Called: My pivotal ministry moment

Bev Christian reflects on her role in educating for eternity

I clearly remember a day early in my teaching career that forced me to reflect on my role in educating for eternity.

I stood with my students up the front of church singing, “He’s got the whole world in His hands.” Normally when children sing, the congregation is full of smiles. On this day, however, faces were solemn. One of my students was missing—a delightful child with mischievous brown eyes and a thatch of hair the same colour. He would never again sing this, his favourite song. His life had been claimed by the swirling eddies of the mighty Murray River. I asked myself: Did I do enough? Did I listen? Did I share Jesus at every opportunity? Never again would I assume that a child who sat in my class would be there until the end of the year.

This day would be a pivotal moment for me. I am called to reveal Jesus to my students.

Life is full of challenges when you’re a teacher. You face somewhere from 24 to 32 new challenges each year, whenever a new group of students enters your classroom. Some already know Jesus, some know about Jesus and some have never heard of Jesus, except possibly as a swear word. To take each child and gently lead them into a relationship with Jesus is the greatest challenge of a Christian teacher and the greatest joy of teaching: to touch young minds with the love of Jesus, to challenge them with the concept of unselfish, unconditional love in the shape of Jesus.

As a teacher in Seventh-day Adventist schools and a Scripture teacher in a public school, I’ve been able to share Jesus with my students. Since I moved into tertiary teaching, I’ve endeavoured to inspire and equip my teacher education students to be empathetic and enthusiastic torchbearers for the cause of Jesus. I see my work in disciple-building as inspiring and equipping the next generation of Christian teachers. My work is like a pebble dropped into a puddle of water. My teacher education students are like the ripples reaching far and wide. I’ve heard stories from Brisbane, the Gold Coast, Sydney, Melbourne, Adelaide and beyond of how teachers are sharing the love of Jesus with their students.

My journey in Christian education has given me opportunities beyond the personal level to reveal Jesus to the students in Adventist schools. At a national level, I’ve worked alongside dedicated educators on committees to develop “Values for Adventist Schools,” the “Belonging, Believing, Becoming Framework” and the “Encounter Adventist Bible Curriculum.”

I have a sign above my desk that reads: “Teaching: not in it for the income, in it for the outcome.” For me, the outcome is that I reveal Jesus to each of my students in a way that prompts them to desire a relationship with Him. I hope my legacy is a generation of teachers who know Jesus as their Saviour, experience Jesus in their lives and share Jesus in their classrooms.

My life journey started with my family, who had an enormous influence on my understanding of the love of Jesus. These early impressions of Jesus conjured in my mind a special friend who created me to be part of a beautiful world, who loved me so much that He was planning a place where I could spend forever with Him. I was also blessed with mentors beyond my family, who helped me grow my relationship with Jesus.

I can say that Jesus means the world to me. His unselfish acceptance of His mission to rescue humanity, the compassion and integrity with which He lived His life on earth, His acceptance of everyone, including me, where they are right now is beyond my comprehension. Yet even more astounding is His reluctance to leave anyone where He meets them, choosing instead to lift them to a place of joy and completeness where they can live with hope because their future is certain. This is the Jesus I love.

I don’t have a dramatic “from gutter to glory” conversion story to share, so I tell my narrative for everyone who feels they don’t have anything remarkable to communicate. We each have a story to share. It comes from our innermost being and flows out to those around us. Whether we’re a teacher, accountant or florist, our story, shared with others, is our gift to God.