At the beginning of the amazing one-day AWAKE Experience, we ask the participants to remember what inspired them to become educators. Given that over 500 educators have attended an AWAKE just this past school year, we have discerned some interesting patterns in the responses. 

Many cite a teacher who made a profound impact on them as a child. Others say that they just knew they would be a teacher from a very early age. Others indicate they stumbled into teaching and then discovered it aligned with their gifts and passions. 

But the most common answer we get is some form of, “God called me to be a teacher.”

For many, last year was unusually challenging. We saw an exponential increase in members calling us about feeling unsafe in their classrooms, or even suffering injury due to student behavior. Many felt under siege from false worldviews dictating school cultures and expectations to do and say things that violate their consciences. For others, the brokenness on display in the lives of students sometimes felt overwhelming and depleted their compassion reserves. And an unprecedented number of educators considered early retirement or changing professions. 

But if you are reading this, it’s likely that you are back for another year of being a light in our schools—praise God! And this year, I pray that you will thrive, even if you merely survived last year. A great place to start is to reconnect with your calling as an educator. 

What connects with your heart as you think about your calling? What gets me excited is the idea of being a living manifestation of Christ for students that may not see another one. I invite you to watch this short video of my story. 

What inspires you to get out of bed each morning and ask Jesus to walk with you into your school each day? I’d love to hear your story. Comment on the video, reach out to me at david@christianeducators.org, or send me your own video! 

Finally, I pray God will use this edition of Teachers of Vision focusing on inspiration to reconnect you with your calling as you start another school year full of promise for what God wants to do in you and through you. 

Visit the AWAKE website for more information about our AWAKE Experiences.