Thought for May 2, 2024

  • 1936: "Peter and the Wolf" premiers in Moscow 
  • 1945: Battle of Berlin ends
  • 1949:Arthur Miller wins Pulitzer for "Death of a Salesman"
  • 2008: "Iron Man" released
  • 2011: Osama bin Laden killed by Special Forces
  • Born: The Red Baron, Dwayne Johnson, David Beckham
  • Died: Leonardo da Vinci, Joseph McCarthy, J Edgar Hoover, 
Thought:
Proverbs 12 and 13 begin with similar thoughts:
  • 12:1--Whoever loves discipline loves knowledge, but he who hates reproof is stupid.
  • 13:1--A wise son accepts his father's discipline, but a scoffer does not listen to rebuke.
  • 3:12-- For whom the Lord loves He reproves, even as a father, the son in whom he delights.
Think about these proverbs with me today. 

I should love discipline. Why? Because it shows me God loves me. God cares about what I am doing and who I am becoming. He wants me to look like Him. Discipline is one of the ways in which the Father teaches me His ways--through discipline I learn and understand what He loves, values. Though discipline I gain wisdom for I get to know God and His character.  Now go back and think about yourself as a child and yourself as a parent. How did you view discipline then?

As a child I may have accepted discipline but I can't recall loving discipline. As I grew up, I began to see the rewards of discipline---as I conformed to the discipline of my parents, they were proud of me, and that became a great reward. Then I could learn to translate that to my relationship with the Father--discipline led to conformity with His will and that brought His blessing. Perhaps sports was the best teacher of this for me. Repeating over and over a play, a pass, a shot, a swing until I did it perfectly according to the coach was hard--but when discipline produced results and the smile of the coach, that was a great reward. 

These proverbs also remind me that if I refuse the discipline of someone who loves me, I am stupid. The parent, coach or Father has my good in mind and a goal of helping me conform to their standards. It would be stupid not to listen to them, mind them, accept their correction. Yet, I can recall so many times when I wanted to do it my way. Sometimes, I thought I had a better idea, sometimes I thought what I heard from friends and others was better advice, sometimes I just wanted to do it my way. And almost always, my way wasn't the best way. 

I wish I could report that today I love discipline, correction, rebuke, admonition--but most of the time I resist, reject, rebel. And the results have not changed--His way is always best. Lord, help me learn that Your way always leads me closer to You, always brings a smile to Your face and glory to Your name. And my way may look good, but doesn't end well. Help me love the discipline of the Lord.

Blessings
Larry


Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Thought for July 19

History: 1553: Lady Jane Gray deposed after 9 days 1692: 5 people hung during Salem Witch Trials 1848: First women's rights convention -Elizabeth Cady Stanton and Lucretia Mott. Wesleyan Chapel at Seneca Falls NY 1910: Cy Young wins his 500th game 1941: US Army flying school at Tuskegee AL dedicated 1945: USS Cod saves 51 sailors from Dutch sub--only sub-to-sub rescue 1957: Firing of first rocket with nuclear warhead-Nevada 1984: Geraldine Ferraro is first major party female VP candidate 1996: Olympics open in Atlanta 2007: Madmen debuts 2018: Duck Boat sinks in Table Rock Lake killing 17 Born: Samuel Colt, Edgar Degas [painter], Lizzie Borden, Charles Mayo [Mayo Clinic], George McGovern, Al Haig, George Hamilton IV, Vikki Carr, Ilie Nastase, Stuart Scott, Benedict Cumberbatch,  Died: Syngman Rhee [President South Korea], Clyde Beatty [circus animal trainer], Mary Jo Kopechne [passenger with Ted Kennedy], Jack Warden, Frank McCourt [Angela's Ashes], James Garner, Garry Marshall
Read more

Thought for November 23, 2023

Happy Thanksgiving!  1664: Blaise Pascal is converted following a vision. He wrote the date and time of his conversion and said, "Fire. The God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, the God of Jacob. Not of philosophers and intellectuals. Certitude, certitude, joy, peace. The God of Jesus Christ." Laid the foundation for the law of probabilities; genius in hydrodynamics and hydrostatics developing Pascal's principle of pressure; taught the experience of God through the heart rather than reason; mathematician and philosopher. 1783: Annapolis Maryland becomes U.S. Capitol until June 1784 1863: Patent for making color photographs granted 1889: First jukebox debuts in Palais Royale Saloon in San Francisco 1897: Pencil sharpener patented 1904: Summer Olympics in St. Louis close [1st Olymics in U.S.] 1921: President Harding signs an Act prohibiting doctors from prescribing beer or liquor for medicinal purposes 1923: Cecil B. DeMille's first "The Ten Commandments" premiers
Read more

Thought for April 5, 2024

1722: Easter Island discovered 1792: First Presidential veto 1815: Mt. Tambora erupts. Largest eruption ever witnessed. Created year without summer in 1816--frost and snow in North America in June and July. Largest part of eruption on April 10th. Killed 10,000 in initial blast.  1906: Mt. Vesuvius erupts killing 100 1923: Firestone begins producing inflatable tires 1936: Tupelo almost completely destroyed by a tornado--216 die 1972: Baseball strike costs 86 games 2063: On "Star Trek", earth has its first contact with the Vulcan species Born: Thomas Hobbes, Joseph Lister, Booker T Washington, Spencer Tracy, Bette Davis, Gregory Peck, Arthur Hailey. Gale Storm, Frank Gorshin, Colin Powell, Pharrell Williams Died: Robert Raikes [Sunday School], Douglas MacArthur, Howard Hughes, Abe Fortas, Sam Walton, Allen Ginsberg, Saul Bellow, Charlton Heston, Honor Blackman Thought: Reading Daniel 1:5-7 this morning. Continuing with the thoughts about Nebuchadnezzar's plan. Having brough
Read more