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Essay: What are 3 Rewards and 3 Challenges that you will face as a Teacher? By
Victor D. Haymon
Liberty University
“A teacher affects eternity; he can never tell where his influence stops." - Henry Adams
However, Teaching can be a rewarding yet challenging career choice. As a child I had the
privilege of having one of the greatest teachers on planet earth! Her name was Ms. Gambrezie,
she was a lifelong missionary to Africa, she had reached the rightful age of eighty by the time I
met her. She was firm yet loving, gentile, and unassuming. I believe she thought of me and a few
of her other students as Africans on her second missionary field. Ms. Gambrezie was an old grey
headed white lady and her class was a conglomerate of elementary through high school kids she
taught as an outreach of her retired Christian community. The name of this community was
“Penney Farms Retirement Community”. PRC was According to
penneyretirementcommunity.org.
Our Mission: We are a non-denominational, Christian Continuing Care Retirement
Community seeking to live out the abundant life through personal devotion to Christ, social
interaction and service to others.
Our Vision: Our vision is for all people to age well in the place they call Home. We
offer the opportunity to care for one another and the greater community with quality, not
extravagance.
With that thought in mind, I wanted to be effective, compassionate and a teacher, like my
best friend Ms. Gambrezie. She taught me many things about education that I didn’t come in
contact with until many years later in public school. Unfortunately, Ms. Gambrezie died I think
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in her late 90s. Her life and teaching methods impacted my life then and still impacts it today.
She believed [1.] “The law specified that each such student must be provided with an
individualized education program.” Ryan, 2016, pg.71. I knew nothing about IEP at that time in
my life but, after many years of enduring public education, I knew Ms. Gambrezie had myself
and a few others on an IEP. I’m so glad for the help I got from her program, because, I would not
have graduated with my peers. I understand that education can be enriching and rewarding career
choice, that must be carefully considered because.
Firstly, I had to come to grips with the fact that teaching is not a very flashy or exuberant
career choice. However, There are several rewards and challenges to teaching. One of the first
rewards that come to mind are Intrinsic rewards they are [2.] “rewards that come from within
oneself and are personally satisfying for emotional or intellectual reasons." Ryan, Those Who
Can, Teach, 14thEdition, Chapter 1. When I reflect back on my life on this earth, after death
when standing before Jesus having my rewards to cast at His feet I will be glad to hear Him say
“Well Done thy good and faithful servant”. (Matthew 25:23 KJV) [3.] www.bibleref.com says
“Being told "well done" is a reward unto itself coming from the Son of God. Second, the master
responds to faithful service over smaller things by giving the opportunity to be responsible for
larger things. Challenge #1 I believe and I am sure other teaching may be considered the smaller
thing, but the Lord says “well Done” coupled with that, the challenge would be to never give up
until you are called up.
Secondly, Irasema Ortega-Crawford, biology teacher once said [4.] “But how do I feel at
the end of each day? I feel proud of my students. I feel more knowledgeable about living,
teaching, and learning. I feel lucky to be a teacher. I feel … full of sparks”. Ryan, Cooper, &
Bolick: Chapter 14. At the end of the day or at the end of life, I believe I will feel proud of my
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students who have gone on to bigger and better things in life; they have improved their life by
unmeasurable amounts of blessing. Challenge #2 would be the days that are long and hard, when
you feel as if you have given your last best effort and the students look at you and say, I need
more help. You are not a failure. But you must get up again the next day and go back into the
classroom refreshed and ready to teach.
Thirdly, the reward, if not you then who will? Who is going to teach our future doctors,
lawyers, presidents, senators, plumbers, electricians, nurses, actors, singers, football, and
basketball player of tomorrow? They all have one thing in common, they all need an education.
You and I who have chosen to be an educator have chosen one of the best professions known to
man other than preaching of the gospel. There aren’t any professions I mention in my very short
list of career choices that don’t need someone to teach them. The Challenge #3. The Bible says
in James 3:1 HCSB “Not many should become teachers, my brothers, knowing that we will
receive a stricter judgment”, According to www.gotquestions.org [5.] “Not many of you should
become teachers, my fellow believers, because you know that we who teach will be judged more
strictly.” This verse is sandwiched between James’ instruction about the kind of faith that
produces good works and his warnings about our words, so we should view it within that
context. Those who aspire to leadership within the church are held to a higher standard than
other believers because of the great influence teachers wield. Their works and their words carry a
greater weight than those who are not teaching. If teachers fall, they can take many people with
them; therefore, God will judge teachers of the Word according to the kind of impact they had on
those they aspired to lead”. I know this reference is to teachers in the church, however, I believe
the same principle applies to those who are in education. We are leaders and the world needs
good and great leaders.
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In conclusion, the rewards vary from, 1. coming to grips with what you have chosen to do
with your life is a gift from God and hearing Him say “well done”. 2. The feeling you get at the
end of your day, and the end of your life. 3. The assurance of knowing you have chosen a
profession that “Not many of you should become teachers.” Where would I be without the
teacher of my past, who prepared me for my future. I love to teach because, when a students has
a moment in their life where the light comes on in their understanding, I know my life has meant
something to someone. The challenges of teaching are not worthy to be compared to the rewards
of those who receive the information and become the people God intended for them to be and
that has eternal rewards.
Bibliography
[1.] Ryan, 2016, pg.71
[2.] Ryan, Those Who Can, Teach, 14thEdition, Chapter 1.
Matthew 25:23 KJV
[3.] www.bibleref.com
[4.] Ryan, Cooper, & Bolick: Chapter 14.
[5.] www.gotquestions.org
