Teaching Grace and the Audience We Don't Know We Have

I tried not to look as I passed by the sign at the front of the children’s ministry building. Truth be told, most weeks, I failed.   

“Your greatest contribution to the Kingdom of God may not be something you do, but someone you raise.” 

It was probably just my immaturity and the chip on my shoulder, but I didn’t love that quote. It always felt a little too cute, a little too convenient. Some days, it felt like a cry from stay-at-home moms like me to prove that we mattered, even though we couldn’t leave our littles to go on mission trips. Others times, it felt like a subtle statement making sure I knew my place.

But it wasn’t even true, I thought. At least not for me. I was armed with fire for Jesus and a journalism degree. I was going to change the world myself. Or at least, my own tiny corner of it. 

I don’t know about other women, but the gift of teaching didn’t always feel like a blessing to me. In some churches, there aren’t a lot of spaces for women with this equipping besides teaching elementary-level Sunday school classes. But as a journalist, most everywhere I went, I was asked to put my gift to use through the written word. So maybe I couldn’t leave my kids to go on a mission trip. Or start a workplace Bible study. But I had my laptop, an occasionally quiet house, and a burning desire to share God’s message of grace and forgiveness.

And I did. Over the years, I would write for an outreach helping individuals caught in an abusive religious system. I’d craft scripts for my pastor’s weekly radio program. I’d deliver devotions for a friend’s wacky Christian-adjacent podcast. And I’d write communications for a pop star-turned Christian artist and pro-life speaker. 

And in between all that, I’d rewrite devotions for my kids’ Jesse tree Christmas ornament set and Easter resurrection eggs, since I didn’t care for the ones that were included. I’d lead my daughter’s co-op through the religious and societal themes in critical books like To Kill A Mockingbird, Fahrenheit 451, and The Boy in the Striped Pajamas. I’d lead a small middle school boy’s Bible study, and a high school girls squad in our Christian scouting troop. 

As my daughter’s high school graduation drew near, mom guilt kicked in. Wanting to make a difference in the world, had I divided my attention too much? Anxious thoughts of failure ran through my head as I lay awake in my hotel while she stayed in her dorm for college orientation. I raced back to campus as early as I could the next morning. 

“How did last night go?” I asked. 

She looked around before answering. “Hold on. I need to make sure no one can hear me.”

Now THAT wasn’t concerning. It definitely wasn’t how I expected the morning to start. But what followed wasn’t, either. 

My daughter had been assigned to share a room with a young Hindu woman during orientation. As they picked out their classes that night, she felt the Holy Spirit nudge her to mention that she was a believer. It turned out the young woman had come to faith in Jesus over the winter, but was keeping it quiet because she knew her family would be upset.

“We’re going to start doing Bible studies over FaceTime,” she told me when she was sure the girl’s father wasn’t within earshot. 

And they did. It was totally random, depending upon who was home at the young woman’s house. But several times during the summer, I’d see my daughter retreat to our patio or her bedroom so the two could quietly discuss scripture.

As the start of college drew closer, my daughter’s friend knew she had to tell her family. She was worried about how to approach their differences in belief. One day, passing by my daughter’s door with a load of towels, I heard her guide her friend through Acts 17, explaining how Paul respectfully connected with listeners from a different faith during his Mars Hill gospel presentation. Humbled, tears streamed down my face as I heard my words and conviction coming from her lips. 

The radio ministry I wrote for? It’s been discontinued. A handful of people have reached out who God led to our work as they left the abusive religious system. I’m not sure if anyone besides the podcaster and his wife ever listened to my devotions there. But all those years, someone had been listening.

Maybe, you too, have had mixed feelings about your teaching gift. Maybe you feel like it’s been wasted on you. But God never makes mistakes. His word doesn’t come back void, and neither do His gifts. They may take different forms in different seasons. And that’s fine. There is a time for everything under the sun. But if they’re from Him, you can’t help but use them for His glory. 

Mama, go on that mission trip if you can. Pursue a career, if that’s what God leads you to do. But never think less of yourself if you don’t, and never discount the effect your teaching gift can have on the ones who God has put in your home. On ones they bring into your home. On the ones in your sphere of influence.  God gave you a teaching gift, and people to teach in every season of life.  

Who knows. They just might change the world. Or, at least, their own little corner of it. 

~Kristin Yarbrough, Worthy Content Writer

1. Have you ever experienced complicated feelings about your teaching gift due to your gender or role in life?

2. Where has your teaching gift shone through during past seasons of your life?

3. Who has God put in your life to teach in this season?