Corrections and Coaches

My dear child, don't shrug off God's discipline,
but don't be crushed by it either.
It's the child he loves that he disciplines;
the child he embraces, he also corrects.  (Hebrews 12:5-6 The Message)

How do we recognize God's corrections?  Sometimes for me, it's immediate and other times I need the advantage of hindsight to recognize God's re-direction or guidance.  The fruit of his discipline and correction, according to Hebrews, is "righteousness to those who have been trained by it."  Consider the rendering of Heb. 12: 9-11 by The Message:  While we were children, our parents did what seemed best to them. But God is doing what is best for us, training us to live God's holy best. At the time, discipline isn't much fun. It always feels like it's going against the grain. Later, of course, it pays off handsomely, for it's the well-trained who find themselves mature in their relationship with God.  

So many times words like "training", "endurance", "running the race" are used to describe our Christian journey.  Sports analogies don't always work for me - not being particularly athletically inclined. But a recent conversation with a friend about her son has stayed with me and is, I think, a great "parable" for this passage. My friend's son is a terrific soccer player; he loves the game, the competition, the challenge. It appears he's also very team-minded and a good little sportsman. She mentioned how much he values a coach who is willing to fuss at them or yell at them if he needs to. Being perhaps a little too tenderhearted, I question this approach and wonder why coaches can't be warm, fuzzy, gentle and soft-spoken. However, my young friend knows that his coach is helping them dig deep, push hard and achieve more than they may have thought they could. This young soccer player is growing in his sport, being challenged and maturing as an athlete - becoming well-trained so that he can excel in the sport he loves. And isn't that the point of the scripture passage above? God, our Father, lovingly corrects and guides us - redirects us when we've stepped off the path of righteousness. He's maturing us in our faith, giving us the skills we need to run this race. And not just run the race, but finish the race well.

Therefore lift your drooping hands and strengthen your weak knees, and make straight paths for your feet, so that what is lame may not be put out of joint but rather be healed. Strive for peace with everyone, and for the holiness without which no one will see the Lord. (Hebrews 12:12-14 ESV)  Or as The Messsage puts it:  So don't sit around on your hands! No more dragging your feet! Clear the path for long-distance runners so no one will trip and fall, so no one will step in a hole and sprain an ankle. Help each other out. And run for it! Work at getting along with each other and with God. Otherwise you'll never get so much as a glimpse of God. Make sure no one gets left out of God's generosity.

As my friend's son knows well, we're in this together.  We have a loving Father that corrects us when we need it, "coaches us" through this race and generously, lovingly, purposefully, and graciously empowers us to persevere.  And we have our community of faith - our "team" - to hold us accountable, support us, pray with and for us, and walk beside us as brothers and sisters of Christ.