Hebrews 12:5-6 My son, do not despise the chastening of the Lord, nor be discouraged when you are rebuked by Him; For whom the Lord loves He chastens, and scourges every son whom He receives.

 
Sometimes the greatest Benefits don't seem like benefits at all. Rather, it appears to be a scolding or beating that hurts deeply. In order for the Lord to bring needed correction to our lives, He must first bring correction. 

 

In 2017, when the House of Praise burned, the insurance company (and many other people) deemed it a “total loss,” but it wasn’t. Yes, there was a lot of damage. It looked horrible inside and out. Some offered to tear the whole thing down with a backhoe, dig a big hole, and bury it, but within the burned-out building, we saw hope for God's new Plan. We were able to salvage so much that will be used in the new plan. For this, we give the Lord praise!

 

The House of Praise was intended to be a place of retreat and a venue for praise and worship of God. It was used for that purpose, but there were some things about the floor plan that could have been much better, so through the fire, God brought the needed correction. God saw to it that only what needed to be corrected was burned. All else remained unscathed.  

 

Divine Chastisement and correction are necessary in our lives. We all have things about us that need correcting, and the Holy Spirit is just the Man for the job! This is what He does. He convicts our hearts of our wrongdoing, chastens us, and IF we respond to His Chastisement, He will remove the old, burned, and battered parts and replace them with His New and Improved Plan for our lives.

 

Included in our all-inclusive Benefit Package is endless Grace, Mercy, and Chastisement. God understands the attack of the enemy we come under, and by His Grace and Mercy, He brings the needed Correction. This is not an easy process. It hurts. All correction hurts. Everything from a slap on the hand to a whipping or time spent in prison; correction hurts. So it is with the Divine Chastisement. It hurts, but it’s necessary if we want God to replace the old with the new and use us in a greater way. 

 

Therefore, today I will leave you with the Wisdom of Solomon: My son, do not despise the chastening of the Lord, nor be discouraged when you are rebuked by Him; For whom the Lord loves He chastens, and scourges every son whom He receives.

 

The chastening of the Lord will.........turn the tide .........in your life.

Seeking His chastisement,    Doreen

 

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