Author: Jim Corbett

“Why should I help her – I don’t even like her!” Those poisonous words were said by one remarkably unaware parent to the other parent in front of a three or four-year-old child, while the child was having difficulty emptying her tray into the container as they were leaving the restaurant. It was very apparent that the two parents were at odds, and cared little who was observing their behavior, even their child. It was almost as if I could see a sword penetrating deep into the spirit of that little girl.

My food became less appealing as I pondered the plight of that little girl. It appeared as if this kind of comment was nothing new to all of them, so those kind of hurtful words and actions will probably continue for the next twelve or thirteen years. As the girl becomes stronger, more wounded, and more frustrated, her responses will become stronger, so separation upon separation will ensue until her rebellion and anger will cause her to leave. She will go about the business of inflicting the things she has been taught on others.

After much prayer and thought about the situation, I had to set aside my anger toward the parents to see what the Lord was telling my heart. This allowed my focus to change. He showed me that the parents were only doing what they had been taught to do by their parents, who learned from theirs, and so on. There are probably generations of wounded, unaware people dripping from the wounds they have received and have inflicted on each other in that family tree. This little girl's life will eventually be a breeding ground for the same kind of careless words and actions that she is receiving, unless the Lord intervenes in the lives of her or her parents.

If you are a parent, guard your words and your actions toward your children. Make it your life's purpose to protect their little spirits so that they can prosper in Christ. You and I have the opportunity to either provide a smooth path for their lives in Christ or have them reeling from our ignorance.

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Jim Corbett

2 Corinthians 4:18 (NIV) " So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen, since what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal."

As we look around our world as it impacts our daily lives and the stewardship of our family, there can be much cause for concern unless we can see past what our circumstances tell us, and on to what our loving Father is really doing. It is easy to listen to the boasts of those who think they are in power and forget who is really in charge.

Our God is still very much on the throne. Jesus is our Mighty Lord, and the Holy Spirit is causing all circumstances to be in line with the ultimate plan of God. Even those who curse God are being used to do His bidding the same as Pharaoh was in Moses' time.

Looking beyond circumstances, there can be much joy if we see daily challenges for what they really are and understand that what God is doing is about mankind and our relationship with Him. Nothing has changed.

God has sent Jesus to restore the intended Garden of Eden relationship with Him. He is always after the hearts of those He has created. Once we accept the provision of the cross, He is always in the process of bringing us to an intimate relationship. Those who respond to that call are continually brought into challenging circumstances and refiner's fires to burn the world out of them. These fires become more intense for those who want only Jesus and nothing of the world and its ways.

Today if you see past what is in the headlines or look beyond the difficulties you are personally facing and on to what God is really doing, you will find His love in action. To the unsaved He is giving a chance to embrace His love before He closes things down. To His children, He is calling them to Himself in preparation for the most wonderful time possible, the marriage supper of the Lamb. To fathers and husbands, He is giving opportunity to repair the breaches in our fortress family.

Difficulties always bring need. Need forces us to cry out for help. Crying out for help to God always brings Him close and moves His heart. His bottom line is to make us like Jesus. Difficult times and refiner's fires do that. Look past them and embrace what is really happening; it is for your eternal good. Are you willing to go through the fires?

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Jim Corbett

Do you have any idea how valuable you are to your Father God? I don't think many of us men can really grasp the concept of a Father that loves us not for what we do, but just because we are valuable to Him. In fact, most of us look at the stewardship that we have been given only as an obligation that we will be held accountable for, without realizing that it is because He really cares for us, He chooses to trust us.

Some of us had an earthly father who demanded from us without the corresponding love and encouragement. We were told to live up to expectations to maintain some kind of worth in his eyes. Possibly because he never had any encouragement from his father, he wasn't able to pass on what he had no knowledge of. Whatever the case, we spent our days attempting to prove our worth to him, and to anyone else for that matter.

God is not like that. He lovingly places value on us, value that is not changed by our actions good or bad, right or wrong. His kind of value is a wealth beyond our comprehension. It is placed on us simply because we exist and belong to Him.

If we ever really comprehend that concept, we can take on the powerful stewardship given us as husband and father with an incredible joy, knowing that our heavenly Father is not only for us, but covers our back when we blow it. In essence, His mercy and grace flow stronger to us and our needs when we turn to Him because we are out of answers. He guards us, protects us, loves us unconditionally, and guides us to truth, just because we are His. Maybe it's time to bask in the value He places on us as we go about our days heading up our family, so we can pass unquestioned value on to them.

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Jim Corbett