“I will instruct thee and teach thee in the way which thou shalt go; I will guide thee with mine eye.” (Psalm 32:8)
The year I taught a class of 4-year old kindergarten students, I think I learned far more than they did.
One little boy in the class just could not say the sound of the letter “F”. No matter how hard he tried, it always came out with the sound of the letter “P”. I had tried everything I could think of to help him overcome this speech impediment but to no avail. Finally, I prayed and asked God to give me wisdom to know how to help Wade. I kept working with him in the reading groups, alone at my desk, with another of his peers; everything I could think of!
One morning during that winter, I called Wade’s group to the reading circle. Many in the group had the sniffles, chapped lips, etc. Wade happened to sit right in front of me in the circle. While other students were reading, I carefully watched his reactions. He had a chapped lip that morning and without thinking, he caught the bottom lip under his top teeth to remove a portion of dried skin. Just as he did so, God spoke to my heart and said, “Audrey, there’s your answer.” I was stumped. I had no idea what He meant.
Just then Wade again caught his bottom lip under his top teeth and I caught what God was trying to show me. I said to Wade, “Do that again. Catch your bottom lip under your top teeth.” He did so. I said, “Now, blow your breath through it.” He looked at me as if I was crazy but he did as I asked. I said, “Now, do it again.” He complied.
I looked at him and softly said, “Wade that is how you make the ‘F’ sound.” His little face lit up. Then I had him put that sound in front of a blend and then in front of a word. That day Wade went home with a beaming face for now he could make the words just like the others in his class.
God had answered my prayer for wisdom to help Wade in a wonderful way; just as He promised us in James 1:5: “If any of you lack wisdom let him ask of God who giveth to all men liberally.”
Audrey Mullen