"He rescued me, because He delighted in me." Psalm 18:19
I use to think God was mad at me if anything went wrong in my day.
Sometimes those thoughts still hit my mind when I am going through a
difficult time. But I push them away with His Beautiful Word.
"Open my eyes that I may behold wonderful things from Thy Law." Psalm
119:18
You see, oftentimes God is disciplining me. He's opening my eyes to
realize that there is a better way. His way. His perfect, righteous way.
He made me and He knows what is right for me. There is nothing too small
in my life, nor too large, that His Touch does not manifest Itself. Why?
Because "I have treasured the Words of His Mouth more than my necessary
food."
Job 23:12
Seeking first the Kingdom of God. Running the race to win. Living in the
Spirit according His will. Well, in a nutshell, it is godly discipline.
Oftentimes discipline is a misunderstood word. It defines pain, doesn't
it? Well, that's not always true. Many times discipline is a firm hand
clutching you, much like a father who is guiding a tottering toddler as
he crosses the floor. Discipline is really love in action. A touch of
security, so to speak.
"Thus you are to know in your heart that the LORD your God was
disciplining you just as a man disciplines his son." Deuteronomy 8:5
"In the wilderness He fed you manna which your fathers did not know, that
He might humble you and that He might test you, to do good for you in the
end."
Deuteronomy 8:16
"To do good for you in the end." That is the ultimate goal of
discipline. It is what God worked out in Joseph's life in Eygpt. It is
what God worked out in Moses' life in Midian.
It is why we work so hard with our children in our homes. To do good for
them in the end. It oftentimes requires a firm hand.
Sometimes, though, discipline can indeed be quite painful. Let's look at
Jesus:
"In the days of His flesh, He offered up both prayers and supplications
with loud crying and tears to the One able to save Him from death, and he
was heard because of His piety. Although He was a Son, He learned
obedience from the things He suffered."
Hebrews 5:7-8
That is quite a statement about discipline. And we know what the
discipline and obedience of Christ brought to us. Such good in the end.
Such glorious good!
"All discipline for the moment seems not to be joyful, but sorrowful; yet
to those who have been trained by it, afterwards it yields the peaceful
fruit of righteousness."
Hebrews 12:11
Truly without discipline we would not be able to endure. Discipline is
one of the tools God uses to mold us into the image of His Son. Yielding
to it is our means to being trained and fashioned according to His
glorious will.
"It is for discipline that you endure; God deals with you as with sons,
for what son is there whom his father does not discipline?" Hebrews 12:7
"But if you are without discipline, of which all have become partakers,
then you are illegitimate children and not sons. Furthermore, we had
earthly fathers to discipline us, and we respected them; shall we not
much rather be subject to the Father of spirits, and live? Hebrews
12:9-10
So why am I bringing up discipline this week? Well, it is because of
discipline from the Hand of my Father that I have seen such fruit in my
home these past few years. I wanted to be able to come to the end of my
day and say, "It is good." Just like my Father did. But I just never
seemed to be able to do so. Why? Because of a lack of discipline in my
life.
For so many years I was just like the person who wants to save money or
pay off their debts, but continues to spend, spend, spend. Why? Lack of
discipline. Lack of yielding to what I was taught by His Loving Hand.
What did I need to do? I needed to spend time with the Father of my
spirit and live. I needed to repent of my ungodly, bad habits and seek to
change with His help.
"For bodily discipline is only of little profit, but godliness is
profitable for all things, since it holds promise for the present life
and also for the life to come."
The purpose of discipline is godliness. When God my Father disciplines
me, it is for my own good. It is so that I might be like Him. The perfect
definition of godliness. Like God my Father. Like Jesus Christ, my LORD.
His eternal good and glorious goal!
"...discipline yourself for the purpose of godliness." 1 Timothy 4:7b
So what did I change in my life? Well, I put away the ungodly words that
I use to listen to. They had done this in my life:
"Cease listening, my son, to discipline, and you will stray from the
Words of Knowledge."
Proverbs 19:27
So true. So true. Unfruitful days from unfruitful words.
Now:
"I do not sit with deceitful men, nor will I go with men of falsehood. I
hate the assembly of evildoers, and I will not sit with the wicked."
Psalm 26:4-5
No more soap operas. No more sinful fiction. No more movies or television
shows
with His Beautiful Name or His Beautiful Word being blasphemed. No more
magazines espousing the opposite of what He wrote concerning virginity,
marriage, and motherhood. No more "news shows" which are anything but
news, rather man's promotion of our sinful society. No more. No more. No
more!
Instead, I get up early every morning (yes, it took discipline to get
there, but oh, it was so profitable, so very profitable) and drink in His
Word.
"As the deer pants for the water brooks, so my soul pants for Thee, O
God." Psalm 42:1
"When Thou didst say, "Seek My Face,' my heart said to Thee, 'Thy Face, O
LORD, I shall seek.' " Psalm 27:8
He has replaced my fears with faith. He has replaced my guilt with grace.
He has done all this and more.
"I will instruct you and teach you in the way you should go; I will
counsel you with My eye upon you." Psalm 32:8
Oh, how I love Him! That He would do this for me. Have I missed anything
I've given up? Not on your life. I couldn't even write the half of what
He has replaced in my life for anything I've given up. Including sleep.
He is without a doubt:
"The God Who girds me with strength." Psalm 18:32
I look back at my day now with Him and say, "It is good. It is good." And
I can't wait to wake up tomorrow morning to get alone with Him again in
His blessed, blessed Word,
and to talk to Him about all things, and to praise Him with my inner
song. I just can't wait.
Disciplined? Oh, without a doubt. Every day as a matter of fact. I've got
a house to build, and I couldn't do it without my loving Father's Firm
Hand.
Love,
Laine