God-governed children

Being called upon to teach five different classes of apparently “wild” high school children was not really my idea of fun. But that’s the job offer I got after I had been praying to know how I could best serve God.

One morning I opened my Bible at random, landing on these words reflecting the vision of the prophet Isaiah: “I heard the voice of the Lord, saying, Whom shall I send, and who will go for us? Then said I, Here am I; send me” (Isaiah 6:8 ).

Shortly after that, a high school offered me a temporary contract. The opening had come because a teacher was taking “stress leave.” Her classes were apparently so out of control that she needed time off.

Before taking my first class I prayed, as I did every day, to know that each student I would encounter was a child of God, and that God was completely in control. It came to me to tell the class lovingly that no matter how they’d behaved in the past, things were now going to be different. They had it within themselves to be respectful and cooperative, and that’s what I expected of them. I’m grateful to say that the times I spent with that class were happy and harmonious.

Then came the class that everyone had warned me about—mostly teenage boys who loved football and had a reputation throughout the school for being disruptive, and even abusive. That morning I gave special attention to the Christian Science Bible Lesson for that week. As always, there were calming, reassuring ideas in the citations from the Bible and from Mary Baker Eddy’s Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures.

One particular passage was about the body, and the thought came to me to substitute the word class for body. So it read: “There is but one way—namely, God and His idea—which leads to spiritual being. The scientific government of the body [class] must be attained through the divine Mind. It is impossible to gain control over the body [class] in any other way. On this fundamental point, timid conservatism is absolutely inadmissible. Only through radical reliance on Truth can scientific healing power be realized” (Science and Health, p. 167 ).

It became clear to me that I had to really understand that this class was governed by the divine Mind. I had nothing to fear, since I could radically rely on God to tell me exactly what to say and what to do at each moment. I could refuse to accept any thoughts that weren’t from God. This included the belief that this class had a bad reputation. I reasoned that the students could not be persuaded that they had to impress their friends or that they were natural wrongdoers. I knew that some of them came from dysfunctional families, so I prayed to know that God alone was their true Mother and Father.

I have always loved the Bible account of the prophet Elisha’s encounter with enemy forces. His servant was blinded by fear. But Elisha prayed that his servant’s eyes be opened to see that though they seemed to be facing insurmountable difficulties, God was, as always, doing more for them than could ever be realized through sight alone. Elisha saw what I would call a mountainside filled with chariots of good thoughts (see II Kings, chap. 6).

None of us should allow feelings of inadequacy to keep us from obeying God’s call.

It dawned on me that God had placed me in this job, and that God’s dominion and calm influence were already present and active in that classroom. I didn’t have to accept disruptive behavior because I had God’s authority to conduct lessons harmoniously and peacefully, confidently seeing what God sees, which is goodness alone. I was on a mission of love!

I’m grateful to say that even among those football players the first part of my mission was peacefully accomplished that day. But there were other classes to take on, and I continued to pray for inspiration each morning. On one occasion I was helped by the opening of the book of Jeremiah where the prophet, feeling inadequate, hears God’s reassuring voice: “Say not, I am a child: for thou shalt go to all that I shall send thee, and whatsoever I command thee thou shalt speak. Be not afraid of their faces: for I am with thee to deliver thee, saith the Lord. Then the Lord put forth his hand, and touched my mouth. And the Lord said unto me, Behold, I have put my words in thy mouth” (Jeremiah 1:7–9 ).

I realized I could totally trust God to be with me every moment and to lead me. None of us should allow feelings of inadequacy to keep us from obeying God’s call. I could safely lean on God and listen for His guidance throughout each school day.

Just before my next meeting with that notorious class, it occurred to me to take a football to school with me and ask the boys if they’d like to play touch football after they’d done some class work. They loved my plan, and agreed that those who didn’t want to play could just watch and enjoy being outside in the sunshine. I knew very little about the sport, but the boys were experts at it, so I trusted that everything would work out fine.

When we arrived at the field, a physical education teacher came over and of her own volition helped us set up a game. What a blessing! The students had fun, and I marveled at their skills and talents.

I stayed with that class for five weeks until their original teacher (with whom I’d kept in close touch) returned. I could honestly say at the end of that period of relief teaching that although there had been challenges, I had really enjoyed being with those students. The atmosphere in the class had turned around. They had begun to treat me with respect, and I had developed firm, friendly relationships with many of them.

After that contract, I was called to help out at another school with “wild” children and classes that another teacher no longer wanted to teach. Again I felt impelled to accept the invitation. I applied the same truths that had guided me at my previous school, with equally wonderful results.

Both contracts were rich, growing experiences for me. I learned that no matter how bad a situation looks, when we view it through God’s eyes and really lean on Him for everything, all we will ever see and experience is good!