Every Good Thing

I said to the Lord, “You are my Master! Every good thing I have comes from you.”  Psalm 16: 2

The stench overwhelmed me. She reeked of cigarette smoke. Her clothes, her hair, that leather jacket she wore on cool mornings. Oh, that leather jacket.

Though I, too, had grown up with a cigarette smoking mother, I had never smelled the smoke in my home, on my clothes, or on my body. Maybe others did.

This child's presence in my classroom left me gasping for fresh air. I desperately wanted to keep my distance, keep the fan spinning on high, open the door and windows -- anything to dissipate the odor.

But it wasn't her fault. She wasn't the smoker.

I imagined her home was filled with a cloudy smog continually fed by two chain smoking parents oblivious to the stench that stuck to their child, and I wondered how she could live in such a place.

She had no choice. That was her home. Those were her parents.

And she was my student.

Not only was it my responsibility to teach her, but also it was my opportunity to love her and to provide her eight hours of fresh air to breathe easily.

In a Nutshell
Find the opportunity to serve, and be grateful for what you have and for what you have to offer others.

Father, You are my master and my provider.  Every good thing I have comes from you.  Forgive me for my ungratefulness.  Thank you, Lord, for my job, for the opportunity to teach children, for co-workers who love You, for setting this school on holy ground.  I am grateful for Your foresight in laying out the path of my life that it would cross paths with this school.  You have placed me here for a reason: help me fulfill Your plan.  In Christ’s name, Amen.