Now no chastening seems to be joyful for the present, but painful; nevertheless, afterward it yields the peaceable fruit of righteousness to those who have been trained by it. Therefore strengthen (lift up) the hands which hang down, and the feeble knees, and make straight paths for your feet, so that what is lame may not be dislocated, but rather be healed. Hebrews 12:11-13
Nothing New Here
When I read these two sentences from Hebrews 12, my initial reaction is typically, “I know; can we move on now?” I know there is no joy in being disciplined, I know it is for my own good, I know that I am broken, and I know therefore I need to ‘dry up’ and quit my whining. I know.
Apparently I don’t know, because if I did, I would not be so eager to get through this passage of scripture. The fact that I am displeased that the Lord has me camped-out in this spot merely proves my point. This present chastening is un-joyful and as a result, the Lord has hit me with a ‘Proverb Bomb’ (please pardon this Proverbial-paraphrase of these eight rebuke-filled axioms):
Turn at my rebuke…I will pour out my spirit on you (and) make my words known to you…Rebuke a wise man, and he will love you…a scoffer does not listen to rebuke…Poverty and shame will come to him who disdains correction…he who regards a rebuke will be honored…he who heeds rebuke gets understanding…Rebuke is more effective for a wise man than a hundred blows on a fool….rebuke is better than love carefully concealed….rebuke give wisdom…
Ok, Ok…
Actually, I am not as bad (in this area) as I used to be. I have allowed the Lord to imprint upon my heart the words of James 1:2, “Count it all joy when you fall into various trials, ” but I also realize that I must return to this place often in case I begin to believe that I have it all figured out and that somehow my healing is complete.
Let Go and Grow
I wish I had a buck for every time I changed the channel when Sally Struthers popped-up on my screen. It is just another indication that I hate looking at my oft disobedient self in the mirror; it’s not Sally I despise, but that defiant person inside me that ignores the needs of others. We need to yield to that work that God desires to do in our hearts, and that often manifests itself in His correction of our own shortcomings. Is it time to reverse this inadequacy in you and has the Lord revealed to you an opportunity to ‘grow through letting go, ’ then please sponsor a Compassion child today.
Compassion Dave’s ‘Blog of the Day’: “Giving Through Compassion, ” @ keep-it-simple
And for consistent Compassion-related issues, please visit the Compassion International Blog daily
compassiondave
lol. My ‘routine’ has been interrupted. Looking forward to getting back in the flow on Monday. Thanx for check’n up on me—what a blessing that is to me.
Speaking of whining….
Where o’ where had Dave gone? Oh, where o’ where could he be?
I need my daily Bible lesson, Oh, where o’ where could he be?
:)
Actually, I can’t imagine you whining — but you and God would know! lol But really, I know what you’re saying — we think we have it so bad, and really, we don’t at all. I’m guilty of that too, so must join the group of “whiners.” Thanks for the reminder that I don’t belong in that group!