God: The Master Discipliner

I do not like disciplining my kids. It's hard. It's probably one of the hardest things I have undertaken. I've read books, I've prayed, I've cried buckets of tears, I've failed, and I've failed, and I've failed. Sometimes, I think I've had a victorious moment and my sweet little child seems to finally "get it," but then some itty bitty little thing happens that irks me or is against my will and BOOM!!! I've failed again. I was reminded today about how God is my greatest example in this area. He is the Master Discipliner! His children have rebelled, hated, despised, spit on, mocked, and disobeyed in ways that I shudder to think about. I am one of His children and I shudder to think how I have wronged Him! Now that I have been a mom, I now feel as though my mom is the most amazing and incredible person in the world. Monuments should be built in her honor! She should go down in the history books because she is MOM. However, the pain I have caused her in my growing up years is nothing compared to the pain I have caused my Heavenly Father. I have failed my Father in so many countless ways. But yet, He has always disciplined me perfectly. How He disciplines me is always with His perfect love, always with His perfect patience, always with His perfect wisdom. Wow! I know that in my humanness, I can never rise to the peak of perfection when it comes to disciplining my kids. But how humbling to know, that where I fail, God is still there and He will take the reins when I submit them to Him. Here are some verses from the book of Hebrews that have really encouraged me and helped me in my times of discipline trials.

" 'My son, do not regard lightly the discipline of the Lord, Nor faint when you are reproved by Him; For those whom the Lord loves He disciplines, And He scourges every son whom He receives.' It is for discipline that you endure; God deals with you as with sons; for what son is there whom his father does not discipline? But if you are without discipline, of which all have become partakers, then you are illegitimate children and not sons. Furthermore, we had earthly fathers to discipline us, and we respected them; shall we not much rather be subject to the Father of spirits, and live? For they disciplined us for a short time as seemed best to them, but He disciplines us for our good, so that we may share His holiness. All discipline for the moment seems not to be joyful, but sorrowful; yet to those who have been trained by it, afterwards it yields the peaceful fruit of righteousness." Hebrews 12: 5-11

I have failed, and God has or will discipline me. He will do it with the most perfect love, patience and wisdom. My children have failed and I am going to strive to constantly look to God to help me discipline my children with that same love, patience and wisdom. Any good that I do or comes from me, I do because of Him.