Once there was a little boy in the 6th grade who had bad teeth.  What was wrong with his teeth?  He had an overbite, a bad overbite.  The kids called him buck-toothed, and he never smiled in pictures.  He wanted so bad to get braces and fix the problem.  The only problem this little boy lived on the “poor side” of town and his parents couldn’t afford braces.

Knowing the little boy’s heart and how sad it made him, the boy’s teacher set out on a mission.  She was going to find the money and dentists that would do the work for a reduced cost.  Why?  She knew the value of good self-worth that brace could bring the child.

Mid-way through the school year, the teacher called the boy’s parents into the office for a meeting.  The youngster could not think of anything that he had done wrong.  It must be “grades” that is the only other thing that made sense to the small family of three.  Nervous the pupil went to the meeting with his parents.

The teacher asked them to sit down.  She began to talk.  She told of how she came to know of the child’s desire to have braces and her understanding of the family’s financial status.  She asked, “If I could arrange for your son to have brace free of charge to you, would you allow him to get them?”

Nervousness was no longer the emotion the child had; it was pure joy of the wonderful news.  He was to get braces.  Of course, his parents consented.  The new patient would go through a four-year process to make his teeth straight.  The teacher’s mission was successful.  All she could do now was hope and prayer that the braces would make a difference in the life of the boy.

As children of God, we too have a teacher.  Our teacher is not all the Sunday school teacher, pastors, and Bible Study leaders.  No, the main teacher is the Holy Spirit.  Now, don’t get me wrong Sunday school teachers, pastor and Bible study leaders are important because the Holy Spirit teaches through these believers but the real teacher is the Holy Spirit.  Still, the real teacher is the Spirit of the living God.

We need our divine teacher.  The divine teaches all we need to know about God.  He makes real to us what Jesus Christ did for you and me and the cross.  He is always looking for an opportunity to “call you into his office.”  Not to punish you, but to see if you are willing to have your life straightened out.  The question is will you respond with “yes, I want my life “fixed”.  Or will you say, “No, I am not ready for the Spirit to work on me.”

The choice is yours.  God will not make you straighten up your life.  He has given us a way to do it but you have to say, “Yes! I want you in my life Lord Jesus.  The healing and the reformation of life will not come quickly or easily but it will come.  Are you ready for God to make a difference in your life?  Will you allow God to teach you about yourself and the things you need to change? He wants to take away your “spiritual overbite.”

What happened to the boy?  Did he get his teeth fixed?  Did it make a difference in this life?  The student did get his teeth fixed.  In time, have a nice, straight smile gave the young man confidence.  Those braces changed his life.

The young boy was me and the teacher, Ms. Sabraw.   Thanks, Ms. Sabraw.