Embracing Discipline

I correct and discipline everyone I love. So be diligent and turn from your indifference.

Hands on hips, I surveyed my raised garden beds. It was late spring, and while my seedlings were growing, they certainly weren’t thriving. I’d checked for insects and disease, and now I was considering whether there might be something lacking in my soil.

I can water, prune, mulch, and otherwise care for my plants diligently and in accordance with the latest scientific studies. Still, if I neglect the soil in which my seedlings are rooted, they will never reach their full potential—whether that be a bountiful crop or a glorious bouquet of blooms. A healthy garden requires that I amend the soil by replenishing nutrients from season to season.

As I stood pondering my sad plants and next steps, the Holy Spirit’s still, small voice asked whether I had been an amender of the proverbial soil in the lives of those around me. Was I building others up, or was I being critical and frustrated with them?

Ouch. The question stung and still stings. But it’s the right question, and I find myself reexamining it regularly. Are the words I speak over others life-giving and encouraging? Do I treat others as beloved children of God worthy of the same mercy and grace I know I need?

The answer, if I’m being truthful, is not always. Sometimes my emotions are like a dumpster fire, and my tongue gets sharp. Just as I intentionally care for my garden soil, I must practice intentionally speaking words of life over my relationships and treating those around me with tenderness, grace, and mercy as a default response to difficult moments, regardless of my feelings at that particular time.

And when I feel that nudge of conviction, I remind myself that God loves me enough to tell me I’m missing the mark. It’s not my favorite way to spend time with God, but his discipline is meant to refine me. There is gratitude to be found in those hard conversations with him as we pause to reconsider the path we’ve been on, repent, and realign ourselves with him. He loves us so much that he invests the time and energy in correcting us.

Julie

Today’s Act of Gratitude

As you feel the nudge of conviction when you fall short of the mark, pause to thank God for his loving correction.