I had heard similar comments during my eighteen years of teaching Sunday School, but usually the child turned out to be normal in every respect, so I began teaching with calm assurance that I could handle whatever came.

Was I in for a surprise! Before Mary was promoted to my class, she and her mother dropped by to “get acquainted.” Golden blonde hair fixed to perfection cascaded down the little girl’s back. Large beautiful blue eyes gazed into mine. Between the outbursts from Mary, which frequently interrupted the conversation between her mother and me, I learned that Mary needed medication for both hyperactivity and asthma.

On the first day of class Mary made her bouncy entrance and dropped purses, tablets, marking pens, hair barrettes and gimmicks of all kinds. Every time I turned around, it seemed that some child was crawling under a table to retrieve Mary’s loot. Whispering seemed impossible to Mary.

One Sunday, after constant shushing, isolating and reprimanding, I stopped the class and said, “All right, Mary, come to the front. Take all the time you need to talk, wiggle or whatever, so you can settle down and we can get back to the lesson.” This drastic method had worked before, usually the student, embarrassed, would stand silently and be more than happy to sit down and resume listening. But not Mary. At first she jumped up and down, growling life a caged bear. Then she pounded on the desks with her first, screaming like Tarzan in the jungle. The children loved the show as Mary alternated between growling , screaming and laughing. This encouraged her to show off even more. After five minutes of these antics, I could stand no more. This little girl had outsmarted me!

In the weeks that followed, I gave rewards, praise and reinforcement of positive behavior, when I could find any. I tried everything! Everything, that is, except prayer!

With my head on my desk, I prayed, “Lord, help me with this child. Show me the key. Where have I missed it?” In utter exhaustion I dozed off. When I awakened a few minutes later, my frustration and weariness had disappeared. Two words kept coming to my mind: “Love her.”

I was well aware that those who are the hardest to love are often the ones who need it the most. I thought I had worked through this, and that I already loved her. Yet, those two words, “love her,” lingered in my mind. They were there when I woke up the next morning.

“Lord,” I prayed, “I already love her, so I’m going to take those two words to mean that I’m to love her with hugs.”

I entered the classroom Sunday morning, eager with anticipation. God had answered and I was eager to see God’s plan unfold. When the bell rang, Mary bounded into the room with enough energy for the entire class. As I handed out the Sunday School papers, she jumped ten frog jumps to her seat.

“Mary, come to my desk please,” I said quietly. With two hops, a skip and a side step and three giant steps backward, Mary obeyed my command. Silently, I pulled her toward me and held her close. In my thoughts, I was praying, “Lord, help this little child to calm down. Take away whatever is causing her hyperactivity.” I continued this tactic. Sometimes these sessions lasted five minutes with no one saying a word. It was just Mary and I holding each other. The other children watched silently and seemed to understand. If Mary’s behavior got out of control, we stopped and hugged… just Mary and I, while the class waited patiently and lovingly.

Weeks later Mary’s former teacher exclaimed to me “Whatever has happened to Mary? She isn’t the same child!”

“It’s called prayer and hug therapy,” I explained. “I pray for her everyday and before she comes into class. I stop, hug her, and say a silent prayer.”

In just a few short weeks, Mary’s behavioral change was noticed by others too. A year later, it is hard to think of Mary as ever having had problems. She acts perfectly normal in every way.

As the children come into your classroom each week—-each with different needs, pray silently for these little lives.

“Lord, bless this child today. Help me always to LOVE FIRST and TEACH SECOND.”

Men, we hope that you will set aside the first Saturday of each month to join us as we begin a new ministry, “Iron Men.” It will begin at 8:00 a.m. with a delicious breakfast prepared by the talented cooks here at Harvest!

This is a wonderful time of fellowship and nourishment for your soul, as well. Pastor will be bringing a challenge to our men, and it will draw you closer to the Lord as well as bonding together in spirit.

The purpose of “Iron Men” will be to strengthen our walk with the Lord, by spending time together in God’s Word, in prayer and fellowship. We are all influenced each day by those we associate with, and our aim is to strengthen and sharpen each other each month.

You are welcome to invite friends, perhaps someone who does not already have a church family! We hope that everyone will mark the calendars (first Saturday of each month) and join together make this a strengthening time for the men of our church.