THE JOYS OF TEACHING
OUTLINE--CHAPTER III
The Joys that attend Teaching: Enrichment of the spirit.--Guarantee
of the teacher's own growth and development.--Restraining and
uplifting influence on the moral character of the
teacher.--Satisfaction that attends seeing pupils
develop.--Inspirational companionship.--Contentment that attaches
to duty done.--Outpouring of the blessings of the Lord.
Chapters one and two emphasized the thought that the purposes behind
teaching impose a sacred obligation on the part of those who aspire to
teach. But lest the obligation appear burdensome, let us remind
ourselves that compensation is one of the great laws of life. "To him
who gives shall be given" applies to teaching as to few other things.
Verily he who loses his life finds it. The devotion of the real teacher,
though it involves labor, anxiety and sacrifice, is repaid ten-fold.
Only he who has fully given himself in service to others can appreciate
the joy that attends teaching--particularly that teaching enjoined upon
us by the Master and which is its own recompense.
It is difficult to enumerate all of the blessings that attend the
service of the teacher, but let us consider a few that stand out
pre-eminently.
If there were none other than this first one it would justify all that
is done in the name of teaching; namely, "the enrichment of spirit."
"There is a spirit in man: and the inspiration of the Almighty giveth
them understanding." To feel the thrill of that inspiration is a
compensation beyond price. The Lord, having commanded us to teach (see
Sec. 88:77-81, Doc. & Cov.), has followed the command with the promise
of a blessing, one of the richest in all scripture.
"For thus saith the Lord, I, the Lord, am merciful and gracious unto
those who fear me, and delight to honor those who serve me in
righteousness and in truth unto the end;
"Great shall be their reward and eternal shall be their glory;
"And to them will I reveal all mysteries, yea, all the hidden
mysteries of my kingdom from days of old, and for ages to come will I
make known unto them the good pleasure of my will concerning all
things pertaining to my kingdom;
"Yea, even the wonders of eternity shall they know, and things to
come will I show them, even the things of many generations;
"And their wisdom shall be great, and their understanding reach to
heaven: and before them the wisdom of the wise shall perish, and the
understanding of the prudent shall come to naught;
"For by my Spirit will I enlighten them, and by my power will I make
known unto them the secrets of my will; yea, even those things which
eye has not seen, nor ear heard, nor yet entered into the heart of
man." (Doc. & Cov. 76:5-10.)
This constitutes a promissory note signed by our heavenly Father
Himself. A blessing beyond compare--a dividend unfailing--and our only
investment--devoted service! Companionship with the Spirit of the Lord!
That is what it means, if we serve Him in faith and humility.
"Be thou humble, and the Lord thy God shall lead thee by the hand,
and give thee answer to thy prayers." (Doc. & Cov., Sec. 112:10.)
Like all other gifts and attainments, the Spirit of the Lord has to be
cultivated. Teaching insures a cultivation as few other things in life
can. An enriched spirit, then, is the first great reward of the teacher.
A second satisfaction is the guarantee of one's own growth and
development. Teachers invariably declare that they have learned more,
especially in the first year of teaching, than in any year at college. A
consciousness of the fact that it is hard to teach that which is not
well known incites that type of study which makes for growth. A good
class is a great "pace-setter." Intellectually it has the pull of
achievement. The real teacher always is the greatest student in the
class. The "drive" of having a regular task to perform, especially when
that task is checked up as it is by students, leads many a person to a
development unknown to him who is free to slide. "Blessed is he who has
to do things." Responsibility is the great force that builds character.
Compare the relative development of the person who spends Tuesday
evening at home with the evening paper, or at some other pastime, and of
the person who, having accepted fully the call to teach, leads a class
of truth-seekers through an hour's discussion of some vital subject.
Follow the development through the Tuesday evenings of a lifetime.
How easy to understand that there are varying degrees of glory
hereafter.
A third value of teaching lies in the fact that the position of teacher
exercises a restraining influence for good on the moral life of the
teacher. He is sustained by a consciousness that his conduct is his only
evidence to his pupils that his practice is consistent with his theory.
His class follows him in emulation or in criticism in all that he does.
"Come, follow me," lifts the real teacher over the pitfalls of
temptation. He cannot do forbidden work on the Sabbath, he cannot
indulge in the use of tobacco, he cannot stoop to folly--his class
stands between him and all these things. A teacher recently gave
expression to the value of this restraining force when she said, "I urge
my girls so vigorously not to go to the movies on Sunday that I find my
conscience in rebellion if anyone asks me to go."
Many a man in attempting to convert another to the righteousness of a
particular issue has found himself to be his own best convert. He comes
to appreciate the fact that the trail he establishes is the path
followed by those whom he influences. He hears the voice of the child as
recorded in the little poem:
I STEPPED IN YOUR STEPS ALL THE WAY
"A father and his tiny son
Crossed a rough street one stormy day,
'See papa!' cried the little one,
'I stepped in your steps all the way!'
"Ah, random, childish hands, that deal
Quick thrusts no coat of proof could stay!
It touched him with the touch of steel--
'I stepped in your steps all the way!'
"If this man shirks his manhood's due
And heeds what lying voices say,
It is not one who falls, but two,
'I stepped in your steps all the way!'
"But they who thrust off greed and fear,
Who love and watch, who toil and pray,
How their hearts carol when they say,
'I stepped in your steps all the way!'"
Still another joy that attends teaching is the satisfaction of seeing
pupils develop. The sculptor finds real happiness in watching his clay
take on the form and expression of his model; the artist glories as his
colors grow into life; the parent finds supreme joy in seeing himself
"re-grow" in his child; so the teacher delights to see his pupils build
their lives on the truths he has taught. The joy is doubly sweet if it
is heightened by an expression of appreciation on the part of the
pupils. Few experiences can bring the thrill of real happiness that
comes to the teacher when a former student, once perhaps a little
inclined to mischief or carelessness, takes him by the hand with a "God
bless you for helping me find my better self."
An officer of the British army, in recounting those experiences which
had come to him in the recent world war, and which he said he never
could forget, referred to one which more than compensated him for all
the effort he had ever put into his preparation for teaching. Because of
his position in the army it became his duty to discipline a group of
boys for what in the army is a serious offense. In that group was a boy
who had formerly been a pupil under the officer in one of our ward
organizations. Chagrin was stamped on the face of the boy as he came
forward for reprimand. Regret and remorse were in the heart of the
officer. They soon gave way to pride, however, as the boy assured him
that worse than any punishment was the humiliation of being brought
before his own teacher, and he further assured him that never again
would he do a thing that would mar the sacred relations of pupil and
teacher.
A further compensation attached to teaching is that of inspirational
companionship. It is a blessed privilege to enjoy the sunshine of youth.
Every pupil contributes an association with one of God's choice spirits.
To live and work with children and adolescents is one of the finest of
safeguards against old age. The teacher not only partakes of the joy of
his group--they constitute him a link between his generation and theirs.
Their newness of life, their optimism, their spontaneity, their joy,
they gladly pass on to their teacher.
Moreover, the teacher enjoys the uplifting associations of his fellow
teachers. Among those consecrated to a noble service, there is a spirit
unknown to him who has not enjoyed such communion. Whether he is
conscious of it or not, the teacher responds to the pull of such a
group. Scores of teachers have testified that the associations they have
enjoyed as members of a local board, stake board, or general board, are
among the happiest of their lives.
And finally there is the contentment of mind that comes as a result of a
duty well done. The human soul is so constituted that any task well
performed brings a feeling of satisfaction, and this is doubly
heightened when the duty performed is of the nature of a free will
offering. Still more so when it is shared in by others to their
blessing. Just as we hope for an eventual crowning under the blessing,
"Well done, thou good and faithful servant," so we treasure those
benedictions along the way that attend the discharge of a sacred
obligation.
* * * * *
QUESTIONS AND SUGGESTIONS--CHAPTER III
1. Quote some of the promises of the Lord to those who do His will.
2. How is teaching one of the surest guarantees of the blessings of
eternal life?
3. What are the immediate joys attached to teaching?
4. Discuss the application to teaching of the truth--"He who loses his
life shall find it."
5. What types of companionship are assured him who teaches?
6. As you now recall them, what distinct pleasures stand out in your
teaching experience?
7. Discuss Section 76 of the Doctrine & Covenants as one of the most
valuable promissory notes ever given to mankind.
8. Discuss the force of a duty done as a guarantee of joy.
HELPFUL REFERENCES
Doctrine and Covenants: Slattery, _Living Teachers_; Sharp, _Education
for Character_; Weigle, _Talks to Sunday School Teachers_; Betts, _How
to Teach Religion_.