“It is for discipline that you have to endure. God is treating you as sons. For what son is there whom his father does not discipline?”

I’m sure discipline has many connotations to all of us. I was disciplined by my father and my mother. A few aunts and uncles could be added to the list. I was disciplined by school teachers and a principle or two. The discipline that sticks out the most in my mind as an adult is the discipline I received in the military. It was tough discipline. And looking back, I understand many things about it that I didn’t at the time of the discipline. It is my belief that the discipline used by the Air Force and later the Navy had a purpose, a goal. They used the discipline to cause me to respond and act in a certain predictable way.

Can we apply that to the discipline used by God? I would think so. God has a goal in mind for us. He wants us to respond and act in a certain predictable way. He uses discipline to accomplish that. The Air Force saw me as an employee, a tool to accomplish their mission. God sees me as a son. From any perspective, there is a major difference between the two approaches. The military’s goal is selfish, but God’s goal is for my advantage. He wants me to win out, to come to victory.

Task for Today: Do not flee the discipline of God, your heavenly father. Do not fight against the gourd of God. He knows how to direct you to be the best you can be. Rather than fight the discipline, rejoice in it. It is a sure sign that God considers you His child.