Habakkuk

I've been reading Habakkuk lately. I read it a long time ago and thought it was really boring...but now I think it's awesome! I've been listening to Matt Chandler's sermons along with my reading and they have been so good, so I highly recommend that series which you can find here.

One thing that I've really liked is the Discipline or Wrath talk. It's affected me in two ways: as a daughter of God and as a mom. Chandler says all the time that when bad things happen to him it is not God's wrath. He had brain cancer and is always told that it could come back at any time, so he isn't talking as one who has never suffered. During this current season of my life I feel like we've been suffering a bit. Sickness, worries, etc. have been hard. It's easy to say, well at least we don't have brain cancer, but Chandler even points out that suffering is suffering and it can be good to know that it could always be worse, but it's still suffering in your life for today. What I took from this series is that God has a vision for my future and that means that pressure may need to be applied today so that I can grow into who He wants me to be.

That is how Chandler defines discipline: a vision for the future that enacts things today. And that is always how I've thought of it with my kids. How can I spank Mary for the smallest disobedience even though I don't like doing it? How can I stick to my guns with Noah when I've told him to do something, even if it might not seem like a big deal to others? Because I have a vision for their future. My vision is that one day they would be SLAVES of Christ and live for the glory of God. One day when God tells them to jump, I want them to immediately respond, "How high???" They shouldn't need to hesitate or waver because they've come to trust their heavenly father. One day they will have wisdom that comes from the fear of the Lord. And to me that means that they hold our God in such high esteem and admire Him so much that they would be terrified to do anything against Him. They wouldn't want to be outside His will because they love Him so much and more importantly they recognize His incredible love for them. This is my vision for their future, so it gives me the motivation to continue on with disciplining (training, teaching, etc.) them.

Now when I apply this back to myself it is so helpful in this time. God has a vision for my future. So if I get no sleep tonight because Noah has a toothache and can't sleep either, then I'm cranky the whole next day even though I've been PRAYING for God to remove this pain from him (mostly so I can get sleep)... I wont see that as God's punishment (wrath) on me. I know that God has a plan for me and I want to trust that what I'm going through is going to facilitate that plan.