There was a girl named Mary who came from a home that had never heard about Jesus.  She was sulky, naughty, disobedient and cheeky and had been expelled from her old school for stealing.  She got worse in her new school and was more disobedient and cheeky every day.  She sat in the back row with her feet on the desk and threw things at anyone who seemed to be clever.

When her teacher spoke to her about her bad behaviour, she just laughed and swore at her.  She really wasn't a nice person.  Nobody liked her and she didn't even have one single friend!

One day a kind and loving person invited her to Sunday School for the first time.  Mary at first swore at her and said, "Never!"  But Jesus was working in her heart and after being asked many times, she decided to go.  But, she planned to cause as much trouble as she could!

And so Mary was very rude and noisy in class, but the teacher decided she needed Jesus in her heart.  "Sit down here," she ordered, "And listen real good to what I have to say.  You need Jesus in your heart and I'm going to help you get Him in there!"

The teacher meant well and told Mary all the scriptures about Jesus.   But Mary found it all too much to take in and understand.  Finally the teacher said, "Let's ask Jesus to come into your heart."  And so the teacher prayed and Mary repeated it after her.  But Mary didn't mean it at all!

Was Mary really sorry for all the bad things and sins that she had done?  No, she wasn't and she certainly hadn't meant the prayer she had said.  But, Mary now had some good friends from Sunday School and they continued to pray for her every day.

One day she woke up feeling terribly bad inside.  She went to Sunday School and at the end of the lesson she got down on her knees and prayed, "Jesus, please clean all the sin out of my life."  And this time she really meant it!  Jesus started to change Mary into His own gentle ways.

What a surprise her parents got when Mary came home that day a changed kid.  She no longer used swear words.  She started to listen to her parents and obey them.  She stopped bulling and hurting her younger brother.  This was a new girl!

On Monday her school teacher found a new Mary in her class who listened and did her work neatly.  Where was that sulky, naughty, cheeky and disobedient girl from last week?  She kept an eye on Mary and finally realised that she seemed different.  She decided Mary must be sick and asked her to stay behind after class.  "Are you feeling sick, Mary?" she asked.

"No Miss," replied Mary.  "But, you are so different!  I can hardly believe it.  Not once were you cheeky and disobedient!" exclaimed her teacher, "It's almost as if you are another child."

Mary smiled at her teacher, "Oh, but I am!"  She then told her teacher how she had asked Jesus into her heart and that He had made her into a brand new person.  The teacher could not get over the change in Mary and often spoke to her about Jesus.  The day came when her teacher asked Jesus to come into her heart.  That was a great day for Mary!

Are you perhaps like Mary?  Are all the bad things and sin still in your life and making you unhappy?  Why not ask Jesus to forgive you for all the wrong things you have done?  And then ask Him to make you clean inside.  And like Mary, you will find it's a great day when Jesus forgives you!

God bless.