Friday, October 10, 2008

Help, I’m taking Pre Calculus!

One of my students, from four years ago, texts me every morning to say, “Good morning!” Occasionally I will respond, although, not every day. On Thursday morning, I happened to respond with a “How’s math?” Her response, “Bad.” My reply, “Call me, tonight.” Her response, “Okay, I will :).” Come later that evening, she had not called, but I know she is a smart girl and it can be hard to take the initiative, especially when you need help with something.

I called her and asked if she was busy, and if she had time to work on her math. She dropped what she was doing, and over the phone we discussed her math problems. I was pleasantly surprised at what she remembered from my math class and future math classes. In speaking with her, I discovered it was not the math that she did not understand; rather it was the steps and the process. Once she realized that it was a bunch of algebra in one big package, she was excited and well on her way!

It makes me wonder how often we miss a step in the process and God is saying, “Silly, girl!” Maybe we were too hurried, or too busy. It also makes me wonder how often we really do know what to do and how to do it, but we are so caught up with what we do not know that we are not moving on. I often tell my kids, “Don’t tell me what you cannot do, show me what you can do!” Are we not moving on because we cannot, or is it because we are not asking for help, when it is directly in front of our face? Once my former student got past that sticky step in the problem, she was golden! God showed me through this situation that I am still connecting with these students and He can and will use me, even if it is not in the way I “planned.”