Dear brothers and sisters, be patient as you wait for the Lord’s return. Consider the farmers who patiently wait for the rains in the fall and in the spring. They eagerly look for the valuable harvest to ripen.
You, too, must be patient. Take courage, for the coming of the Lord is near.
Hosea 10:12
I said, ‘Plant the good seeds of righteousness, and you will harvest a crop of love. Plow up the hard ground of your hearts, for now is the time to seek the Lord, that he may come and shower righteousness upon you.’
Remember this—a farmer who plants only a few seeds will get a small crop. But the one who plants generously will get a generous crop.
Deuteronomy 7:9
Understand, therefore, that the Lord your God is indeed God. He is the faithful God who keeps his covenant for a thousand generations and lavishes his unfailing love on those who love him and obey his commands.
Jeremiah 29:13-15
If you look for me wholeheartedly, you will find me. [14] I will be found by you,” says the Lord. “I will end your captivity and restore your fortunes. I will gather you out of the nations where I sent you and will bring you home again to your own land.” [15] You claim that the Lord has raised up prophets for you in Babylon.
We naturally want to be right all of the time. But the reality is, we sometimes need correction. But we tend to resist it with self-justification or efforts to sidestep the consequences. We do this because correction stings. But God calls us to look at correction as an act of love. It may not remove all of the stings, but it will heal the wound of correction more quickly as we embrace its purpose.
Proverbs 3:12
For whom the Lord loveth he correcteth; even as a father the son in whom he delighteth.
Thank You, God, for meeting me where I am. Even in the midst of my mess and failures, You are there. And thank You for loving me enough to not leave me in my mess, but to direct me in Your ways. It’s humbling and sometimes painful to accept Your correction, so help me to trust in Your love so that I may be receptive to Your intervention.