The Lord who marks the sparrow’s fall appoints also the bounds of your classroom and the souls seated before you. It is well to have Grace enough to see that tribulation comes from God, He fills the bitter cup as well as the sweet goblet! Troubles do not spring out of the dust, neither does affliction grow up from the ground like hemlock from the furrows of the field, but the Lord, Himself, kindles the fiery furnace and sits as a Refiner at the door. That which we receive from the rod of the Lord bears the blessed aspect of chastening from a father’s hand, and this is a gladsome fact which makes even the sharpest smart to be profitable. The friction you observe in those young hearts, the wandering thoughts, the hands that hurt instead of help, these are not beyond our God’s reach, for He has a discipline of His own. Grace has its discipline and Grace has its chosen disciples. The very Grace that brings salvation has appeared to all men, teaching them to deny ungodliness and worldly lusts, and to live soberly, righteously, and godly in this present age.
Do not, therefore, hide your face and stand afar off from God, but come boldly to the Throne of Grace, since Grace has made you meet to come. The power to lay hold on Christ is a spiritual power, which must be given from above. No process of discipline, or education, or evolution can enable a man to lay hold on the things of God, He must be born again from above. Pray that this prevenient Grace would go before your words, that the Spirit would hover over that little assembly and reveal the Son of God in those who are losing their way. God may, and doubtless has been, blessing you through His Grace from your birth, but these young ones need more than a moral tutor; they need the Redeemer from all iniquity. Lift them up to the Lord who separated Saul of Tarsus from his mother’s womb and called him by His Grace when he was in the very act of persecuting the saints! The Grace of God gives gifts as freely as the sun which sows the earth with orient pearl. Plead that same out-going, surprising Grace over your classroom, that the students who now cause pain might become trophies of delivering love.
As for favor with parents and those set above you, remember that a faith which, by Divine Grace, secures us for Heaven laughs at impossibilities and marches from strength to strength in majestic serenity. The Eternal God is your refuge and underneath are the everlasting arms. He shall thrust out the enemy from before you, and every crooked thing shall be made straight, not by fretful striving, but by the Lord’s own hand. When the Lord sets poor souls at liberty, He always sends them away full-handed, He gives something from the flock, from the threshing floor and from the winepress. So shall it be with you: go forward in your calling, looking for that blessed hope and the glorious appearing of our great God and Savior Jesus Christ, who gave Himself for us, that He might redeem us from all iniquity and purify unto Himself a peculiar people, zealous for good works. Consecrate your fears anew to the God of Israel who says, “Destroy them,” even the fears that lurk within your own heart. The whole road from sin’s pit to Heaven’s gate is paved with Divine Grace. His grace is sufficient for the chattering child, the frowning superior, the anxious parent, and the trembling teacher alike.
Prayer Focus: God, Thank You for loving me. Thank You for loving me, Jesus. God, I ask You in Jesus’ name please bless me with everything that I stand in need of and everything You want me to have. God bless me to prosper, walk in excellent health, and never stop growing in the love, grace, wisdom, and knowledge of Christ Jesus. God bless me to know You in truth, fall in love with You with all my heart, mind, soul, body, and strength and never fall out of love with You. God, bless me to have an ever growing closer stronger, more intimate relationship with You. Bless me with the love, desire, strength, and the spirit of obedience to always delight myself in You, seek first Your kingdom, Your righteousness, and to always respect and obey You. Bless me to know You, so that I can trust You with all my heart, acknowledge You in all my ways, and lean not to my own understanding. Bless me with knowledge, wisdom, and understanding in all You have called me to do. 
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