“Jesus then left that place and went into the region of Judea and across the Jordan. Again crowds of people came to him, and as was his custom, he taught them.” Mark 10:1

In the first years of our marriage, my wife Francie was a second grade elementary school teacher. Every Sunday night during those years she would formulate and review the lesson plans for the week. It was a fairly intense process involving a notebook, poster board, reading books and other resources that would assist in the learning experience. I remember visiting her classroom at various times over those years and being amazed with her gifts and skills, especially when it came to keeping young second grade minds engaged. Teaching second graders was like trying to nail down smoke. It was a challenge to keep them focused while remaining focused on the lesson plan for the day. My wife was like a lion trainer keeping all the wild beasts in line with the crack of her whip like tongue and her confident, yet loving stare. No child in her class was about to escape the lesson she had planned for the day. They knew who was in charge of the moment and through it all seemed to be having a great time. It was amazing to watch.

As I reflect on my own second grade experience, I realize I was not a model student; in fact it might have been difficult to see any bent toward learning in my behavior. School was not my first choice of how to spend the day. I would have preferred to live in a fantasy created in my mind and avoid school all together. I tended to want to live out my own plan for the day rather than submit to the lesson plan of the teacher. I liked to label it independent thinking, but in reality it was just my arrogance and desire to remain in control. These patterns followed me throughout my educational experience and with all the malformed habits developed it took me awhile to actually begin to listen to and receive the messages of my teachers.

When Jesus went into different regions of the landscape He came prepared to meet the people with something that was life-giving. Mark 10:1 says, “as was His custom, he taught them.” I find it fascinating to reflect upon the various customs Jesus had. For I believe the things He practiced, His “customs”, were intentional and valuable to His own life and those He encountered. When people gathered to Jesus it was His practice to teach them. He is the “master teacher” and always had a lesson for those who came to Him. But rather than just seeking to pass on information, Jesus was teaching to promote formation of the soul. To walk away from the lessons of Jesus with just information about Him or some interesting facts was to miss the intention of His teaching. Jesus was seeking through all He said and did to bring about transformation and restoration of humanity so that they might experience the fullness of God’s life and kingdom.

When I read this verse I realized that when I make my way to Jesus and seek His presence there is a lesson to be learned. If I leave that occasion with an empty heart, it has more to do with me, and my openness to that lesson than it has to do with Jesus and His intent. Often the reason I have not received the lesson is because I am so full of myself, my thoughts and my desires, that there is no room to receive the lesson presented to me. Often, I cannot receive the lesson because my way of hearing and seeing is too narrow to receive the broad bandwidth of the teaching style of Jesus. I believe this is why some had difficulty understanding the deeper meaning of the parables Jesus taught. I like messages that fit, confirm and reinforce my perspectives and opinions. Those lessons that might fall outside those perspectives I often will disregard as irrelevant to my life. Whatever the reason it all seems to be tied to my subtle resistance to His teaching and His lesson plan. I find I am back in grade school, speaking out of turn, not waiting to be called upon and thinking that what I have to say is most important. The reality is that Jesus has something to teach me every time I come to Him. I just have to open my ears, my mind and especially my heart to receive the appropriate lesson.

For me this means opening myself up to the various ways He may use to communicate with me. It may be the story unfolding before me in a particular situation. It may be a particular phrase spoken by an unexpected voice. It may be an image or picture observed in life that communicates a timeless truth. This means embracing the perspective that Jesus as the master teacher can use a variety of methods to communicate His lesson. My role is to make the space available in my heart to hear, see and experience the lesson He has in whatever form He chooses. The most concrete form available to me is the Scripture ignited by His Holy Spirit. It is always healthy to begin there to help identify His voice and recognize His voice as He continues to speak and communicate through other means. If I make my way to Jesus and leave empty handed it isn’t because the teacher is not present and communicating, but because I’ve failed to listen, hear and receive His truth in the way He chooses to communicate it.

Jesus, the master teacher, has set forth a lesson plan for this day. It includes a wide variety of experiences to impress upon me His will and His way, nurturing the transformation and restoration of my life so that it conforms to, and is filled with, His life. As you move through this day, are you willing to set aside your agendas, expectations and desires to make room for the lesson plan of Jesus? What is the lesson He might have for you this day in the variety of experiences and circumstances you encounter? Draw near and pay attention. Jesus, as is His custom, is teaching the life lessons of God. May this day be a great day of being formed by the lessons He has prepared for you. Here is a song to further your reflection.