Not all pain is harmful.
Some pain protects.
Some pain redirects.
Some pain saves us from becoming less than we were created to be.
THE NECESSARY PAIN OF CORRECTION
There is a pain that serves a purpose.
It stings.
It arrives unexpectedly.
It often challenges our pride.
Yet it comes bearing a gift.
Correction.
Our beliefs, thoughts and choices are powerful forces. Once activated, they move us in a direction. If that direction is harmful, destructive or simply off course, something equally powerful must step in to redirect us.
Correction is one of life’s greatest gifts when properly understood.
CAUSES OF CORRECTION
Correction appears for many reasons:
• Ignorance moving along until an opportunity to learn presents itself.
• Error running unchecked and needing to be stopped before greater harm occurs.
• An injustice requiring intervention and restoration.
• A group effort demanding cooperation and alignment toward a common purpose.
Correction is not punishment for punishment’s sake.
It is guidance for growth’s sake.
EMBARRASSMENT
Embarrassment can be one of correction’s fastest teachers.
When self-applied, it causes us to pause, assess and adjust.
While uncomfortable, it often accomplishes its purpose quickly.
It gets our attention.
It helps us remember.
And thankfully, it usually fades once the lesson is learned.
SORROW
Loss, disappointment and misfortune can become powerful instructors.
When things fall apart, we often become more open to understanding why.
Correction enters through the doorway of sorrow and points toward a better path.
Pain becomes instruction.
Failure becomes feedback.
And wisdom begins to grow.
HUMILITY
The proud, stubborn and self-willed eventually encounter circumstances that humble them.
Life has a way of introducing limits.
It reminds us that we are not masters of everything.
Humility opens doors that pride keeps closed.
It softens the heart enough for correction to take root and produce change.
SCRUBBING AWAY
Anyone who has ever removed a stubborn stain understands this principle.
Some things require extra effort to clean.
So it is with the human spirit.
Correction often works like a scrubbing brush upon the soul, removing attitudes, habits and beliefs that no longer serve us.
Some seek this willingly.
Others have it thrust upon them.
Either way, growth becomes possible.
CONSIDER THIS
Children need correction or they never mature.
Pets require boundaries or they train us instead.
Employees need instruction, coaching and guidance.
Relationships require correction so two people can grow together rather than apart.
Even those who have fallen into criminal behavior require intervention if restoration is to occur.
Correction is woven into every meaningful form of growth.
WHAT DRIVES THE BUS?
Correction should always be driven by love.
Not domination.
Not control.
Not humiliation.
Not power.
True correction seeks the betterment of another.
When correction is divorced from love, resentment often replaces growth.
When correction is joined to love, transformation becomes possible.
FOR THE SAKE OF GOOD
Anyone who has spoken up for another person, stood against wrongdoing or risked discomfort to help someone improve has participated in a form of love.
Parents understand this deeply.
Disciplining a child often hurts the parent as much as the child.
Yet they do it because they see beyond the moment.
They see the future.
ONE DAY
Some corrections work immediately.
Others take years.
Some seeds sprout quickly.
Others remain buried until the proper season arrives.
Yet correction continues doing its work.
Patiently.
Quietly.
Faithfully.
And eventually the benefits reveal themselves.
I STAND CORRECTED
As I reflect on my own journey, I remember those who stood up for me and, at times, stood up to me.
Not all those conversations were pleasant.
Not all were welcomed.
Many were resisted.
Yet looking back, I see how much good came from those moments.
I owe much to those who cared enough to correct me.
REPENTANCE IS GOD’S WAY
One of God’s greatest gifts is the conscience.
It operates continuously.
Day and night.
Moment by moment.
Prompting.
Warning.
Guiding.
Correcting.
Those who learn to listen to it discover a faithful companion on life’s journey.
Perhaps one day we will no longer need correction because goodness has become our nature.
Until then, thank God for the conscience and the wisdom it provides.
HARDENED HEARTS
Some people reject correction at every turn.
They resist it.
Fight it.
Ignore it.
Eventually the heart begins to harden.
What was once soft becomes rigid.
What was once teachable becomes resistant.
The tragedy is not that correction exists.
The tragedy is refusing it.
IT IS NEVER TOO LATE
When I encounter someone whose heart has grown hard, two thoughts come to mind.
First, they entered this world innocent and lovable.
Second, somewhere along the way something went wrong.
These thoughts help me choose compassion instead of judgment.
Because as long as life remains, correction can still enter.
Hope can still awaken.
Change can still occur.
As one of the Pearls reminds us:
“The wise person is not the one who never errs, but the one who accepts correction and grows.”
If two or more agree…
the corrector and the corrected…
almost anything becomes possible.
— Richie
Pearls for the Soul
when you feed the soul, you feed everything.
https://pearlsforthesoul.com
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