Painful Lessons

 

So...I took a sick day off from work today.

Had a child in my language group Monday who decided to throw a tantrum and flipped up the bench he was sitting on and threw it towards the peers.  I got up in time to get my body in-between him and the rest of the group, and the bench got me on the shin bone leaving a significant amount of bruising on the bone with pain being similar to shin splints radiating up to the knee.  NOT pleasant.  

Went in to the classroom yesterday thinking the pain would just go away as bruises usually do the next day.....but nope..it got worse!

Went into doctor's today where he looked at it, felt around, had me go through a series of foot and leg exercises and declared it to be a large bone bruise, explaining what is needed to heal.  Basically heat and rest today with taking ibuprofen.  Can head to work tomorrow.

As you can see I'm doing my part.

And God?  He's doing His part.  It's uncanny the lessons we can learn from pain.

This morning I was doing my online devotional with my cousin, and a couple friends.  It was about how sometimes we have a provocateur who pushes us into growing spiritually.  Sometimes it causes pain but with pain comes healing.

And then I turned to my study on Hosea and this quote jumped out at me:

"There's times God allows us to suffer so we can see what's in our hearts."

(from Faithful Love devotional, day 33) 

And wham.  I realized that my provocateur on Monday was this little 4 year old student who threw the wooden bench, gauging my leg.  Yet I also realized I had some pride that was getting in my way.......I've been a bit prideful in that this child prefers playing with me vs the other teachers in the room; that he loves my circle lessons and seeks me out.  My pride was taking over and yikes.....I had this physical pain as evidence that he's just a little boy who is hurting in many ways along with his special needs.  And that no I am not the answer.....that I am just a vessel in his life getting him to the next steps.  And God wants me to take the step of repenting of pride....it  took the physical pain of my leg to realize this boy doesn't see me as his favorite.  He just sees me as his teacher who is willing to work with him.

and that's ok.  It's not ok for me to be prideful about it.

So I asked God's forgiveness. Getting wounded by this little boy didn't just hurt my leg....it wounded my pride.  Which I can now give over to God and realize it is through Christ that I can be the teacher to him I need to be.  It's a team effort:  in the real world with the classroom team.  And in the spiritual world with my Redeemer.