By Kirsten Nicole
July 19, 2023
As you probably know, I've had the opportunity to spend some time out of state with family friends. I also had the opportunity to meet with an "uncle and aunt" (friends like family), who I hadn't seen in many years.
They took me to a delicious Chinese restaurant in Fort Worth, but since I was so focused on the conversation, we got to the end of the meal, and I realized I hadn't eaten much of my lunch. I boxed everything up, and my uncle handed me one of the fortune cookies the waitress had brought to the table.
I didn't read it until later. To be honest, the fortune inside is my favorite part of the "fortune cookie" experience. Of course, they don't actually tell a fortune, and usually they're more proverbial than they are predictive, so perhaps a better name would be "proverb cookie."
Mine read. "A person is never too old to learn." And that felt particularly applicable.
This year has been so full of new experiences and so much learning. During my job interview for teaching last year, the headmaster asked, "Are you teachable?"
Good question. And it helped me to position my heart for the upcoming year of much learning. Sometimes it's hard to be open to learn, but Proverbs 9:9 says "Give instruction to a wise person and he will become still wiser; Teach a righteous person and he will increase his insight" (New American Standard Bible).
I spent a year learning how to teach classes I had never taught, how to grade assignments, how to organize a teaching schedule and a unit, how to pull from several resources and narrow it down to an hour-long class. But I'm learning, and a person is never too old to learn.
I had the financial capability to live independently for the first time last July. It was easy to get overwhelmed with that step, all the expenses to remember and record. New safety precautions. Planning trips to the store during daylight hours because I didn't have someone to go with me at night. Figuring out how to care for a puppy who couldn't be home all day by herself. But I'm learning, and a person is never too old to learn.
I had to juggle a full-time job, a part-time job, and being involved with theatre for the first time. I haven't always managed my time well. But I'm learning, and a person is never too old to learn.
I had to find a new church after attending the same church since the age of twelve. I had to let go of the investment at my former church and find ways to invest in a new church. I had to discern theology and teaching and become involved with a group of fellow believers...who were also strangers. Could I have made the transition faster? Yep. But I'm learning, and a person is never too old to learn.
This doesn't condone laziness stemming from "I'm learning" as an excuse, but it did help me keep from beating myself up when I didn't get it perfect the first time. I'm learning. And a person is never too old to learn. Scripture says in Proverbs 19:20, "Listen to counsel and accept discipline, that you may be wise the rest of your days" (NASB). Sometimes it's hard to still be learning. It's humbling. But it's good to be teachable. Rewarding. Eye-opening. Biblical. I pray the Lord continues humbling my heart, keeping me teachable, and helping me to love the learning.
After all, a person is never too old to learn.
What have you been learning lately?
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