The other day, my husband and I were in a conversation and he brought up a bad habit that I’ve had for years. Now to be honest, I knew that what he was saying about my habit was TRUE. I just didn’t want to accept it at the time. I had a whole list of justifications for my actions, knowing full well they didn’t really hold water. Bad as it sounds, I was actually trying to protect my “right” to be wrong. Have you ever done that? Probably not, huh? It’s just me? Okay… As he gently rebuked me, I could literally feel a wall of defensiveness rising up within me. I shut down, stopped responding, and decided to just listen, albeit in a passive-aggressive manner. My character was, once again, being reshaped, and I wasn't taking it well at all.
Whoever said, “The truth hurts,” was certainly not making an understatement. But have you ever stopped to ask yourself WHY it hurts? Isn’t truth supposed to be a good thing? It depends on what you’re after - your way or God’s.
"No discipline is enjoyable while it is happening - it is painful! But afterward there will be a quiet harvest of right living for those who are trained in this way."
~ Heb. 12:11 NLT
Here’s what I came to realize (once I cooled down and repented). Truth is meant to bring about correction, and that correction is for my PROTECTION. I’m sure we can all agree that protection is a GOOD THING, right?
God loves me too much to watch me destroy myself, even in what may seem like the smallest of ways. He wants me to live a life FREE of regret. The only way to do that is to embrace correction whenever it comes my way and to see it as a lifeline and not a choke hold. So when God uses someone to offer me correction, it is an act of LOVE, not punishment or shame. What kind of father would he be anyway if he just let me keep going along a path that he knows will rob me of his best for my life?
Let’s face it. It’s not a popular thing to say ’NO!” to your flesh (your will, your desires, your feelings, your opinions) - even among those in the Body of Christ. And if you’re not careful, subtle pride will seduce you into adopting your will over God’s will, instead of it being the other way around. It takes courage to accept and act on correction. But think of it this way. The initial sting you feel when you are being corrected is nothing compared to the inevitable pain you’ll feel when you finally understand why you should have taken it when you had the chance. Just ask the woman who rejected the truth about the man she chose to marry, despite the numerous warnings from those who really cared about her. But you can’t. Why? Because they still can’t find her body.
Proverbs 12:1 (NLT) warns us that it is actually STUPID for us to avoid correction. Don’t be foolish!
I challenge you not to waste another day fighting for your right to be wrong. Embrace the truth, make the correction, thank the corrector (no matter who they are or how they bring it), and LIVE!
Here’s to a BETTER and WISER you!
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