Dear friend,

We aren’t perfect (Shocker, right?). We aren’t all-knowing (thankfully). I mean, there’s a bunch of stuff that I’d like to know, but if I knew everything, my brain would explode.

But because we don’t know everything, we are bound to make mistakes.

Most people don’t really like being corrected. I know I don’t. Not because I’m particularly stubborn or anything, but because I’m afraid I’ve failed in some way.

And for a long time, I was even afraid of being corrected by God. I mean, God is holy and perfect and good, and if I do something that isn’t good, how upset he must be at me?

This perception wasn’t helped by the fact that anytime I heard someone, particularly pastors, talk about God correcting them on something, they were stubborn about it and God had to use some drastic circumstance to get them to listen.

2 Timothy 3: 16-17 says, “All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, equipped for every good work.”

Correction and training are good and necessary.

When you’re being trained to do something, you expect to be corrected. You are being trained because you don’t automatically know how to do the thing.

God corrects his children a few ways.

He does it through the Holy Spirit. When you feel that little whisper in your heart that what you said or did was wrong, that’s God’s spirit correcting you.

God corrects us through the Bible. I don’t know about you, but there have been plenty of times where I’ve been reading my Bible and I come accross a verse that convicts my heart, letting me know I need to fix something. That’s God correcting you through the Bible.

The third way God corrects us is through Godly leaders and mentors in our lives. In 2 Timothy 3:10 we see that Paul is Timothy’s mentor and trainer. And later in the next chapter (4:1-2) we see Paul handing that mantel to Timothy, so that Timothy can train and instruct other Christians.

It’s not a bad thing to be corrected. After all, we are artists being trained by the Master Artist himself, and it’s a natural process of being trained.  Just choose to accept it with patience and humility, and always give thanks.

What does it look like?

Paul tells Timothy train the Christians with patience. And in the Gospels, we see how patient Jesus was while he trained his disciples. In the same ways God is patient with us as he trains us.

If God is patient while training us, how much more should we have patience with ourselves. I know I get frustrated when I don’t get something right the first time. It takes practice. That’s why it’s called training.

Be humble. According to 1 Peter 5:5-6, that means accepting God’s authority (and the Christians who have authority in our lives) and submitting to his corrections and training.

Be thankful. In 1 Thessalonians 5:14-18 Paul writes, “…we urge you, brothers, admonish the idle, encourage the fainthearted, help the weak, be patient with them all. See that no one repays anyone evil for evil, but always seek to do good to one another, and to everyone. Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.”

The “giving thanks in all circumstances” means while being corrected too.

A few months ago, I was sitting in church, a bit upset that I wasn’t learning much from the sermon, when the Holy Spirit said, “What if it isn’t for you but for someone else?”

It wasn’t harsh, but it was a startling thought. I had three choices: ignore the correction, spiral into self-loathing and guilt, or repent with humility and thanksgiving.

I’m so thankful that I barely hesitated before choosing the latter.

It’s not a bad thing to be corrected. After all, we are artists being trained by the Master Artist himself, and it’s a natural process of being trained.  Just choose to accept it with patience and humility, and always give thanks.

Sincerely,

R. J. Catlin