Room for “Slow Learners”

Some years ago while a minister was sitting in his study during the evening hours, the doorbell rang. There stood a woman who wanted to talk with him.

“Let her step inside,” said the minister.

A rather stately lady entered. She walked to the study rather hastily and started talking with the minister.

“What is this I hear — that you will not allow my daughter to make confession of faith?”

Rather calmly the minister answered, “Why don’t you just take a seat here, madam, and I shall try to advise you of the reasons for our decision. You know, after the death of her parents, you have taken your niece as your own daughter. She is somewhat mentally handicapped. According to what we hear, she attends a school for the slow learners even though she is somewhat advanced in age. I have tried to instruct her regarding the Bible and doctrine but she cannot so much as memorize a few Psalm verses, not to mention her learning the Catechism. You certainly must understand that under these circumstances I cannot let this child make confession of faith.” Thus courteously the minister addressed the lady, but she interrupted him.

“What you say is well and good, but now let me tell you something else. It has pleased the Lord to use this poor, weak and less fortunate child to change entirely the atmosphere of our home.” The minister was very interested.

The lady continued. “And, how did this happen in God’s way? I don’t know if you are aware of it or not, but we live in a large house and rent out rooms. I have to be honest with you; the spirit in our home has been frivolous and evil. When my sister passed away, about a year ago, we took her daughter into our home. We had compassion upon her. Having no extra room, we put up a bed in the room with two girls who work for us. It did not take long and something exceptional took place.

“When this poor child went to bed at a late hour with the other two girls who occupied the same room, she folded her hands and recited the only Bible text that she could remember: ‘Create in me a clean heart, O God; and renew a right spirit within me.’

Now you can well imagine that these two girls began both to giggle and mock her but my niece completely ignored them both. The following morning upon awakening, she repeated the same words. Again the same reaction from these girls.

“When the following evening she again prayed the same words, one of the girls started laughing at her, but the other girl said with earnestness, ‘You know what? I believe that I have to say that I am in accord with this girl. I do not have a clean heart myself. Yes, I am without this. I am going to pray along with her; and that is just what she did. After three days the other girl felt inclined to also pray for a clean heart and a right spirit. Now you know reverend, better than I, that if a person prays for the Holy Spirit, they shall receive it.

“I shall make the rest as short as possible. My girls became completely different in their attitude. I asked them, how is it that you have both changed so much? They told me what had transpired and added to it, ‘If the spirit around here does not change, then we are going to leave.’ I stood aghast for they had been with us for a long time and were very good workers; and that is not all — they were both firm in what they said.

“Then I too began to silently and secretly pray and I soon saw things in a different light in our home. Soon after that, there was a complete change. My husband started having morning devotions with me and the girls are all included. Before this it was the devil reigning but now that has completely changed, and this has all come about through this child. The Lord has used her as the means that in our house and in our hearts a complete change has taken place.”

The minister had been listening very attentively and with much emotion. Presently he had to swallow hard because he could hardly speak. He finally said very seriously, “Madam, the child shall make confession of faith at the first opportunity.”

What has happened in that home, if it should be well with us, also has to happen with us. We must receive the Spirit of God who maketh all things new, because without a new heart we shall not be able to profess Him — here with weakness and with shortcomings, but soon completely and perfectly. It is essential that we are not only learned but also turned.

— Translated from “Mbuma” (1986)

“Humility is the unfeigned submission of a mind overwhelmed with a weighty sense of its own misery and poverty; for such is the uniform description of it in the Word of God.”

— John Calvin

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