How do you handle questions from your learners that seem to come out of left field?

Released Friday, 29th July 2022

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How do you handle questions from your learners that seem to come out of left field?

Friday, 29th July 2022

Good episode? Give it some love!

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Why?: How do you handle questions from your learners that seem to come out of left field?
What?: As teachers, we're trying to teach wisdom. We intentionally design our lessons to that end, but there are also times when something happens that gives us an unplanned opportunity to teach wisdom. One of these is when a learner throws out an idea that is out of left field, something strange and totally unexpected. You should plan for the unplanned. That is, you can be prepared to handle the unexpected.
Here are 3 questions that might help you triage—to sort out—what to do. Remember that your goal is to teach wisdom to every learner under your care.
The first question you need to ask is, "Does it need to be addressed?"
If the comment or question risks disunity in the church or if it seems to be heretical doctrine, far outside the truth of Scripture, the answer is, "yes, it needs to be addressed." If it's just an opinion, it might not need to be addressed.
If the comment or question needs to be addressed, the next question is, "When does it need to be addressed?" If you have a concern that anyone in the group might be led astray by not addressing the question, for instance, if they would interpret your temporary silence as agreement with the wrong idea, it needs to be addressed publicly right now. If you're certain that only the individual with the strange idea or question would be affected, then you might address the issue later. If you are not prepared to respond right now, you might need to wait until later with a clear message that you will.
The third question to ask is, "How does it need to be addressed?" Again, this might be public or private. It might be a brief or an extended encounter. You should ask clarifying questions and you may need to do some research before you respond. You might even need to pass the issue on to someone who's better equipped to handle the concern.
So What?: Everyone who's taught for any length of time has faced the issue of comments from left field. For example, I've heard that each of our last few presidents is the antichrist. I've also heard learners say that they know that whatever truth I'm teaching IS what people believe, but they don't.
So What Now?: If you're teaching, these comments are coming. Take some time to think through how you'll handle them when they come. The three questions you need to ask yourself are: Does it need to be addressed? When does it need to be addressed? and How does it need to be addressed? Remember that we're teaching wisdom. We're trying to see our learners transformed by the truth of God's Word. But, we need to model wisdom even in the face of questions from left field.