Am I suppose to enjoy being disciplined by God?

Probing Proverbs: 3:11-12 My child, don’t reject the LORD’s discipline, and don’t be upset when he corrects you.  For the LORD corrects those he loves, just as a father corrects a child in whom he delights.

This is a true story: There was a young boy, his father had abandoned him, his mother neglected and would not love him. At  10, a new man came into his life, the man was dating this boy's older sister. For years that man built a relationship with this boy…at one point bringing him in as a teenager to live at his home because the boy’s mother had thrown him out of the house. This man married the boy’s sister and they continued to try to love and guide him. Sometimes things went so well, other times, the man had to speak hard truth to the boy. At one point the boy, now a man, really did some sinful things and got into big trouble. The older man had to draw a difficult line…his arms were wide open but the young man needed to embrace the discipline, but instead broke the fellowship. Years later the older man encountered the young man, who now had a child of his own. Time went by and they grew back into fellowship. One day while they were both at a funeral, the young man turned to the older man and said, “I just want to thank you for all you did in my life. I know I did not always show it, but even when you had to draw lines of discipline and I rebelled, later I would see you loved me.” Then to the shock of the older man, the younger man said, “If I ever find my father’s grave I will urinate on it…you are my dad to me!” Harsh…yes, but the older man’s heart was broken because he could see that the Lord had guided him properly in what true love to a child is. 

Sadly, a proverb like this does not land easily in our heart. Still, the reality is, that God's discipline is motivated by love. Notice the words used; “don’t reject” and “don’t be upset.” God is not asking us to “enjoy” or “be glad” when we have to be disciplined by Him! That would be unreasonable, and He is an overwhelmingly reasonable Person! Even the                                  writer of Hebrews understood this:

Hebrews 12:11 All discipline for the moment seems not to be joyful, but sorrowful; yet to those who have been trained by it, afterwards it yields the peaceful fruit of righteousness.

God is exhorting us…not to enjoy…but embrace what discipline means and what it produces. This scripture really challenges us in the area of “understanding.” We need to Understand that rejecting the Lord’s discipline only complicates our life. That discipline is for a reason; the sooner we learn the lesson, the sooner the discipline stops! We also need to stop Misunderstanding the reason God does this. He is not mean, or “getting even,” His motive is love. As a loving parent, God thinks it is dangerous for us to play with sin – (like playing with nitroglycerin) – it can kill us! So He takes the time to send the exact discipline we need to help break what  captured our attention and allowed sin to have possession of our heart. He could just judge us, but because of love He spanks us to get our attention. Pay attention – it’s the path to repentance!  It is also the testimony that we belong to Him!

Hebrews 12:7–8 It is for discipline that you endure; God deals with you as with sons; for what son is there whom his father does not discipline? ⁸ But if you are without discipline, of which all have become partakers, then you are illegitimate children and not sons.

The so what? How do you handle being disciplined by the Lord? After you sin, can you still go immediately to the Lord? If so, why? If not, why? After you sin, do you feel God’s love or not? Do you think God loves you less? What’s the difference between being a family member and a friend? Do you believe your sin affects your relationship with God? Do you think your sin affects your fellowship with God?