one28 Shepherding Weekly
August 25, 2010

Vol 6 No 34

I hate taking good things away from my kids for sake of discipline. Case in point, yesterday I recommended that Mo confiscate Calvin’s Woodys (all four of them) for a couple-of-days-long spell of disobedience. Though I hate it, I am also motivated to give them something better, namely, the joy of obedience.

The experience of my heart gives a small glimpse into our Father’s heart. It’s important to remember when I’m uncertain about God’s work, or His seeming (to me) lack of work, or just generally wondering His attitude toward us. I need more faith to believe that, however good-hearted any earthly father may be, “how much more will your Father who is in heaven give good things to those who ask Him” (Matthew 7:7-11). I know that passage is not about discipline, but it reminds us about His gracious inclinations toward us. Remembering that helps us when we read Hebrews 12:3-11 and realize that He disciplines us so “that we may share His holiness” (v.10) and “the peaceful fruit of righteousness” (v.11). He gives, and He takes away, that we might be the better.

Here’s another way to think about it from a recent Doug Wilson post, No Endless Chain of Buttercups and Daisies.

When we seek comfort for our bruises, we cannot get anywhere by pretending that the bruises are something else. God is the God of hard edges. He wields a knife, but because we know the story, we know that He is a surgeon, and not some vicious attacker. But the knife of the surgeon and the knife of the attacker can be equally sharp—the difference is a difference of intent.

Make sure you don’t forget the heart of the Surgeon or His story.

On the line,
SKH