As a new school year approaches, I am reminded of my role as a teacher and administrator and my purpose in impacting students with my words and actions. When I think about the institution of education, I am reminded of Proverbs 1:2-7).
To know wisdom and instruction,
To [a]perceive the words of understanding, (Proverbs 1:2, NKJV)
At the beginning of this unusual year, the walls of academia will echo with sounds of fear, wonder, uncertainty, and excitement, and the virtual classrooms in its quietness will generate the same reactions. In the midst of this, we still have a responsibility to give honest and wise counsel to our students not only in core subject content, but in discernment, fairness, understanding, respect, and life.
3 To receive the instruction of wisdom,
Justice, judgment, and equity;
4 To give prudence to the simple,
To the young man knowledge and discretion— (Proverbs 1:3-4, NKJV)
I think about how we become encouragers, listeners, prayer warriors, instructors, surrogate parents, cheerleaders, and friends. It is easy to get lost in titles and develop an attitude that we have all the right answers. Somehow we can not imagine any encounter where a student would not value and accept our pearls of wisdom. To even think about this rejection provokes righteous indignation. Isn’t it funny that in our feeling of superiority God has a lesson for us? Who said that wisdom is given by the elder to the young? Sometimes, the presentation of wisdom comes from the mouth of babes.
5 A wise man will hear and increase learning,
And a man of understanding will [b]attain wise counsel,
6 To understand a proverb and an enigma,
The words of the wise and their riddles. (Proverbs 1:5-6 NKJV)
I am reminded of a situation at a middle school where the rule was that all students had to have on an ID before lining up for lunch, and the ID had to be visible. An eighth-grader walked in with his jacket zipped up because it was the middle of winter. When the teacher on duty approached him about his ID, the student tried to explain that he had just come in from the outside, but his ID was around his neck. The teacher pulled rank and told him that he was the adult, and the student needed to sit down and get out of his face. (It was almost like a scene from a bad movie). Of course, the student’s reaction was to yell back and tell the teacher that he had better get out of his face. Feeling a sense of control, the teacher called me over as the administrator to handle this situation. Unbeknownst to the teacher, I had been watching from the other side of the cafeteria. When I walked over, the teacher immediately went on the attack about how rude and disrespectful the student had been. This action only stirred the student to the point of being enraged. I escorted the student out, and I talked to him and then listened to his explanation. I then brought the student inside and sent him to the front of the line to get lunch. The teacher was not happy and proceeded to write an epistle of his dismay with the way the situation was handled (in what I considered an angry and disrespectful tone).
The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge,
But fools despise wisdom and instruction. (Proverbs 1:7 NKJV)
The next day, I called the teacher into my office and addressed the tone of the email. We then moved into how this situation could and should have been handled better. I reminded the teacher that once an administrator is called then he no longer owns the situation, and I gave him some insight into the student’s background. The young man was fairly quiet and not a discipline issue. He did not play football because he rode the bus in the afternoons to make sure that his two sisters got home safely. His mom worked at night and did not get home until 11:30 p.m. He stayed up to wait for her because at the bottom of the stairs a group of drunk men took up residence often. As an eighth-grader, he was the man of the house. Coming into the cafeteria on that winter day, he had a very bad headache and just wanted to eat and be left alone. He tried to explain this to the teacher, but the teacher would not listen. I told the teacher to watch out for that young man because he would be back and without prompting would want to have a conversation with him.
The very same day the student walked into the cafeteria and walked right up to the teacher. Apologizing for his behavior, he said, “I apologize for my behavior. yesterday, but I had my ID on when I walked into the cafeteria. I had just come in from outside. When I tried to explain this to you yesterday, you started yelling at me. You just would not listen!” Wow! What revelation! All of a sudden the teacher became a student, and he became very humble! The teacher listened and apologized and then he extended his hand. The teacher also learned the difference in having and receiving knowledge and wisdom. He had an epiphany that knowledge is knowing a great deal of information and wisdom is the attitude that allows a person to apply knowledge to their action and everyday responses. The young student taught the adult that people see you through your actions and not necessarily through spoken words.
How often does God give us instruction and we just don’t listen? Instead of listening, we know what’s best for ourselves. We are going to do it in our own way, and no one can tell us any better. I am always struck by the line that says “fools despise wisdom and instruction.” The lesson that I take from this is that we need to be open to hearing others even if their opinion differs from ours. We should not close ourselves off because we think that our thinking is superior to the simple man or to the young student. Through listening, we gain great and valuable insight into others and ourselves. Could you imagine a world with no counsel?
Where there is no counsel, the people fail; but in the multitude of counselors, there is safety. (Proverbs 11:14)
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