Use Your Superpower To Help Others

Nyle DeMarco is a new rising star in the modeling industry – even though he’s deaf. Nyle didn’t see himself as handicapped when he tried out for Tyra Banks’ TV show, America’s Next Top Model. He won that competition. Then he challenged everyone’s ideas about what deaf people can do when he competed in and became the mirror ball winner on Dancing With the Stars. In one episode, he and his professional dance mentor Peta decided to present their version of a ballroom dance with a small section of silence in it. The men dancing with Nyle in simultaneous movement during the silent segment pulled it off, but they found it more difficult than they anticipated. Nyle showed that his ability to learn a dance without music was better than their ability to learn a dance without music. And Nyle did it every week. Because he turned his deafness into a superpower instead of succumbing to the pressure to see it as a weakness, he has inspired millions of people.  

Do you have an ability that sets you apart from others? When you and I stop seeing ourselves as weak, we can accomplish things no one but God could imagine. Weakness might be what others see in us, but we can succeed because of what God sees in us. 

Today’s goal is: Use your special abilities to help or inspire others. 

How can you benefit others with something you do well? Can you tutor someone who is learning a foreign language? Can you help with a neighborhood soccer team?  

I have a cousin who teaches kids to surf as a part of their Vacation Bible School experience. I have never taught kids to surf mostly because I don’t know how to surf. That’s not my superpower. I think that’s a cool ministry to be a part of, and I wish I had that talent, but I have to use whatever I do well to help and inspire others. 

If you think you don’t have a superpower, you might just need a change of perspective. Look for your superpower. Use that ability to benefit those around you. The time and effort you spend helping or inspiring others is worth it.

Dare to be a Substitute Teacher

When it’s summer and time for families to go on a vacation, what do Sunday School teachers do? Who steps in when they need to get away?

They ask for volunteers.

I used to teach Sunday School classes. My husband and I didn’t have any children at the time I was asked to substitute in the high school classroom. I’d never done that before, but I accepted the challenge.

When I wasn’t teaching in the high school class, I taught an adult class. The ages were different, but the attitude was the same. They didn’t expect perfection from me, but they did expect me to speak from my heart about real issues that they had to deal with on a daily basis. No one wanted to waste time in a class that didn't meet their needs. I wanted my words to matter to them, so I studied.

I looked up Bible verses on topics they were interested in. I wrote an outline and presented it in class. I often had a good response from them at the end of our time together.

If your child’s Sunday school class teacher needs a break or is going on a vacation, you can ask to substitute during the teacher’s absence. It wouldn’t mess you up to prayerfully prepare a lesson from your own experience.

Today’s goal is: Ask a Sunday School teacher if you can bring a lesson to give them a break for a week.

You can study the Bible to create a brief lesson based on events in your past. Maybe these were mistakes you learned from or events you had success with. The youth of today will be making the same decisions that we faced. Ultimately, they will thank us for giving them a reason to make the right decision.

If you enjoy volunteering your time, you could find out if there is a list of substitute teachers and put your name on it. Or you could find a teacher who wants to do a monthly trade-off. You could teach one month, and they could teach the next.

You will never know if you’ll like it unless you give it a try.