Blessed Chastening

Proverbs 3:11-12 My son, do not despise the chastening of the Lord , Nor detest His correction; For whom the Lord loves He corrects, Just as a father the son in whom he delights.

We are reminded of this very thing in the Book of Romans. As God's children (born again believers) we receive all kinds of blessings. They do not always come in the form of money or material things. Although they may come by way of answered prayers for healing, resolution to a troubling situation, etc; there is another form of blessing that we do not always recognize as a blessing. It is God's correction in our life. Those times when God allows trials to come, whether in the form of an illness or hard consequences, resulting from us sinning against Him or someone else. God's correction is His way of reminding us that we belong to Him, and that He loves us. As we would not correct someone else's child, God does not chasten the unsaved, as they still belong to Satan. We however, we are part of His family, and the correction we receive should result in us changing our behavior or attitude so that we become more like our Savior; and that, my brothers and sisters, is a blessing. Think about it. God loves each of us enough to care that we are going down the wrong path with our anger, unforgiveness, bitterness, unkindness, selfishness, gossip, etc., and actually allows something to enter our life in order to get our attention, and turn us around, so that we not suffer greater consequences for our disobedience. That is true love, and a blessing. Sometimes it does call for tough love (hard consequences) in order to get our attention (I know this from personal experience), but the results are always for our benefit, our good, and His glory. So, if you are currently experiencing His chastening, acknowledge it, embrace it, thank Him for the blessing, and His love. You will ultimately praise Him for His goodness when you begin to see the change in your life, and come to the realization that you a one step closer to being more like Jesus.