Trained to Grower Stronger

Hebrews 12:7

Endure hardship as discipline; God is treating you as his children.

"Wax on, wax off." You may remember that line from the movie when Daniel, the Karate Kid, was given those instructions by Mr. Miyagi as he faced a row of restored antique cars. Daniel thought that was a waste of time because he came to the old master to learn martial arts and how to fight. Miyagi seemed more interested in having Daniel paint fences and wax cars than teaching him karate.

But as Daniel endured one difficult exercise after another with the hope that he would become better and achieve his goal their relationship became one of deep trust. At the end of the story, all that Daniel learned from his teacher became a weapon in defeating his enemies and he realized that Mr. Miyagi was pushing him out of a motive of love, not punishment.

This simple movie story falls short of what the Bible tells us about our relationship with God, but the verse today in Hebrews gives an important insight into God's character and we need to learn from it. God is the ultimate perfect father and He does what a good father would do. He allows us to go through very difficult times because He knows it will help us gain strength. Hardship, trials, and tough times are sometimes engineered by God and sometimes caused by the consequences of our own foolish decisions, but they are all filtered through the heart a Father who only allows what is best for us. He is not punishing us, but wants us to be trained by them so that we will be tougher and able to handle the painful experiences of life in a world that is trying to take us down.

So be thankful for trials and be constantly asking Him to show you what He wants you to learn. This is the key to peace, brothers and sisters. Trust Him.