Teaching can be one of the most rewarding and challenging callings. Every day brings new opportunities to impact lives, but it also comes with moments when it feels like your energy is drained, your spirit is tested, and your joy is attacked. Yet, in those moments, I find that the Lord’s joy is my strength. Amos 9:13-15 reminds me of this truth:

“The days are coming,” declares the Lord,

“When the reaper will be overtaken by the plowman and
the planter by the one treading grapes.
New wine will drip from the mountains
    And flow from all the hills, and I will bring my people Israel back from exile.”

“They will rebuild the ruined cities and live in them.
    They will plant vineyards and drink their wine;
    They will make gardens and eat their fruit.

I will plant Israel in their own land, 0
    never again to be uprooted
    from the land I have given them,”

says the Lord your God.

I will.  They will. Praise God for His greater work even during my required work.  This passage reminds me that in God, there is a balanced work on His part as well as ours.  Eventually, the work brings an abundance and restoration. 

Even when I feel drained or discouraged, He is there, ready to pour out His blessings of joy to recharge wherever I’m weak! Just like the new wine flowing from the mountains, His joy overflows into my life when I seek Him. I take the term “mountain” figuratively. “Mountain” is used in various religious contexts as a symbol of struggle. Comparing new wine being poured onto the mountains to the abundance of blessings that come from God proves to me that God can make the insurmountable surmountable! 

The enemy tries to take my joy through exhaustion, doubt, and frustration, but God is greater. God reminds me that my work has purpose. Every lesson I teach and every moment I spend with my students is like planting seeds. Even if I don’t see the results right away, I trust that God will make those seeds grow in His perfect time. In some cases, I am aware of the impact, and that, too, brings me joy. 

On hard days, I pray for strength and focus on the small wins. Whether it be a student’s smile, a breakthrough in understanding, or an act of kindness in the classroom, these moments are like little drops of God’s “new wine,” showing me that Jesus is at work even in the most minor details. God has called me to this role, and He won’t leave me to do it alone.

My joy comes from Him, and I do my best to remember that each day.

Sometimes, I struggle with how to respond to the enemy's attacks on me in any form. Amos 9:13-15 reassures me that trouble doesn't last always, and with that, I choose joy!