MARCH 25 "CAN ADULTS ACCEPT CORRECTION?"

  How do you respond to correction.  Is it true that Adults, are just kids in grown up bodies?  Moses says, " But the Lord was very angry with me, because of you. he vowed that I would never cross the Jordan River into the good land the Lord your God is giving you as your special possession".

If only the leaders we corrected were still willing to carry out their duties and responsibilities with dignity and honor, as Moses did in our text.  Our reaction to such a stern correction would be, "fine, I've given the past 40 years to getting these people into the Promised Land and now you're telling me I'm not going in because I lost my temper or disobeyed you one time? Well then you lead them, you tell them what they need to do or, better yet, have Joshua do it, since you see perfectly fit to have him go into the Promised Land! After all, where was Joshua when I was confronting Pharaoh, where was Joshua when I was leading these people through the desert, let Joshua give them instructions, I don't care, you can take me right now Lord, for all I care".  We have to understand that the reason we are receiving correction is because we did something wrong, not because we did something right. God told the first murder, Cain, "Sin is crouching at your door to have you, but if you will do right....."  Just do right and you won't have to deal with correction, but if you choose to do wrong, to flesh out or whatever it is you want to do, then be ready and willing to accept correction and take it like it like Moses.  I had a relationship with one Pastor that was often filled with correction and rebuke because he had me as a disciple during my stubborn and rebellious years.  I had another Pastor years later, that I was under, that I can't remember one time being corrected or rebuked by him.  The difference, was not them but me. I learned to just do right, it is so much easier just to do right and listen. I was a blessing to one Pastor, while I was a thorn in the side to my previous Pastor.  What we have to realize, is correction is "warranted". People say, "you are what you eat", in other words, you have warranted or earned, the weight and health problems you have ( I understand there's exceptions).  If you are in a place of constant correction, you have to believe it is not that you are being singled out, but rather that you are singling yourself out. Moses was told specifically what to do and was told specifically what not to do and he did the very opposite. I do notice that Moses still kind of blames the people for his finally giving in to his temper and allowing it to cause him to disobey God, but that's another issue. At least Moses accepts his correction, a harsh one indeed and still carries out his duties with dignity, honor and without attitude.  The question is, "can you be corrected" and do the same? If you can than you have the qualities of a mature and spiritual man/woman of God. If you cannot be corrected it only proves that much more "that you needed to be corrected" and it also shows the signs of a spiritually immature Christian. Which are you?