Ever prayed about a problem so long, you wonder if God
listens, cares, or is capable of acting on your problem? Recently, alone in the
gym, I was crying on the treadmill (yes, a literal treadmill but the symbolism
does not escape me) that I felt so frustrated and lonely about this moldy-oldy
problem, I just wanted God to hold me. The first thing He did was to shuffle my
iPhone playlist so that the next three songs contained lyrics about God holding
me. Next up was a song asking God to show up and then sitting back and watching
Him go. I sensed God telling me to abandon my latest solutions to this problem
and to pretend I was with Him on Take Your Daughter to Work Day. What does a
daughter do at her Father’s place of work? She watches Him work!
When I was in seventh or eighth grade, my dad took me out of
my grade school to tag along with him on his work day at the high school where
he taught math. For five or six class periods that day, I sat in a high
schooler’s light, modern plastic and chrome desk instead of my grade school’s
heavy wooden desk with inkwells.
I loved watching my dad chalk formulas on the blackboard and
engage his students in the principles needed to solve equations. Although my
father loved mathematics in general, he was passionate about geometry, so when
I saw him chalk triangles on the board, I sensed his increased enthusiasm. Can
you say right triangle … equilateral, isosceles, scalene, obtuse, acute? Whoa,
now we’re talkin’! He was having so much fun. Sometimes he’d be silly and bend
one arm behind his back to write an answer on the board. At times other
students and I smiled to see pink and yellow chalk smears on his ear lobe or
chin. Sometimes I understood what Dad was teaching, sometimes it was beyond me.
Either way, I loved listening to him teach.
Between class periods, I tagged along as he stopped by the
mathematics office to touch base with the department secretary or mimeograph a
quiz for the next class. Once I got to go into the sacrosanct teacher’s lounge.
Tagging along, tuned-in and learning—that was basically my role. Dad did
everything else. After all, that was his
job.
So when my heavenly Father told me to pretend I was with Him
on Take Your Daughter to Work Day, what did He mean? Abandon my old clunky,
less effective way of solving problems and even my old problems themselves; sit
with His lighter yoke; listen to His voice and watch for His fingerprints;
sense His pleasure in solving my problems with “higher math”; appreciate His brilliance; and adore just
being with Him.
God is the wisest problem solver ever. The bible is evidence
of this truth. He creates the exact lessons I need at the exact time I can
grasp them. My life so far shows this, too. So, Lord, I’m done trying to solve
what’s beyond my abilities with my inadequate elementary school math. Higher math is your job, and I can’t wait to watch you work. Chalk away!
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