Monday, April 2, 2012

Runaway Train

Isaiah 30:18
18Yet the Lord longs to be gracious to you; he rises to show you compassion. For the Lord is a God of justice. Blessed are all who wait for him!

The Israelites had been punished by God for their sin once again but the Lord actually desired to bless them. Most parents do not enjoy punishing children but know it's necessary in order to teach them. God is our heavenly father and He doesn't delight in punishing us but as His children, He knows that punishing us is often the only way we learn. We associate the incorrect behavior with the negative outcome so to prevent the negative outcome we no longer distribute the behavior which brought it on. The Lord desires to bless us just as He wanted to do for Israel but misdeeds must not go unpunished. It is sometimes hard to conceive that God doesn't like punishing us but think about it. He would prefer that we listen to Him in the beginning so we can avoid the misdeeds that lead down the wrong track. A runaway train that's headed off the cliff to death has to be stopped with an emergency brake. The emergency brake is the punishment or consequence we must endure that causes us to stop in our tracks but keeps us from the edge of the cliff. Once the wheels go over the cliff, gravity pulls the train downward and nothing can stop it. If we keep going in whatever the bad behavior is, eventually we go over a cliff to a fate we don't want. The punishment is not always equal to the misdeed THANK GOD! If it were, we'd all be dead. But God doesn't want to keep us there. He wants us to understand the lesson so we can move on and extend a blessing to us. Not because we deserve it but just because He loves you and me. How long have you been the runaway train? Is the Lord about to put on the emergency brake or is it already on? Are you at the edge of the cliff?

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