Reflection

By: Michael Volante, seventh grade Math Teacher and Athletic Chair

I love teaching math. I love how black and white it is. I love that the existence of constant relationships and infinity point to a constant, infinite Creator. I love that it teaches intellectual accuracy in a world of “your truth and my truth.” However, I do well to remind myself that teaching math is actually not my primary goal when stepping into the classroom.

My primary goal in the workplace is the same as it’s always been: to know God and make Him known. When Paul is addressing all the varied gifts in the Corinthian church, he says this about speech: “If I speak in the tongues of men and of angels, but have not love, I am a noisy gong or a clanging cymbal.” I can teach a great lesson. I can help my students understand a difficult concept. I can watch their math skills improve throughout the year. But if the heart behind my work is not ultimately directed toward knowing Christ and making Him known, what am I really accomplishing?

I’m guessing every single person reading this is already aware of the danger of getting sucked into the minutiae of everyday life at the expense of growing nose-blind to our true purpose. So, how do we battle this? The answer that the Lord has been convicting me of this last month is this: reflection.

Some mornings, the type A in me listens to three chapters of my chronological Bible plan on audiobook just in time for me to finish as I’m pulling into the parking lot. I can get so focused on learning lessons from those chapters that I forget to sit with the Lord. The longer I let this continue, the more I can feel a disconnect between where my heart is supposed to be and where it actually is.

The call to Christian meditation is real. We’re called to think upon His Word - to chew on it. We’re called to search our hearts and be silent. We’re called to keep His Word on our lips. Simply put, we’re called to reflect on it.

Practically, some mornings this may look like falling further behind in a Bible reading plan so we can spend time just sitting with the Lord - thinking on His Word and talking to Him about it. I’m convinced that reflection, more than most things, will transform our hearts to look more like His. After all, Paul does say, “We know that when He appears, we will be like Him because we will see Him as He is.” The more time we allow ourselves to see Him as He is, the more we will be like Him. Also, doesn’t spending a morning quietly beholding the Lord Jesus sound so much more enjoyable than listening to another Christian podcast at 1.5x speed?

If I’ve convinced you to spend more time reflecting with God on His Word, then let me finish with a warning. Reflection will not happen organically. Every trend in society is currently pushing against having time to sit and reflect. Don’t be afraid to fight for it.

Slow down. Sit with the Lord. Be silent. Search your heart. Think about His Word.

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