My niece Hannah is a beautiful, brilliant, and strong-willed two-year-old. She lives and loves with a contagious fervor. As I watch her grow, I learn. Of late, what amazes me is how easily children resist what is good for them. For Hannah, a meal, a nap, or medicine can quickly become the enemy. Her parents’ discipline is often simply the means to help her accept what is in her best interest.
Today, I am grateful for God’s discipline. It does not surprise me that God calls me His child. Like most children, I’m insistent on flexing the muscles of my will, mostly to my own demise. As I walk with the Lord, I see a pattern in His character as well. God is a patient and consistent disciplinarian.
In recent days, I’ve heard God’s rebuke and felt His reprimand. “Incline your ear and come to Me. Listen, that you may live” (Isaiah 55:3). This is the request and the promise my Father has presented. It is as if God entices me away from sin and mediocrity, asking me to take an honest look at my life and evaluate if it is falling short of the abundance He offers. Often I don’t respond to His first call. Usually, I have to wear down and run out of excuses before I’m willing to listen.
When that point of brokenness comes, God directs me to four postures: repentance, rest, quietness, and trust. “In repentance and rest you will be saved, in quietness and trust is your strength” (Isaiah 30:15).
Repentance…It is easy to confuse repentance with guilt. I’m learning repentance is not passive, retrospective regret; it is decisive, forward action. It is an acknowledgement that my sinful patterns of coping with life aren’t a long-term solution. It is a resolve to respond to life in new, biblical, God-honoring ways.
Rest… Rest is required if I am to repent. Sin festers in a hurried life. When life is rushed, I react, often according to the flesh. When I rest, I can hear the Spirit again. Rest creates an atmosphere for godly reflection and provides the energy necessary for change.
Quietness…I’m convinced I sound my most spiritual when I’m furthest from God. Words are such a clever cover for shallowness. With a quick turn of the tongue, I can protect my image and carefully steer the conversation away from anything that might reveal need in me. Quietness is a sign of humility and an invitation to vulnerability.
Trust…To trust God is to resume my rightful place. It is to surrender control of myself and others. It is to allow God to rule and to then enjoy the peace that results.
As a child of God who seems bent on learning her lessons the hard way, today I’m thankful that my Father’s love and discipline are more stubborn than my own will.
Ashley Davis is in a year of new beginnings. She married in June and is the proud bride of Andrew Davis. A graduate of Union University, she called Jackson home for eight years before marrying and moving to Nashville this past year. She’s grateful for the written word and feels it is a powerful tool to help her reflect on God’s truth and process the twists and turns of life.
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Mar 26, 2008
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