Taught to teach or teach to be taught?

I (Jenn) think that sometimes God asks us to teach the things we need to learn. I've heard another missionary here in Hungary say that, "God doesn't call the most holy to the mission field, only those that have the most stubborn hearts and require the most extreme circumstances to become pliable.". For my part, I couldn't agree more.

As my 8th grade health class has been working it's way through this last unit, Dealing with Stress and Grief, I have been reminding myself as much as I have been teaching the students how to manage their time to prevent stress, "Recharge" to decrease stress, grieve the losses involved with living the TCK life, being familiar with patterns of life transition and expressing their emotions in a healthy, respectful way.

In developing this unit I pulled from the materials we collected during the two years of preparation we had before coming to Hungary. Many of the materials I used are part of WorldVenture and the Association of Christian Schools International training programs, but I was also able to pull from my personal transition experience which is still underway.  As I cried my way through the lesson on grieving the losses involved in life change, I spoke the words I needed to hear most about the nearness of God to those who weep. It is true that God often teaches us so that we can in turn teach others, but it is also true that sometimes God asks us to teach others so that we can  understand what he has been doing in us.

Thankfully, I am not the only one learning life lessons in the Health classroom. One student left my classroom in tears during the lesson on stress management and returned later to thank me for teaching on that subject because it was just what she needed.  In between the lessons on grief and life transitions I was told that one of our students will be moving back to her passport country after 11 years in Hungary.   When I collected the writing assignment on addressing unresolved grief, I found that near half the class had turned in a blank sheet of paper because the feelings they had uncovered were too personal to share. Some of the students simply wrote, "thank you" instead.

That's what I want to write too.  Thank you. Thank you Lord for teaching us all so patiently and for teaching us so that we can give these TCKs the tools they need to navigate life successfully. Thank you, friends, for teaming up to pray for us and support us financially so that we can all impact eternity.