Luke 21:13
Looking up the word "opportunity" in the scriptures in not for the faint of heart. Most of the time when it is used it refers to sin or people trying to betray Jesus. Or like in the verse above it reflects the opportunity we have in persecution. Yuck. I don't want to talk about persecution. It's more than a little scary. I don't even want to think about it most of the time. But it is a reality for so many. How many people give up that fear in return for beautiful opportunity from God?
This week in ESL class I learned a lot about opportunity. Sometimes God quietly speaks to your spirit and sometimes He sends flashing red lights. I like when he does both. :)
The ESL class was not something I was prepared for when we came to Haiti, nor was I overly excited about it. I like to teach, but I sincerely doubted English was what God called me to teach in my months in Haiti. My motto, however, is "the Haitians know what the Haitians need."So, when asked to do ESL, I smiled and said, "Sure, I did that one time. I think I can handle that." According to the many teens in my class, English skills greatly increase their chance for employment, so they are eager students.
But we are talking about opportunity.
I prepare my lesson with different ideas from online and what I know from teaching otherwise. I pray and ask God to make it work. That's literally my prayer,
"Make it work, Lord. Just make it work."
How little are my expectations of God!
This Monday we talked about emotions, feelings. I have over 60 students and trying to get them all involved is a challenge, but it was a fun lesson going over some emotions and then asking individuals to act them out- I feel happy. I feel jealous. I feel curious. I feel angry. I feel sad. I feel loved. Some are easier to understand than others.
I asked if anyone had any questions. One student wanted me to explain the difference between like and love, an interesting question because in Creole renmen is the verb for both like and love. This led to fun discussion of friends, boyfriends, and girlfriends, getting married.
And then....opportunity. One students asked me the difference between to love and to believe. I talked about your mind and your heart, truth and lies. I wrote on the board - "I believe in God because he forgives me. I believe in God because he gave me the Bible. I believe in God because he loves me."
The last half hour of the class was taken up by students sharing their spontaneous sentences...."I believe in God because he hears my prayers. I believe in God because he sent Jesus to die on the cross for my sins. I believe in God because he created everything." It was a beautiful testimony and my heart left class so full.
I came home, sat down and asked God,
"Lord, don't just make it work. Make it yours."
And what God does is always beyond anything we could ask or imagine.
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