‘Good Morning Teacha, May I Have a Class Today?’
In Cambodia, this is how you are greeted everyday:
The students stand up, put their hands together in front of their chest like they are praying, and say ‘Good Morning Teacha, May I Have a Class Today?’
Adorbs.
I taught English this past month at New Hope School in Battambang, Cambodia.
I was given two classes a day, each of different ‘English levels’ and ages.
I’ll spare you all the details, but it was hard.
Like so freakin’ hard.
It’s patience mixed with frustration + repeating + reviewing + lecturing + disciplining + encouraging + pushing potential + seeing reality + and finding victory in the smallest breakthroughs.
It was hour slots of teaching that would take me from joyful and excited to teach my language, to leaving the hour so frustrated I just wanted to punch something.
What went through my head every 10 minutes?
Examples:
THEY JUST DONT GET IT.
THEY DONT LISTEN.
THEY DONT CARE AT ALL.
WE WENT OVER THIS YESTERDAY ALLLLL DAY, AND THEY DONT REMEMBER ANYTHING.
I DONT HAVE THE PATIENCE FOR THIS TODAY.
THEY’LL NEVER GET IT, NEVER.
IM GONNA RING SOMEONES NECK Y’ALL.
Encouraging huh?
Yeah right, it’s sad honestly.
But here’s what I started to see and realize: all those Bible stories that Jesus was a Teacher, this is how he felt. This is honestly how God feels on the reg with me.
Every dang day.
He’s the teacher, and I am the stubborn student.
I’m sitting here staring at these precious beautiful Cambodian faces, frustrated at what they aren’t seeing that I’m trying to teach.
I’m frustrated at what they aren’t paying attention to.
They honestly choose not to listen to the statements I’m asking them.
They aren’t listening to the answers.
I would ask a question and they would look at their Khmer Teacher for translation, disregarding what I said at all.
If they could just get it, then I could get them to where they need to be.
I CAN SEE WHERE THEY NEED TO GO! THEY JUST DONT BELIEVE ME!
This is me with the Lord, everyday:
I walk into his presence {classroom} and WANT to meet and with learn from Him.
But am I really choosing to listen and learn from Him?
I’m the student that is not practicing what I’ve learned that day in ‘class’.
So I return daily not ready for the test, and not walking in what I know and can live out.
I’m the child who looks to my teacher that can translate the lesson in a way I’m comfortable with, instead of choosing to listen to the teacher I’m learning to understand.
I’m choosing to rely on friends and family to be mediators for me and the Lord. I’m relying on their wisdom and translations of what the Lord is saying, more than His own words alone.
The Lord sees what lessons I need to learn and how I can get there, but I’m too stubborn to believe He’s got the full lesson plan to be able to ace that test.
Now it’s not about the grade here either, the Lord just wants us to try.
I realized I didn’t even care what they made, it was about understanding, not grades.
If they didn’t get it, we would review again until we had a victory.
Those were the best days, small victories in the name of English!
We threw the ‘workbook’ out the door and started to just take it day by day.
‘It’s reading….they understand how to write the words, they just don’t know how to read what they are writing and the sounds that go with it.’
breakthrough.
We started just doing individual sessions in the back of the open walled classroom to make sure we weren’t leaving anyone behind.
It wasn’t a matter of who was better at English, it was just getting each student to learn at their own pace.
The Lord meets us where we are.
He WANTS to review with you.
He WANTS to sit with you in the back of the class and rub your back as He goes back over a lesson from two weeks ago.
He WANTS you to try, free from perfection and standards. He just wants you to listen to what He’s teaching you that day.
He just WANTS you to freakin’ show up to class, for goodness sake.
JUST SHOW UP! HE’S GOT SOMETHING TO TEACH YOU!
The Lords got more patience than we could ever imagine.
He’s the best at it.
He’s the ultimate Teacher who has the best qualities and characteristics to understand where we are that day.
Show up to class today, have the best time with Him, and allow Him to see where you are.
He wants to teach, you to learn, review with you, and repeat the cycle all over again.
Praise the Lord I’m not a teacher you should mimic.
Yikes.
Praise the Lord we have a perfect Teacher to learn from.
He’s patient, motivating, encouraging, challenging, kind, and comforting.
He’s the best, ever.
