts and figures, I learned far more from them than in all the other classes put together.

Above all, they just seemed to have more time for students. And there’s nothing that communicates care and compassion better than time. To this day, whenever I think of them, I am inspired and motivated to be less focused on transferring data and much more on touching hearts.

All this perfectly fits what we know about the greatest teacher that ever lived:

Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. Matthew 11:29

His appeal for students was based on gentleness and humility not qualifications or results. His teaching methods were certainly not exactly the most “efficient”; but were they supremely effective and compelling!

Blogs

To avoid spiritual abuse church leaders should do this
“The church in her leaders who wish to avoid falling into acts of spiritual abuse may want to consider the following preventative steps:”

What Is the Nature of Pastoral Authority? — A Presbyterian Perspective
“In short, the nature of pastoral authority in Presbyterianism is both informal (in dozens of areas, from preaching, to casting vision, to having a broad understanding of the issues in the church, to making lots of daily decisions), formal (as a member and moderator of the Session), and shared (as only one voice and one vote when it comes to making the most important decisions facing the courts of the church).”

Has the Church Hurt You?
“For those who find their faith mangled in a head-on collision with the church, like a totaled car on the highway, what is the way forward? In between “I guess I’ll just wait things out” and “I’m leaving for good” are five realities that frame our wounds, bring them into a better light, and help us take the next steps. ”

Reader Survey Finds Unprepared Students a Persistent Problem
For the fourth consecutive year, Faculty Focus readers identified students who come to class unprepared as their biggest day-to-day challenge. Staying with students here’s a new book that answers the question, Must All Graduates Wander Aimlessly in Their Twenties? And when it comes to apply for jobs here’s an article by a hiring manager: I Review Hundreds Of Cover Letters–Here’s What I Instantly Reject

Columns from Tabletalk Magazine, October 2016
A sample of columns in October’s Tabletalk.

What are 10 things that might help a pastor and his wife stay married and in ministry?
“Marriage is hard enough, but add ministry into the mix and you have a recipe for a potential mess.  My work with pastors and their families cause me to see a lot of the messiness that exists in pastor’s homes.  There’s plenty of the same mess in my own home.  The combined stress of marriage in ministry is a unique situation that demands an intentionality to keep a marriage or ministry from imploding. ”

Reach Out To Women Like Me With Postpartum Depression
“Let’s discuss what postpartum depression really looks like, by sharing our experiences with the new and expectant mothers in our lives. Let’s confront the doubt and denial head on, together, so that another mom doesn’t shrug off her symptoms as “not that bad” until it’s too late for her and her family.”

3 Mistakes to Avoid When Helping the Hurting
“Here are three mistakes we tend to make when we’re genuinely trying to help the hurting, and some suggestions for how to redirect our efforts: ”

Kindle Books

Tried by Fire: The Story of Christianity’s First Thousand Years $2.99.

Tyndale: The Man Who Gave God an English Voice $0.99.

Praying Backwards: Transform Your Prayer Life by Beginning in Jesus Name by Bryan Chappel $0.99.

The Colson Way: Loving Your Neighbor and Living with Faith in a Hostile World by Owen Strachan $0.99

Videos

For the Church Conference
A series of videos from Midwestern Seminary on the pastor as theologian, as preacher, as shepherd, as family man, and as leader

Paul Lewer reflects on his first semester at Puritan Reformed Seminary.

Articles on the challenges of technology used to start with a long list of statistics proving the seriousness of the moral, spiritual, relational, and cognitive problems resulting from the digital revolution. I hardly need to waste ink or space on such matters now. Everyone knows by personal experience and observation how many and how massive the problems are. And the vast majority of Christians are concerned enough to want to do something about it. But what can we do?

No Technology

There are probably a few people left who are still trying the “no technology” approach. They say: “The dangers are too great; the consequences are too awful. Therefore, we’ll keep separate from the world by rejecting technology. We won’t buy it, and we will ban our children from using it, too.”

This approach is admirable and understandable, but impossible. Digital technology is so pervasive that trying to avoid it is like trying to avoid breathing. And even if we succeed in avoiding contamination, our children certainly won’t. They will find it, or it will find them. They will then be using it without our knowledge and without any training and teaching—probably the worst of all worlds.

More Technology

Other people try the “more technology” strategy. That’s what I used to focus on most, the idea being that we use good technology to defeat bad technology. So, we use blockers on cable TV channels, we set up passwords and time limits on home computers, we add tracking apps to our children’s cell phones, we install accountability software on our laptops, and so on. All of these things are good and can certainly be helpful parts of an overall package of caring for ourselves and our children.

There are some problems, though, if we are relying on the “more technology” approach alone. The first is that we can never get enough good technology to beat bad technology. Teens are especially adept at circumventing controls and finding loopholes in the most secure systems. Sure, we can slow them down, we can make it more difficult by putting some obstacles in the way, but if they are determined enough, they are going to beat us. They can always find more technology to beat our “more technology” battle plan.

Also, even if we succeed in securing their devices, as soon as they walk out the door, they can access anything they want on friends’ devices. Or, they can simply get another device and hide it from us. This approach also tends toward legalism and undermines relationships by creating a sort of “cat and mouse” scenario, resulting in suspicion on the one side and hiding on the other. We need more than “more technology.”

More Theology

The longer I’ve wrestled with this problem in my own family, the more convinced I’ve become that the ultimate answer is not “no technology” or “more technology” but “more theology.” If we want a deep, lasting, and spiritual solution, we need to learn and teach deep, lasting, and spiritual truths. Sound digital theology is the answer to digital technology; the oldest truths are the best rebuttal to the newest challenges. More Trinity is more effective than more technology.

To find out how more Trinity is more effective than more technology, read the rest of the article at Ligonier.

Blogs

Authority: God’s Good and Dangerous Gift
So pleased that 9Marks are tackling this thorny issue in their latest online journal. haven’t read all the articles yet but I thought this one struck a good balance: Authority, Not Authoritarian 

Why Does the Universe Look So Old?
Tim Challies with a helpful summary of Al Mohler’s address on this issue.

A Year in the Life of a Minister
If you want to take a peek behind the curtains, Pastor Paul Levy is blogging a year in the life of a minister.

Samples from Seminary: Church History  on Entertainment
And here’s a Seminary student, Matt Kortus, who shares what he learns in his classes, this time drawing lessons about entertainment from Church History

My company implemented a 5-hour workday — and the results have been astounding
One for the next Faculty meeting:

“Moving my staff to a five-hour workday was one of the hardest decisions I’ve ever made, but today my employees are happier, more productive, and invested in the business.”

Kindle Books

For your non-Kindle book buying needs please consider using Reformation Heritage Books in the USA and Reformed Book Services in Canada. Good value prices and shipping.

Give Them Grace: Dazzling Your Kids with the Love of Jesus by Elyse Fitzpatrick $2.99.

Bonhoeffer: Pastor, Martyr, Prophet, Spy by Eric Metaxes $2.99.

Sins We Accept by Jerry Bridges $0.99. An abridged version of Respectable Sins.

Video

How to Email: An Etiquette Update
Want to cut your email time in half?

Those of us who are psalm singers are often faced with the problem of singing worship songs which are not true to our own experience. For example, there are many psalms which speak of suffering, poverty, oppression, and persecution. How can we sing them when we are going through times of joy, peace, and even prosperity? Here are six ways that we can sing psalms that do not reflect our present reality.

1. Remember suffering Christians all over the world. When we sing “suffering psalms,” we can be praying for suffering Christians all over the world. We can turn these songs into intercessions for the persecuted in North Korea and Iraq.

2. Remember suffering Christians sitting beside us. It’s not just faraway Christians who are suffering; there are some in the same pew who need our words, our touch, and our practical help. These psalms remind us to reach out and reach into their painful world.

3. Remember what we deserve. Because of our sin, we’ve forfeited all rights to every comfort in this world. Therefore, every day of happiness, every day of  painlessness, every day of sanity, is a day of grace and mercy. With such psalms we are therefore praising God for his undeserved favor every day.

4. Remember what we’ve been saved from (and to). These suffering Psalms give us an insight into eternal sufferings and therefore remind us that no matter how great our suffering in time, we’ve been saved from an eternity of much worse. In our pain, we also remember that, in God’s kindness, the day is coming when sighing and crying will be no more. And neither will these psalms.

5. Remember to prepare for trouble and trial. Although we may have days, years, and even decades of a relatively trouble-free life, we all eventually and inevitably will face tough times of aches and pains, of sighs and groans. Suffering psalms will then become our song. In the meantime, we can still sing them in a preparatory way, asking God to ready and equip us for such times when they do come.

6. Remember Jesus Christ. Whatever sufferings the psalmist experienced, they are nothing compared to what Jesus Christ endured on our behalf. What agonies of body, mind, and soul. What excruciating misery he passed through for sinners like you and me. He could and did sing this psalm as no other. We can therefore sing it in praise of Christ who suffered all this and worse in our place and on our behalf.