As Bible teachers, wouldn’t it be great to have students be so motivated to know the Lord that they would say, like the Apostle Paul, “I consider everything a loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord …” (Phil. 3:8). Oh, to hear them not only say, “I want to know Christ” but also, “I press on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me” (Phil. 3:10-12).
Sadly, however, Bible teachers sometimes find themselves pushing and pulling students to learn and to grow in the Lord. Face it, people have a lot competing for their hearts and minds.
3 Questions to Ask About Your Efforts to Motivate Students
1) Are you connecting with people in ways that help motivate them?
For students to not only want to learn, but to actually learn, we need to make connections from start to finish in lesson preparation, planning, and presentation.
Training Resource: Help! My students don’t want to be here! They don’t want to learn! Worksheet
2) Are you strategic in connecting students with the God of the Bible and not simply its truths?
To motivate students to believe in absolute truth, we need to present them with a God big enough, great enough, powerful enough, and wise enough to have the final word, to be the ultimate standard, to have absolute authority.
Training Resource: Motivating Students to Believe … And Act on What They Believe Worksheet
3) Are you relying on God, through His Spirit, to do the work through you and in your students’ hearts and minds?
We can’t make people learn. We can whet their thirst and appetite, faithfully planting and watering the seed of God’s Word, but ultimately He is the One who brings the growth (1 Cor. 3:7).
Training Resource: The Holy Spirit & My Teaching Devotional
More Teacher Training Resources: Motivating Students