One of my favorite lessons from Stay came while rescued Lab Maggie and I traversed the usual path. She sniffed and I listened to a podcast as we paced briskly through a Texas morning. She spotted something and moved toward the curb. My eye caught something at the same time, and I jerked violently on her leash to pull her toward me.

She looked surprised, puzzled at what she had done wrong for such a harsh correction from me. The truth was that she hadn’t done anything wrong. Some knucklehead had shattered a beer bottle and a jagged piece was right in her path. She could have been seriously cut by the razor-sharp glass. I was thankful I had spotted it, but I could see that my action confused Maggie. I needed to assure her that my unexpected reaction was not punitive but entirely out of concern for her.

I immediately dropped down to my knee, scratched Maggie’s ears, and verbally praised her. “It’s okay, girl. It’s okay.” 

I was glad that she perked up immediately. Her uncertainty vanished, her drooping tail began to wag, and her beautiful eyes brightened again. She understood we were good. It was another lesson for me to ponder. 

How many times have I responded in confusion and hurt when God gently or not so gently pulled me off a path of destruction when I had no idea what He was doing? Instead of trusting God I start second-guessing when God throws me a curve. I get out the transgression magnifying glass to detect which sin might have caused God to withdraw His favor from me. 

Pastor Tullian Tchividjian answered my question with this insight.

“Until we see God-sent storms as interventions and not punishments, we’ll never get better, we’ll only get bitter. Some difficult circumstances you’re facing right now may well be a God-sent storm of mercy intended to be his intervention in your life.”

Precisely. God sees the jagged glass that I am about to step on and He pulls me back in love. The problem isn’t with Him; it’s my response to the correction. I am still learning to trust that God loves me no matter what my circumstances might look like.

In the New Living Translation the passage heading for the first twelve verses in Hebrews 12 is spot on: “God’s Discipline Proves His Love.”

For too many years I thought God’s corrective actions were punishment that proved His displeasure, when in actuality that discipline proved His love. 

Have you forgotten the encouraging words God spoke to you as his children? He said, 

“My child, don’t make light of the Lord’s discipline, and don’t give up when he corrects you.

For the Lord disciplines those he loves, and he punishes each one he accepts as his child.”

As you endure this divine discipline, remember that God is treating you as his own children. Who ever heard of a child who is never disciplined by its father?  If God doesn’t discipline you as he does all of his children, it means that you are illegitimate and are not really his children at all. Since we respected our earthly fathers who disciplined us, shouldn’t we submit even more to the discipline of the Father of our spirits, and live forever?

For our earthly fathers disciplined us for a few years, doing the best they knew how. But God’s discipline is always good for us, so that we might share in his holiness. No discipline is enjoyable while it is happening—it’s painful! But afterward there will be a peaceful harvest of right living for those who are trained in this way.

Hebrews 12:5-11

Even as a self-confessed imperfect father (corroborating evidence available from all three sons), I distinctly remember that I disciplined my children so they would grow up to be honest, kind, and loving. I didn’t want to make their lives miserable, stick it to them, or make them sad. On the contrary, I wanted them to learn how to live joyfully and well. If a flawed earthly father can have that heartfelt desire, how much more does my heavenly Father desire for my growth and good? It is all in understanding the motive behind the action.

What does it mean that God administers His discipline in the realm of grace? It means that all His teaching, training, and discipline are administered in love and for our spiritual welfare. It means that God is never angry with us, though He is often grieved at our sins. It means He does not condemn us or count our sins against us. All that He does in us and to us is done on the basis of unmerited favor.

I’m taking Maggie’s response to heart. When she looked at her master and saw that she was okay she relaxed, turned, and kept on walking. The journey continues for both of us.

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