Revelation 3:19-22 (AMPC)
“Those whom I [dearly and tenderly] love, I tell their faults and convict and convince and reprove and chasten [I discipline and instruct them]. So be enthusiastic and in earnest and burning with zeal and repent [changing your mind and attitude]. Behold, I stand at the door and knock; if anyone hears and listens to and heeds My voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and will eat with him, and he [will eat] with Me. He who overcomes (is victorious), I will grant him to sit beside Me on My throne, as I Myself overcame (was victorious) and sat down beside My Father on His throne. He who is able to hear, let him listen to and heed what the [Holy] Spirit says to the assemblies (churches).“
God loves us like a Father. He wants to mentor us the way a father would mentor his children. Oftentimes, that mentoring means correction and discipline. It’s said that a good friend will tell you that you have a lovely smile, but a best friend will tell you that you have a lovely smile and that you have spinach in your teeth. Jesus doesn’t point out our faults to condemn us. No! He points them out so that we can grow and be better. He mentors us.
Jesus wants to have a relationship with us. He wants to come in and sit down and share a meal and some instruction. He wants to lead us to victory, and He can because He himself has already walked that path. That’s what a mentor does. He turns around and helps someone else to walk the path that he has walked and reach the success that he has reached. We can respond to this mentoring in one of two ways. We can allow Satan to convince us that Jesus does not really love us or want what’s best for us. We can allow those lies to dampen our fervor and keep us locked up in prison. Or….we can see this correction as Jesus mentoring us in love–as Jesus being our best friend, who can tell us anything and everything to make us better people. We can open the door, let Him in, and fellowship with Him. We can allow that correction to bring us farther along the path to victory.
Which response will you choose?
Father, I thank you that you love me enough to correct my faults. This might be painful in the moment, but I know that you do it to bring me to a higher place of victory and freedom in you. I want to be your friend. I want you to be my friend, too. Help me to open the door when you knock, to invite you in, to spend time with you, and to listen to what you have to say. I want to walk the path that you have walked and to reach the place of victory where you are. Help me to have the right attitude during times of correction. In Jesus’ Name, Amen
A Beautiful Mess 