In Training

As a man disciplines his son, the Lord your God disciplines you. – Deuteronomy 8:5

Would you walk over and correct the child misbehaving in the cart next to yours in the grocery store? Of course not – unless you were hoping to personally meet some angry parents and the security guards! However, in a real sense, kind instruction from a caring person might actually be the key to a better future for both the parents and the child. Sadly, the world regularly interprets discipline as punishment rather than considering the spiritual principle that correction is part of loving someone.

God’s guidance in your life is meant to move you into a closer relationship with Him, not to exact a price for misbehavior. Yet through the filter of modern culture it may not FEEL like love when you hit roadblocks and hear God say no. But like the child in the grocery cart if you cannot receive and learn from the instruction being offered, you are likely to experience only the pain of the situation and miss the imbedded blessings. Corrie ten Boom says “It hurts when God has to PRY things out of your hand.” 

Today, examine your life to discover the area where God is teaching you, then humbly release it and dedicate it to His authority. Remember His direction will establish you not destroy you.  “For the moment all discipline seems painful rather than pleasant, but later it yields the peaceful fruit of righteousness to those who have been trained by it” (Hebrews 12:11). Pray for leaders across America to join you in submitting their lives to God, recognizing their need for His training and making themselves willing to receive His guidance and grace.