Keep Calm and Shoot Straight
A Blog for Teachers
by Mary Jean Powers
My Prayer: Teach me to teach
“But you stay here with Me. I will give you all the commands, laws, and rules that you must teach them to obey in the land which I’m giving them to possess.”

Photo by Aaron Burden on Unsplash
Father God, it sounds as though this call to teach is too good to be true! You are with me – to carry me, to speak to me, to teach me to teach, to share Your creativity, and You even give me words to say. You truly are the Source of all good communication! The results are more profitable than I can imagine, and certainly more prolific than I could ever produce on my own!
Lord, I will choose to stand right beside You as I teach; I’m not going anywhere. How foolish to think that I could teach without Your ever-present input, help, guidance, and Your words. Show me how, Lord; let me hear Your voice, and I will say what You say. Whichever way You want to go, I’m with You. You will give me words to teach, and You will give me carefully crafted responses, as well. Students ask so many questions – which thrills me – but how can I know all the answers? You know all things. You also know the most excellent way to respond to each student. I am so grateful that I can count on You to give me the right words at the right time. Grant me the ability to understand, appropriate, and explain the lessons. I desperately desire the ability to motivate, facilitate, and skillfully communicate knowledge accurately. You will help me; You are the Source of all knowledge and truth.
Of course, the goal is not that my students parrot what I say, but rather, that they live honestly with knowledge, integrity, and wisdom. And the goal is certainly not that I have all the answers. Oh Lord, give me the divine ability to effectively communicate in a way that will be inviting to all. Teach me to honor You and to love You well by being a humble teacher of excellence.
Teach through me. Teach us, as teachers, how to live the life You have designed and created for each one of us. And then, teach us how to impart ‘the good life’ to our students.
About Keep Calm and Shoot Straight
I am a teacher. You, too? I hope you love the profession as much as I do! I was 16 when I got my first teaching gigs – I had 20 private piano students and a Sunday School class of 4 and 5-year olds! At that point in my “career,” my definition of teacher was very limited. But now – after 45+ years of experience – I have come to realize that teacher can mean many different things. I’d like to share some of those insights with you! My posts will range from quotes to prayers, from cartoons to words of wisdom. Much of my teaching experience has been international, so you'll get to watch some video stories from around the globe. Jesus is the best Teacher I know, so I will be including Him in this blog, as well. I hope my thoughts and my story will encourage, provoke, and inspire you to become the teacher you’ve been created to be!
For comments, email maryjean@getthewordout.cc
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Mary Jean Powers
B.A. in Christian Education
M.A. in Biblical Studies
Music teacher (band and choir
International Bible teacher fo
Certified Walk Thru the Bible
Certified TESL International I
CEU Provider for ACSI (Associa
Certified Life Coach and Chapl
Who am I? A teacher coming alo