Lessons from Deuteronomy

I learned something in Sunday School today. And I liked it. So I'm gonna pass it on.

If you read in Deuteronomy 11:18-21 the Lord is talking to the Israelites and trying to teach them that they need to be obedient, cognizant and continually grateful and faithful to Heavenly Father, even in good times. The Lord tells them how to do this. He says:

18 - Therefore shall ye lay up these my words in your heart and in your soul, and bind them for a sign upon your hand, that they may be as frontlets between your eyes.

19- And ye shall teach them your children, speaking of them when thou sittest in thine house, and when thou walkest by the way, when thous liest down, and when thou risest up.

20- And thou shalt write them upon the door posts of thine house, and upon thy gates:

21 - That your days may be multiplied, and the days of your children, in the land which the Lord swear unto your fathers to give them, as the days of heaven upon the earth.

So, now I know you're thinking, "what in the world does this have to do with anything?!" Well, it hit me in Sunday School today the way the Lord teaches us. And, I realized, as I'm trying to teach, I ought to do the same things. So, what are those things?

1. Bind them as a sign upon your hand, as frontlets between your eyes. This reminds me that anything I want to teach needs to be clear, obvious, and direct. I need to teach concepts in simple, direct and easy language that can be placed in front of consciousness to allow students to truly remember and take in. And just as lessons bound as a sign upon my hand, I need to teach those same lessons over and over and over so they are always present right in front of my students all day as they work and play with their very hands.

2. In verse 19, this one got me because of the many positions and times that were suggested. Concepts can be taught anywhere effectively. I thought mainly of sensory here - how our kids are lying down or upside down or up and running. They are sitting and standing and going all over. But, that doesn't mean that even in these times where it seems as if no teaching can or will be effective, I should still teach. My children need to know these concepts, even if they're hanging off the edge of the couch or playing the piano with their feet.

3. In verse 20, it talks about the environment. Do I have concepts that help teach a child on my posts, on my doors, in my environment? And are these concepts easy, simple and direct to help remind both me and my students of things to learn and grow with? Many of my students are very visually based. Pictures, colors, patterns - they all hold a special meaning and attention for many of my kiddos. They are organized, they make sense, they are predictable and they are just plain wonderful to attend to. Do I use this in my teaching? Do I use pictures? Patterns? Colors? Beauty? Do I utilize the wonderful visual strength that many of my students possess to teach them in motivating, simple and personal ways? Is my environment creating a place of learning?

4. And last, the promise. Do I believe in the promises that my Heavenly Father has given to me? Do I believe that if I pray, I can get answers? And if I ask, He will help me? Do I believe that even when a child is screaming out or jumping off the pew at church or bolting out of the classroom during Sunday School that I have been called and therefore, I am qualified for heavenly and divine help? Do I believe that with some effort, some prayer and some reaching out to sources that will help, that I can change this child's life? Now. For the better. Do I believe that what God has promised will come to pass? And that means that He will give me strength to do this?

Strange what you can sometimes find in the middle of Deuteronomy, eh? Have a great Sunday!