Proverbs 3:11-12
My child, don’t turn away
or become bitter
when the Lord corrects you.
The Lord corrects
everyone he loves,
just as parents correct
their favorite child.
Scripture taken from the Contemporary English Version © 1991,1992, 1995 by American Bible Society, Used by Permission.
A couple of years ago, I had a ceramic angel sitting on a table in our entryway. Timothy loved to look at that angel… and to touch it. This was not a valuable piece… it was something I had gotten in a box of items at an auction. But it was shiny and pretty, and I had repeatedly told Timmy – then about 2 – not to touch it. One day I turned my back for just a second, and I heard the crash. Timothy had picked up the angel… and dropped it on the floor. Thankfully, the damage was minor… I think it was missing a foot. I knew I could glue the piece back together, and I reminded Timothy that…”This is why we don’t touch Aunt Debbie’s things!”
A little later, I noticed blood on the top of Timothy’s foot. When I washed away the blood, there was a tiny cut. I surmised that this happened when he dropped the angel, and I showed him the cut and again reminded him… “This is what happens – we can get into trouble and get hurt.” I won’t say that Timothy has completely stopped touching “pretties” at our house… that would be a lie! But he is better about it. He remembers the angel and what happened. Thankfully the lesson was not too harsh… yet it was valuable.
I am not one of those adults who put away every single thing that the children should not touch. I do have safety locks on cabinets that hold household cleaners… and we watch the children closely. But I know I can’t shelter Timothy and his siblings from everything… sometimes I have to allow them to get into a little trouble and use these moments as “teachable experiences”. And so it is with God. There will be times when He will sit back and allow us to get into a little trouble, so that He can bring us back into a right relationship with Him. When we figure out that we need help, He can use the moment to teach us just how inadequate we are on our own – aside from His power and wisdom.
The KEY is to humbly accept God’s correction, along with His help. If we turn our backs on Him and conclude that “No loving God would allow this to happen to me,” we have missed the point completely – and we’ll miss the blessings, too. If you removed a stove or heater from your house because children might touch it and get burned, they would never learn to stay away from the hot appliance! We have to accept that God will allow bad things to happen sometimes, so that we can grow – and recognize how much we need Him!
How you choose to react to the “teachable moments” in your life is up to you. But please don’t turn away from God. Don’t make the mistake of deciding that God has deserted you in these circumstances… because nothing could be farther from the truth. When troubles come – either those of your own making or the ones that seem to be the result of outside forces – call on God and ask Him, “LORD, what am I to learn from this? What will you show me? How will I grow from this experience with regard to my relationship with You?” Allow God to allow you room to develop and increase in your knowledge and faith in Him. God would never turn His back on you. Don’t make the mistake of deserting Him, either.
©2013 Debbie Robus
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