THOUGH the schoolroom contained more than thirty boys and girls, it was very quiet for everyone was busy writing an examination. In the corner farthest from the teacher's desk sat Jennie. She was very busy biting the end of her pencil, and frowning. She usually smiled, but now she was frowning as she looked at the second question for it WOULDN'T come right.
"I can't see where it's wrong," she told herself as she took another bite at her pencil. Glancing around the room she wondered if anyone else was having the same trouble she was, or was she very stupid? Each head was bent over the paper, except for Bob Jones, who, true to his name, bobbed his head from morning till night.
He had seen Jennie frowning, and as soon as he caught her eye, he raised his eyebrows and looked puzzled—asking as plainly as if he had said it, "What is the trouble?"
Jennie held up two fingers, and frowned harder than ever. Then she remembered that the rules for examinations said there was to be no communication with each other in any way, so once more she bent her head over the paper.
Presently something struck her arm and fell to the floor. It was a piece of paper rolled into a little ball, and a glance at Bob's face told that it came from him. Jennie shook her head at him—if the teacher saw them it would mean serious trouble, and Jennie did not want to get Bob into a scrape.
Bob held up two fingers and nodded toward the paper, and Jennie knew what he meant—the problem was worked out on the paper. She leaned over to get it, and then suddenly remembered—that would be cheating!
Bob was watching, so with a decided shake of her head she bent over her work, and he turned to his with a look of disgust. For some minutes Jennie worked at it again, but it WOULDN'T come right. The paper was still lying on the floor at her feet, and it looked very tempting. She had tried so hard, and this would end her trouble.
"The others do it, and they say it's no harm," thought Jennie. "Bob expected me to, and I know he thinks me a little goose—but I'll be an honest one anyway," and she sighed.
Sometimes boys and girls forget what an awful thing sin is in the presence of a holy God. Cheating is sin, and just one sin which had not been cleansed away in the blood of Christ would shut a sinner out of heaven forever. What does it matter if others laugh at us? Let them laugh if they wish. Many a boy or girl has been laughed into hell, but no one has ever been laughed out of it. It is much wiser to know that our sins have been put away in the precious blood of Christ, and to know that we are pleasing Him, than to be well thought of by those who do not love Him, and will not come to Him.
Just then there flashed through her mind one verse of a hymn she had learned in Sunday School. It was this:
"Have we trials and temptations,
Is there trouble anywhere?
We should never be discouraged
Take it to the Lord in prayer."
"I wonder if it would do any good to pray over this problem," thought Jenny, "it's 'trouble' to me."
She leaned her head on her hand and in a very few words asked the Lord Jesus, whom she had already trusted as her Saviour, to help her with this question.
Once more she set to work, and going over each part carefully, found her mistake; and this time she worked it out correctly.
Again she leaned her head on her hand, and thanked the Lord for His goodness in hearing and answering her prayer.
"Ask the Saviour to help you, Comfort, strengthen and keep you; He is willing to aid you,
He will carry you through."
"Let us therefore come boldly unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need." Hebrews 4: 16.
Messages of God’s Love 4/17/1949