[Jesus said to them,]"But among you it will be different. Whoever wants to be a leader among you must be your servant, and whoever wants to be first among you must become your slave. For even the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve others and to give his life as a ransom for many.” Matthew 20:26-28 (NLT)
Leadership and Service
For me, teaching is an extension of my call to Christian ministry. Since I was in middle school, I have been actively involved in missions and ministry in my church. I have gone on mission trips to Mexico 11 times, South Africa twice, the Philippines. I have also worked as youth pastor for almost 8 years in Arkansas, Oklahoma, and Kansas. Service is part of who I am, and leading students into service is one of my greatest joys as a pastor.
Every student has needs -- for love, for affirmation, for belonging, for safety. I grew up in a home where my parents and the other adults around me met those needs. But for some students, a teacher may be the only person in their lives who ever believes in them and communicates their worth to them. My presence and love in the classroom can be taste of Christ's presence and love in this world. Some children will never set foot in a church, but they are required to go to school. I think of my classroom as my mission field and my students as my congregation.
My leadership style is to lead from the middle. I believe that I can have the greatest impact in my classroom by developing strong relationships of understanding with students and identifying as a fellow learner among them. My hope is that through mentoring, I can help students find their strengths and move toward self-actualization.
Every student has needs -- for love, for affirmation, for belonging, for safety. I grew up in a home where my parents and the other adults around me met those needs. But for some students, a teacher may be the only person in their lives who ever believes in them and communicates their worth to them. My presence and love in the classroom can be taste of Christ's presence and love in this world. Some children will never set foot in a church, but they are required to go to school. I think of my classroom as my mission field and my students as my congregation.
My leadership style is to lead from the middle. I believe that I can have the greatest impact in my classroom by developing strong relationships of understanding with students and identifying as a fellow learner among them. My hope is that through mentoring, I can help students find their strengths and move toward self-actualization.
Strengths Finder has been a valuable tool for me to better understand my self and my students in order to maximize our potential.
Me and my some of my College Church Jr. High students on mission trip in Arlington, Texas in 2015
In 2008, I traveled with my youth group from Piedmont, OK to Boise, ID for the Bible Quizzing finals.
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I served as team leader for a group on mission trip to Chihuahua, Mexico in 2007.
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Burying a time capsule with my youth group in celebration of the Church of the Nazarene's 100th birthday in 2008
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"Be imitators of Christ since you are his dearly loved children. Live a life of love just as Christ loved, us and gave himself up for us."
-- Ephesians 5:1-2
-- Ephesians 5:1-2