Do You Need To Be Rescued (From Yourself)?

Psalm 34:17
​When the righteous cry for help, the Lord hears, and rescues them from all their troubles.
           
On 11/26/2019 I had a final exam in Biblical Hebrew. I had not prepared as adequately as I would have liked to. I have struggled to stay ahead in my studies for this class all semester as it is a steep learning curve as my intelligent and lovely instructor, Allison Hamm, tells my class. After every prior quiz and exam, I vowed to be more diligent in my study and to put more time into learning the Qal paradigms and other material that I still do not have a good understanding of. I have improved in my study and that has helped me to see steady increase in reading and speaking Biblical Hebrew and in my grade. Initially, I hoped to study for a solid week leading up to this exam. Unfortunately, my study was limited to about 30 minutes a day as I focused on the demands of my other classes. I woke up and spent about 4 hours studying before the exam. This approach of studying is not recommended, but I did the best that I knew to do with my time. Before, during and after I studied, I asked Holy Spirit to empower me to do well on my exam. I also asked the LORD to help me have better study habits for the future.

I arrived at my classroom to take my exam around 12:30PM. I worked on the exam until 2:15PM which left 5 minutes before I would have been forced to stop by my instructor. From the time that I started the exam until the end of the exam I gave thanks to the LORD because a lot of material that I was tested on were things that I was able to consolidate to the best of my ability before arriving to take the exam. I felt like I did well on the exam, all things considered. 

I have a learned much from this semester and I am looking forward to next semester’s study of Biblical Hebrew. I am eternally happy that I decided to take my first year of Biblical Hebrew pass/fail. I would have been very disappointed in getting a B or less in the course as I desire to graduate with honor and have a great command of everything that I learn. 

Thankfully, I can report that I did much better than I anticipated on that final exam. Additionally, I improved my study habits and I continue to learn and grow in Biblical Hebrew. In life some troubles occur because one fails to manage their time and resources well. I do not want to have the LORD rescue me from trouble that I cause because I fail to study daily.

Prayer:
God of mercy, I repent for every time I failed to honor You in living wisely. I recognize that there were times that I could have better stewarded my time, but I chose to do the enjoyable thing over the necessary thing. I believe that the Holy Spirit in me is my advantage. I believe that as I partner with You God I can operate in excellence and represent You well in the earth. I do not want to gain wisdom and understanding to be puffed up in the great things I know. Instead, I desire wisdom and understanding to be able to serve well and empower Your church to live transformed lives for Jesus. I know that with better planning I can steward my life for necessary work and a healthy social life. Thank You, Jesus, for showing me how to do both and to enjoy both. These and all blessings I receive in Jesus’s Name. Amen.

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​written by Myrina K. Robinson
Duke Divinity School MDiv 2022
Guest Blogger for BWET Blog ​