“God is kind, but he is not soft.
In kindness He takes us firmly by the hand and
leads us into a radical life-change. ”
Rom 2: 4 The Message
He is firm enough to be a good father.
A father who will take away your phone.
A father who will move you 1,000 km away from your friends.
A father who refuses to pay your bail.
A father who consents that the doctor can amputate your leg.
A father who will not take the teacher who addressed your poor behaviour to court.
A father who insists you join them at church.
A father who will not allow you to get a motorcycle license.
When you are the child who is taken by the hand and led kindly, but firmly, in a particular direction, you usually see only one side of the story.
When you are finally a parent yourself, it is as if the roundabout starts to turn, and you can suddenly see what was going on behind the scenes all the time ...
That cell phone has hampered your own self-worth.
Those friends did not have your best interests at heart.
That night in the cells, saved you from 10,000 nights in there.
That one leg was worth less to him than your life.
That teacher was being a father to you in that moment when yours was not around.
Those long Sundays in the church would plant a seed that you might not be aware of for years.
That license would come with the responsibility that was still being formed.
And even if you are now a father or a mother yourself, or both, you still remain a child.
The Lord's child.
Sometimes we do not understand His ways.
We wish He would be more soft.
But He is too good for that.
He loves us too much.
He loves us too much to leave us who and where we are.
So, He acts like a good father, and takes us lovingly, but firmly by the hand and leads us to a different place.
You may think you're okay where you are.
But if you stay in a house that is less than perfect for long enough, you no longer smell the rot, no longer see the cracked tiles, no longer hear the train in the middle of the night.
Sometimes we need the Lord to take us from where we are
to where we should be
because we no longer see
the dry bones
around
us.
Your inspiration for the week: Remind me
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