Line upon line

 

I was sent to teach a kindergarten class earlier this week.  The teacher had fallen ill and there were no substitutes available.

This class had been learning about the rain forests and were making persuasive posters to encourage others to help protect them.

They were telling me about the animal they had each been assigned to study and using rich vocabulary like undercover and foliage.  

As they wrote and designed their posters I watched as some students started with artwork and were more developed artists than others.  

Others were sounding out words and writing clearly discernible complete sentences.  

One little girl was carefully writing long strings of Os and Is.  

In each case I helped scaffold, or support, their one individual next step.  

For some they needed to draw lines to represent the words.  

For some encouragement to add detail.

And in my little friend with Os and Is I asked her to read it back to me.  She quickly slid her finger along the penciled line of lettering and "read" "please don't cut down the trees in our forest cuz the animals live there." 

It wasn't a comparison or a contest. It was progress for each.  

That is how gospel learning is. 

Our life experiences, upbringings, personalities, friends, trials, gifts and tendencies all impact where we are in our individual gospel study and understanding.

2 Nephi 28:30 explains:

For behold, thus saith the Lord God: I will give unto the children of men line upon line, precept upon precept, here a little and there a little; and blessed are those who hearken unto my precepts, and lend an ear unto my counsel, for they shall learn wisdom; for unto him that receiveth I will give more; and from them that shall say, We have enough, from them shall be taken away even that which they have.

It's not how much or how fast we are learning.  As George occasionally reminds me, "It's okay to slow down a bit.  We have eternity."  Of course that doesn't mean I should stop or backslide, although that may occasionally happen. 

It does mean we need to listen and take that one next piece.  And do it.  

And little by little, one truth at a time, we will be made wiser and better able to follow Jesus Christ.