Last month I preached at a local Baptist church. I started the sermon by mentioning a famous study by Robert Rosenthal. He tested a group of pupils and then informed their teachers that several of the students had done extremely well in the test. However, the students that he said demonstrated exceptional learning ability were, in fact, chosen entirely at random. They were no brighter than their peers; their test results were no better. But, since the teachers thought they were exceptional, they treated them differently.Wednesday, 04 July 2012 00:00
Most teachers hope that they will make a difference, but in fact the real transformation depends not on what the teacher teaches, but on what the learner learns. The teacher’s contribution to that learning can be simply to ask the question that sets someone off on a journey of discovery.
Thursday, 07 June 2012 16:29
I was in my early twenties when one of the elders of my church asked me to accompany him on a pastoral visit. I was given scant information on the couple we were visiting and even less information on what one should do on such a pastoral visit. So I went along with an open heart but feeling totally inadequate for the task ahead, whatever that task was.
There was a knock on our front door one evening. It was one of the younger adults from the church we were a part of. He wanted to talk about some “stuff” that had happened in his life. It wasn’t a good time for me that evening, and so we arranged another evening when we could catch up.
The new Carey Baptist College academic year is upon us and again we have eager students who are already putting in long hours of study, reflection and practice. What they are doing is going to make a difference to their future lives and ministry, and person by person, the Church grows stronger. I am convinced that theological study makes a difference. Let me tell you why.