Influential Teacher:
Pastor Stephen Williamson - Cornerstone United Reformed Church - London
It was a really interesting experience to be able to sit down with Pastor Steve and to hear him explain how he got into the ministry, his purpose in being there, and the things he has learned on his journey. I learned a lot about his incredible love for the Lord and the people of his congregation, and my appreciation for his efforts definitely grew. His love and passion for the ministry is very genuine, and as he explained the great love and power of God as the purpose of his ministry, there were even tears in his eyes. I hardly had to do any of the talking, because the deep sense of purpose in Steve’s life overflows out of him.
Steve did not always know that He was called to be a pastor. He is a man of many talents and went through several jobs before he stopped at engineering. Here, Steve enjoyed working with other people, developing relationships, and solving problems all at once. He said that “seeing a finished product come to the floor… was really very satisfying.” Although he was happy here, God had other plans for his life. Steve became very interested in the counseling courses that his girlfriend was taking, and so when an email was sent out from his work saying that there was to be no talk of politics or religion in the workplace, Steve felt devastated that he wouldn’t be able to share with his coworkers the light of the gospel and decided to take a year and join her at school. This was the beginning of his training for the ministry, as Steve went on to go to seminary in the States, and eventually graduate and accept a call to Cornerstone United Reformed Church in London.
Steve shared some of the concerns that his friends voiced to him in the midst of this transition process. He understood some of their concerns, but mentioned during the interview that he simply knew that he had to do this. Curious about his word choice, I asked him to dig a little deeper and tell me why he felt that he just had to pursue this career as a minister. This made Steve think a little harder, and he responded by explaining that he had a deep inner desire to connect his love of God with his love for people. He also told me of his stubbornness, and that if someone felt that he needed to stop going down this road, they would need a good reason to stop him.
My next question for Steve was what it is that he loves about his job. He replied by telling me that it is a great pleasure to be able to tell people about God, and come alongside them, helping them to become stable and strong in God while living in the midst of an unstable world. His answer made me excited to know that there are teachers like him in the world today who have a message that they want to spread to the world, for the sole purpose of building and encouraging other people.
All of Steve’s answers to my questions were genuine and in depth, and this encouraged me as I came to my next question, one that I felt was the sole purpose of the interview. What is your goal in teaching? This is a simple question, but one that many teachers would have a hard time answering and putting into words. Steve did not seem to have a hard time with this question, but responded, saying “To grow and to trust the Lord more.” He went on to explain some specific situations within his congregation in which it was his goal to help them. For some, his goal is to help them to become less doubting of their faith and more trusting of who God is. For others, it is to help them become more holy, and to become more like Christ Himself. He wants his congregation to live their lives with the constant question, “How can I glorify God better in my life?” Steve said that he wants to “Get into people’s hearts, reorient them towards the Lord, to see who He is and to follow Him.” He wants them to look past himself as a pastor, and towards the Great Shepherd of the Sheep, who died and gave His life for them.
Being a teacher is a journey in itself, and so I asked Steve if there was anything in his teaching style that had changed over his five years of ministry. Steve was open in his answer, and shared some of the mistakes he had made toward the beginning of his work. He admitted his shortcomings and inexperience in preaching towards the beginning of his ministry, and how more experienced pastors came alongside him and gave him helpful criticism so that he could more clearly present the treasures of God’s Word to the people. He explained that his default engineering tendency to want to simply “fix things”. This was quite a problem towards the beginning of his ministry, because whenever someone would be struggling with a personal issue, his immediate inclination was always to try and simply fix it. This is not always what people need or want, and Steve had a hard time learning that lesson. He has now learned that being a pastor is not exactly as he thought it would be. Before he began his work, he had underestimated his need for constant time in prayer, and in his interactions with people he has since learned that God created man with two ears and one mouth for a reason. Listening well is the key to speaking well.
Steve’s passion for the message that he has to bring to the people of his congregation is clearly evident in the way he describes the love and sacrifice of Jesus Christ. “It’s a simple message – that you are a sinner and that you need to come to know who Jesus is, and to know that He made a sacrifice that fully pays for all your sins… They have done something wrong, and they need someone to save them from their sin. They can’t save themselves… The only thing that they can have is someone external from them help them solve that problem… They need someone greater than them to do something that they cannot do for themselves.” Steve says that in some ways his message is offensive, and even one of bad news, since He tells people that they are weak sinners who cannot save themselves. However, he points out that you need to have the bad news before you can have the good, “otherwise the good doesn’t seem so good anymore.” He doesn’t stop with the bad news, but continues on to the good – that God has come with an answer, an answer that is free. Jesus has come to pay for our sin and set us free if only we will accept the gift that he has given, rather than impossibly trying to earn His favour.
I learned a lot in this interview, both about Pastor Steve and about myself. I learned that I don’t appreciate the work my pastor does nearly as much as I should. To be responsible for the spiritual instruction of an entire congregation every week is a massive responsibility. I learned that I don’t pray for my pastor enough, as he talked about what a big part of his ministry is spent on his knees. I also learned that God may have an entirely different plan for my life than what I can imagine right now, just as he did for Steve when he was under the impression that his career would be in engineering. I can honestly say that I appreciate the instruction of Pastor Steve much more now, having listened to him explain it, and having heard the passion in his voice and the tears in his eyes over the changing power of the gospel message that he has the privilege of proclaiming.
Student Interview
For this assignment, I interviewed three young people who had taken private music lessons while growing up. All of them are pursuing very different professions, none of which have anything to do with music. I asked them about the role music plays in their lives today, and although their answers varied, there were similarities between all of them. Both Sharon and Sarah told me that they use their musical education today to relieve stress and have a time to relax. They told me that the opportunity to take music lessons while they were young gave them a chance to develop skills such as organizing their time and not giving up when things got busy or difficult. Sarah and Jessica both mentioned how the musical skills they had been taught now helps them today to work with others and also gives them opportunities to collaborate with their friends. Jessica mentioned that she uses her musical abilities to contribute to her church life, as well as her social life. She also mentioned that being part of a small orchestra helped her to develop her leadership skills. Sharon said that music helped her to be able to set goals for herself and to to keep on pursuing them, because it would be worth it in the end. She also mentioned another benefit to her education in music which I thought was quite interesting, and that was how much she could appreciate different kinds of music because of the knowledge she has. She can appreciate some music that others might not be as interested in because she understands the skill required to perform it. Although not all the answers were exactly the same, there was one thing that all three students told me: they love to play music, and they couldn't imagine their lives without it.
From these three students, I was able to see some of the many different benefits of musical education, even if the student is not planning to make a career out of music.
-Stress Relief/Relaxation
-Time Management
-Accomplishing Goals
-Perseverance
-Developing Creativity
-Collaboration Skills
-Community Involvement
-Listening Skills
-Social Opportunities
-Leadership Skills
-Appreciation for different kinds of music
-Personal Enjoyment!
From this interview, I learned that an education in music is never a waste of time. Music can always have something to teach you, even if the way you benefit from it is not exactly the same as someone else. Music teachers should never get discouraged by the thought that the material they are teaching is going to be simply forgotten and become useless. It can always be beneficial in some way.
From these three students, I was able to see some of the many different benefits of musical education, even if the student is not planning to make a career out of music.
-Stress Relief/Relaxation
-Time Management
-Accomplishing Goals
-Perseverance
-Developing Creativity
-Collaboration Skills
-Community Involvement
-Listening Skills
-Social Opportunities
-Leadership Skills
-Appreciation for different kinds of music
-Personal Enjoyment!
From this interview, I learned that an education in music is never a waste of time. Music can always have something to teach you, even if the way you benefit from it is not exactly the same as someone else. Music teachers should never get discouraged by the thought that the material they are teaching is going to be simply forgotten and become useless. It can always be beneficial in some way.