Most of us don’t like discipline.
And we certainly hope we never have to experience God’s discipline. But then we read something in the Hebrews that is so instructive. It says, Endure hardship as discipline; God is treating you as his children. Heb 12:7
Suddenly I realized that I had a very limited understanding of God’s discipline. Often when we speak of discipline we mean punishment. But biblically, discipline is much more than that. It certainly can also be used of God’s chastisement. But it is more commonly used for His teaching, training, and guidance. In other words, it encompasses all that God does to develop us as godly people.
And notice it says, God is treating you as his children.
Every hardship you might face is always metered through our Father’s loving hand. Always it something through which He wants us to grow. No matter what.
Ultimately the best question we ask is this: “Lord, how does God want me to respond?”
Today, why not ask God to give you the faith to trust his Father love as He develops you into the person you were meant to be?
Tuesday, January 29, 2008
Tuesday, January 8, 2008
A prayer you will need in 2008
I can hardly think of a better prayer than the one found in 2 Chronicles 20:12.
“We do not know what to do, but our eyes are upon You.”
There will be many times in 2008 that you will need these words.
There are, of course, times when God gives us great clarity about the future. At such times we can pray, “Lord, I know what you want me to do; still my eyes are on You.” But most of the time a more realistic prayer is, “Lord, I don’t know what to do, but my eyes are on You.”
Many people, if they are honest, don’t really like this prayer. They don’t like the insecurity it represents. They don’t like how dependent it makes them feel. Many people prefer to operate by this motto: “Lord, I know exactly what to I plan to do, so my eyes are not on you.” Others live by this creed, “I don’t know what to do, but my eyes are on myself.”
How much better to admit our weakness when it comes to predicting the future, and put our confidence in the One who has already been there?
There are, of course, times when God gives us great clarity about the future. At such times we can pray, “Lord, I know what you want me to do; still my eyes are on You.” But most of the time a more realistic prayer is, “Lord, I don’t know what to do, but my eyes are on You.”
Many people, if they are honest, don’t really like this prayer. They don’t like the insecurity it represents. They don’t like how dependent it makes them feel. Many people prefer to operate by this motto: “Lord, I know exactly what to I plan to do, so my eyes are not on you.” Others live by this creed, “I don’t know what to do, but my eyes are on myself.”How much better to admit our weakness when it comes to predicting the future, and put our confidence in the One who has already been there?
Tuesday, January 1, 2008
A Clean Slate for the New Year
In some traditions, the New Year begins with people asking forgiveness from each other. Not a bad idea. In keeping with this theme, I have a small confession to those of you who follow this blog.
During December I ran a survey regarding our family dessert on Christmas Eve. I promised we would have the winning vote-getter and that I would post a photo to prove it. The choices were
- Chocolate Yule log
- Figgy Pudding
- Bread Pudding with Custard
- Mince Meat Pie
- English Trifle
- Gingerbread Men.
The winner was English Trifle. So we had .... Cheesecake! We planned to have English Trifle and then some nice neighbors gave us a beautiful cheesecake for Christmas. Forgive me.
As a way to make amends, Cindy did make a wonderful English Trifle yesterday and we had it for New Year's Eve (see photo as proof).
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