Accepting Correction

“He who heeds discipline shows the way to life, but whoever ignores correction leads others astray.”-Proverbs 10:17

Think back to your teenage years: Who was that coach or teacher that would not let up on you?

Now, some of them may have been doing it because they liked picking on teenagers. But most of the teachers or coaches that seemed to always demand so much from us (and let us know about it when we fell short), did so because they knew we were capable of more. They knew we weren’t living up to our potential.

Stay on memory lane for a few more seconds. How did you respond to the discipline of those teachers or coaches? Did you fight it? Did you rebel against it? Or did you (however grudgingly) allow it to shape you? Did you benefit from it? Did it make you a better person? As a teenager, you probably didn’t really enjoy being disciplined, and you probably didn’t have the perspective that it was making you a better person. But when it comes to our relationship with God, it’s good for us to take a different perspective.

God disciplines us because He loves us. He corrects us because he wants us to be more like Him. And our attitude toward this discipline and correction should be to see it for what it is: the loving hand of a Father who cares deeply about our lives.

Next time you encounter God’s discipline, step back and accept His correction. Thank Him for loving you enough to care about your character. And allow yourself to be molded by His hand.

Our prayer for you:
We pray that you will see correction and discipline for what they really are: the loving hand of a God who cares deeply about you and only wants you to conform to His wonderful likeness. We pray that you would embrace correction, allowing God to make you more like Him.