A Difficult challenge can turn into a wonderful reward when we learn to love in the way Christ Jesus taught us. Loving in this way can begin to break through even the most difficult behavior problems and help us see what is truly lovable in people who seem to be unlikable. Christ Jesus urged us, "Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you, and persecute you" (Matt. 5:44). He reminded us that it isn't hard to love the ones who are kind, generous, and loving to us; the challenge comes in loving those who seem to be doing hateful and even violent things. It's not that we love the violence or hate, but we can learn to see the man of God's creating, love that man, and find this love to be a transforming power.

I had an experience that proved the wisdom and benefit of Jesus' counsel. I had started the school year at a new school, teaching third grade. It was a wonderful school, and I began with eagerness and enthusiasm. But when the children started to come to school, it was apparent that we didn't have enough students to justify the number of teachers we had on the staff. Since I had the fewest years of service, I was the one to leave. I had to go to another school one week after the year started. Not only that, but I was to be teaching fifth grade instead of third. I had never taught fifth grade before. The school was in a much rougher neighborhood than my previous school. I was angry at the system, angry at the first principal who had hired me without adequate enrollment to justify my position, angry at the principal at the new school, angry at the other teachers, and even angry at the students.

It wasn't long before it became apparent that I had been given what seemed some of the most difficult students. I struggled to use all the behavior-management strategies I had learned from my education classes and some I thought up myself. But nothing seemed to be working very well. No one seemed to be learning much, especially me. I knew there had to be a better way to handle this.

Then I read an article in a Sentinel about a girl who had had to leave a school she loved and go to another high school where the students ridiculed her and even beat up on her. She decided to learn to love every one of those other students in spite of what seemed to be happening to her. I decided I needed to do that too.

I realized it is important to resist the temptation to dislike or even hate people because of their ethnic or social backgrounds, or even their behavior. We need to look beyond these things to man, the idea of God's creating, who expresses only qualities derived from God, divine Love. Then we can see the lovable and loved spiritual idea, man in God's image.

We learn in Christian Science not only to look beyond what the material senses are telling us to see, but to gain the true sense of any situation, the spiritual reality. That reality can only reflect God's goodness, harmony, peace, joy. In this case, what appeared to be a class full of behavior problems did not express the truth of God's creation. The spiritual fact of the situation could only be that God was expressing His goodness everywhere. Since God is omnipotent, there could not be a power opposing Him to express itself as rebellious and defiant mortals. It was my job, therefore, not only to look beyond the testimony of the material senses, but to keep in thought the spiritual truth and let that truth replace the false picture.

I prayed daily, studying the Bible, along with Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures by Mary Baker Eddy, to see spiritual truth more clearly. I affirmed what I knew to be true of these children and filled my thought with pure love for them. To counter the suggestions of disruptiveness and disobedience, I insisted that spiritual harmony was the only quality being expressed there. I worked to reject vehemently any thought that the turmoil that seemed to be going on was real or true. I prayed this way almost constantly at first, because the situation seemed to be virtually impossible all of the time.

I began to look for something to like or love about every one of my students. Even with the most difficult ones, I tried to find something lovable. I worked diligently at this until I started feeling more comfortable, and noticed one day that I was less angry and actually was feeling rather happy. After a while I started to like many of the kids and formed a real bond with some of them. I could see qualities of independence, courage, individuality, and creativity, which had been hidden beneath an exterior of argumentative and often stubborn behavior. There developed a sense of cohesiveness and friendship among the students, and the class was manageable.

One of the best parts of the whole experience was the principal's evaluation. She told me that she thought I had done a wonderful job with that class, and she acknowledged that they had been a difficult group. She said that at one point she had wondered whether I would last with them. Then she said what made me most grateful: "You know, when you first came I didn't really like that bunch, but now I do like them." That was the best testimony to the healing power of the love that Christ Jesus taught us.

Science and Health states: "Human hate has no legitimate mandate and no kingdom. Love is enthroned" (p. 454). This proved to be true in my situation. To love in the way Christ Jesus taught is to hold to the truth of man's identity as God's idea. As we do this, in spite of what may appear to suggest the opposite, many wonderful blessings can occur, not the least of which may be that those who seem to be difficult can be seen to be lovable.

JAMES

The wisdom that is from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, and easy to be entreated, full of mercy and good fruits.

James 3:17