Our Needs: Introductory/Group Lesson

Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs

Opening Prayer

Opening Story:             

              In 2019, our church started a food pantry to help the occasional homeless person or family in need. What started as a small ministry grew into a much needed one when the pandemic of 2020 hit our small community. We outgrew our space within three months and needed a new one. By the end of 2020 we had grown from 12-17 families a month to 100 a month. Businesses closed, people lost jobs, and our community felt it.

              During this season of forced growth, the world was experiencing social distancing, germophobia, and pressures we’d never experienced. What started out as a ministry of food for necessity’s purpose turned into a place where we ministered to the whole person. Churches closed their doors. Funerals were postponed. People died alone in hospital rooms. Families canceled celebrations. Isolation and fear reigned. Normal ceased to exist.

              But God opened our eyes that our food ministry was more than meeting basic physiological needs; we were reaching the whole person. Maslow proposed a theory that we all had a five-tiered range of needs that must be met if we are to be a well-rounded, healthy human. If any of these needs were left unmet, especially in the lower tiers, then the person would be stunted and stuck, unable to appropriately grow.  The basic needs of air, food, water, shelter, and sleep represent the lowest, most foundational tier. The other levels can’t be perceived or conceived until this level is secure.

When our patrons entered our drive-through food distribution, we walked car to car. Many people kept their windows rolled up, scared of catching covid. Others promptly put on a mask and pulled away. Fear ran rampant through our patrons. But for the ones who allowed us to talk with them, we shared hope in Jesus, comfort, and gave them assurance that while things seemed out of control and unsafe, God was still in control.

              The biggest piece of this ministry that we had not considered was that some people came to the pantry, yes for the food, but mostly for the human connection and sense of belonging. Their third tier of the hierarchy disappeared for many folks when we went into quarantine, and our food line was their only social interaction. We had men and women from our church who came only to walk car to car and talk to people. Our pastor prayed and sang with elderly folks and witnessed to others. One of our patrons still called our pastor her pastor because they connected closely during that year of social distancing.

              Our basic needs matter, but so do our needs for safety and a sense of love and belonging. We witnessed firsthand what happens to a community when these core needs are disrupted and unmet, and panic sets in. Fear takes over. Conspiracy sinks deep talons into minds and hearts. Insecurity reigns. And people who once felt confident and assured suddenly flounder and fall.

              Our students are no different than our pantry patrons. They have basic physiological needs and if those needs aren’t met, there’s no way we will ever get them to pay attention in class or care about their education. If our kids feel unsafe and have no consistency, they will not be able to focus and learn. And if our students constantly feel unloved or overlooked, they will not show any interest in bettering themselves.

              This week, we will spend each day discussing a different need on Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs, connecting it both physically and spiritually to ourselves and our role as educators. We will also look at our own lives and assess what areas of need might be missing personally. This week is a foundational piece of the puzzle, make sure to stay tuned in all week.

Scripture Reading:

Read Matthew 6:25-34 (NIV):

                  “Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothes? Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they? Can any one of you by worrying add a single hour to your life?

“And why do you worry about clothes? See how the flowers of the field grow. They do not labor or spin. Yet I tell you that not even Solomon in all his splendor was dressed like one of these. If that is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today and tomorrow is thrown into the fire, will he not much more clothe you—you of little faith? So do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.

Discussion

1.      How does having unmet needs in our lives keep us from growth (academically, spiritually, emotionally)?

2.      Think about a student who never knows if they will have enough food, mama changes boyfriends every month, and they are constantly yelled at. How can you help this child academically when their core needs aren’t consistently met?

3.      Are you a natural worrier? How can you begin to trust God with your needs instead of worrying or trying to fix things yourself?

4.      Are you having your core needs being met? If not, there’s a good chance you feel the same imbalance as some of your students. How can you make changes to be more present in the classroom?

Homework

              Read all of Matthew chapter 6 and spend time surrendering your worries and concerns to God in prayer.

Personal Reflection

              Think back to when you were in school. Who were the students who struggled in class? What was their home life like? Now think about the teachers and paraprofessionals you work with currently. Is there anyone who is struggling to complete their tasks at work? Do you think it has anything to do with their core needs being unmet? Ask God to show you how to pray for and reach out to others in a practical way to meet their needs.

Reference: https://www.simplypsychology.org/maslow.html