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It was the first day of my sophomore year, and I was sitting in geometry class. I'd already started to tune out Mr. Stevens, figuring he'd go over all the "new rules" I'd heard so many times before, like:

"Be in your seat when the bell rings."
"No late papers."
"Don't talk out of turn."
"No cheating."

But Mr. Stevens caught my attention by saying he had only one rule. I leaned forward, wondering what he would say next. I wasn't alone, either. The room got pretty quiet; everybody seemed to be listening to him.

He remained silent for a moment, then pointed toward the clock in the room. He said, "Do what is printed on the piece of paper under the clock."

I looked at the piece of paper and read:

DO WHAT IS RIGHT.

After Mr. Stevens pointed out those four words, talk about rules pretty much ended. He didn't even tell us about the consequences of not obeying his rule. I looked around, trying to figure out what everyone else was thinking. Then I wondered how bad things were going to get in this classroom. I was sure there'd be a lot of discipline problems, because I thought everyone would take advantage of Mr. Stevens.

Here's the strange thing: My year in geometry was great. Sure, there were some discipline problems, but it seemed like there were fewer problems in geometry than in my other classes. I'm sure it had something to do with the fact that Mr. Stevens was a pretty cool guy. Out of respect for him, students wanted to do what was right.

For me personally, I think the class went well because I pretty much know right from wrong. God gave me a brain and a conscience for a reason. And I really desire for God's Spirit to help me make good decisions. In fact, my teacher's "rule under the clock" reminded me that I needed to show my Christian faith by doing "righteous" acts. As it says in 2 Thessalonians 3:13: "Dear friends, you must never become tired of doing what is right."

Now that I'm starting my junior year, I know I'll hear a lot of "new rules." But I'm going to keep one rule in mind. If I do, I'm sure following the other rules will come naturally.

When Rachel needs a good laugh, she'll watch a video of the comedy classic, The Princess Bride.

1999 by the author or Christianity Today/Campus Life magazine. Click here for reprint information on Campus Life.

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