Make A DifferenceSample

Be a teacher When I think about the people, aside from my parents, who have had the greatest impact on my life, there would be a lot of teachers in the top ten. Multiplying that influence would be all the teachers who also coach. There may be no adult more significant in the life of a middle school or high school kid than his or her athletic coach. Teachers open up new worlds to their students. They give them a new vocabulary. They encourage dreams and help to identify passions and strengths. They push students to excel beyond what the kids thought possible. They set a bar for excellence and show how to get there. Coaches help their athletes find their roles, bring out the best in them, encourage the weary, yell at the lazy, and pump energy into them all. The most valuable of all the teachers and coaches are those who can do their work in the name of Christ, both in regular school and Sunday school. God values them too: “Those who are wise will shine like the brightness of the heavens, and those who lead many to righteousness, like the stars for ever and ever” (Daniel 12:3). Imagine the impact--not only for students’ lives but for their eternity. Are you the right age to consider teaching or coaching as your life’s work? Do you know some young people with the gifts and personalities to be great teachers or coaches? Make a difference. Be a teacher.