Day 32, Lent 2024: Disciplined because we are loved

I used to get a lot of spankings. I was a wild child - and spanking was that generation's solution to put a stop to a tantrum, divert a kid's attention, or calm the storm. (Today I'd probably spend half my childhood in a naughty corner.) 

As you can imagine, I never enjoyed it.

But I never doubted my parents' love for me. I knew they saw me, were doing what they thought was right, and never hit me in anger. 

My fellow passengers and I endured a long flight in the USA where a 3-year-old child threw a fit when I asked for my aisle seat back. She screamed at me and her mother for 4 hours. Her mom had no idea what to do. She tried to cajole her daughter in her window seat. She attempted to appease her with snacks, and gave her treats.

Nothing helped. That poor little girl could not settle down. Without discipline and boundaries, the youngster had no control of her emotions and demands. It was an exhausting trip for us all.

I pitied her and our fellow travelers as I thought of my father, who with one hard smack to the bottom settled my anxious childish soul into a different rhythm.

Sometimes God similarly gives us a smart tap or puts us in a corner when we need to be reminded who's in charge. We might not be happy about it at the time, but it is calming to know someone is in charge who is all-seeing, all-knowing, and all-powerful. Endure what he brings your way, just as Jesus did.

The writer to the Hebrews puts it this way: "Have you completely forgotten this word of encouragement that addresses you as a father addresses his son? It says, “My son, do not make light of the Lord’s discipline, and do not lose heart when he rebukes you, because the Lord disciplines the one he loves, and he chastens everyone he accepts as his son.

"Endure hardship as discipline; God is treating you as his children. For what children are not disciplined by  their father? If you are not disciplined—and everyone undergoes discipline—then you are not legitimate, not true sons and daughters at all. Moreover, we have all had human fathers who disciplined us and we respected them for it. How much more should we submit to the Father of spirits and live!" Hebrews 12:5-10).

Challenge: Thank God that he sees you, your anxious thoughts, and your rebellious ways. Thank him that he cares enough about you to discipline you. Whatever you do, don't take his correction lightly.


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