Written by Michelle J. Goff, with her mom, Jocelynn Goff
The oldest daughter of a college professor and elementary teacher, my mom grew up learning through at least two different styles of teaching. Not all teaching was formally imparted, of course. My mom never took a speech class from Dr. Brown at Miami-Dade Community College. She never sat in her mom’s classroom during regular school hours, but she did spend time there after school while her mom prepared for the next day’s instruction.
It is no surprise that my mom became a teacher herself. She is a natural teacher and gifted storyteller. Her students would sit up straighter when she offered a “lagniappe story.” Lagniappe is French for “a little something extra,” which meant that this story would not be on the test!
In contrast, when my granddad would pepper us granddaughters with Bible trivia questions during our Christmas visits, he emphasized those of greater importance by saying, “This one will be on the final exam.” What I most learned from those “tests” was his love for Bible study and his diligent commitment to finding little-known jewels in Scripture.
Years later, our conversations have been more give-and-take. I have shared biblical nuggets of truth that I’ve discovered with a similar passion to share it with others. Similarly, my mom and I have transitioned from being exclusively mother and daughter to being Christian sisters and partners in the gospel. The teaching and learning matured and became more mutual.
As you know, our teaching and learning does not come exclusively through teachers, nor through our families. Prayerfully, we seek to be surrounded by others who will invest in us, as well as those with whom we can build relationship. Pivotal teachers can transform our relationship with a certain subject matter… inspiring us to persevere or give up. Close friends teach us what it means to laugh, as we also learn what it means to forgive. Neighbors teach us kindness as we learn how to be a good neighbor ourselves.
There are also those who teach through their words and actions, unaware of how many are watching, learning from their example. This is especially true of our Christian walks. We must be careful to practice what we preach, and we cannot teach what we have not yet effectively learned.
When I asked my mom about a relationship through which she has taught or learned, A.R. Kepple was the first person that came to mind. His simple teaching was a seed planted and watered, week after week. They met at the Downtown Church of Christ in Kansas City, Missouri, the new congregation her parents helped establish in the early 1960’s.
After teaching the children for 20-30 minutes on Sunday evenings, Brother Kepple would invite 7-year-old Jocelynn to join him on the front row during the songs and sermon. After reminding her to mind her manners, her parents granted permission to sit with this retired preacher in his late 70’s.
Once settled with her feet not quite touching the floor, while waiting for the singing to start, Brother Kepple would open his Bible to Matthew 5 and read, “You are the salt of the earth. You are the light of the world,” pointing to each sentence as he read them.
“He told me that every time I sat with him, and it made an impression on me and planted a seed in my mind and heart and spirit,” Mom recalled. He lived out the teaching he repeated.
Who is someone through whom you have learned what it means to be a Christian? What has it looked like for you to teach others what it means to follow Christ?