The Student

I hate being stood up.

It was a kid I’ve been tutoring.  Tony.  He’s a senior in high school, and he’s failing Algebra II.   He has to pass it in order to graduate.   He wasn’t really asking for help — the school decided he needed it.  He has decent grades in other classes, but a failing grade in this one course could really mess things up for him.

So I tried to do what I could within “the system”.  Throughout the semester, the best I could do was to meet with him for fifteen minutes or so during lunch, and that just wasn’t enough.

The final exam was rapidly approaching, so I offered to meet him on a weekend.  We agreed on a day and time to meet at the library.

I called before I left home that day to meet him.  No answer. So I left a message.

I went to the library anyway.

He wasn’t there, so I called again.  No answer.  I left another message.

I waited in the parking lot of the library.  And waited.   More than thirty minutes.

I finally decided to call it quits and go home.  I left to get coffee and then still circled back by the library one more time, still thinking that MAYBE he was just late.

But he never showed up.  Never called.  Nothing.

I wasn’t angry, but I just don’t understand why someone who needs help wouldn’t take advantage of it.

But that’s a big part of the problem, isn’t it? Not everyone wants help.  Not everyone realizes they need help.   This doesn’t just apply to underprivileged high school students, or the poor, or the homeless.  It’s something dark and stubborn inside all of us.

Tony certainly isn’t the only one who has stood up someone who was trying to help.

How often have I left God “waiting in the parking lot”?

How many times have I not answered His calls?

Am I blind to the system of this world that has me trapped?

Do I not know how much I need help… or do I just not care?

The Christian life is about being a disciple.   A follower.  A student.  Someone who has the humility to admit they have a need, and who is willing to learn from Someone else who knows the way.

It starts with just showing up.