“Teaching. (Matthew 28:20)” One of the popular sayings encourages us to share the love of Jesus “and use words if necessary.” Jesus in his farewell sends his followers forward, “go and make disciples of all nations.” He makes it clear that this involves baptism, a cleansing of the soul by God giving a new start in life and it involves teaching, learning the rules of the game. Observation is a slow tedious way to learn a new language, a new game, a new culture but having a friend who explains, who walks with you, who does not criticize, speeds up the learning process.
Teaching implies also that the student in learning will sometimes make mistakes and will not always be perfect. The student does not have the expertise of the teacher and has not mastered the skills and knowledge. I fear we often think that a profession of faith should be followed by a life that immediately changes and is perfect. But in-fact making disciples involves teaching and it is a process.
Teaching is relational, takes time, and involves growth. Perhaps reflecting on where you want to be growing in your faith right now would be a good exercise. How might you grow? Seek our a friend to teach you? Find a book on the subject? Go to a retreat center where you could be involved with a spiritual director? Find an older saint to share with. As we have gone through this season of Covid and quarantine, it could be that certain spiritual disciples have been neglected while other disciples have found new expressions. I’m continually amazed at the virtual choirs and instrumental videos coming out involving people from around the world putting their talents together. As a grandparent, I try to pray for specific character traits I would like to be growing in my grandchildren. We are never too old or too young to be impacting lives of another. Who are you wanting to teach and who are you learning from today?
On the Way to Wonder 