“No discipline seems pleasant at the time, but painful. Later on, however, it produces a harvest of righteousness and peace for those who have been trained by it.” (Hebrews 12:11 NIV)
Before I get started, let’s get it straight in our minds that discipline and punishment are not the same. The Lord disciplines us, reproves us, talking about believers because He loves us. We would be in, as they say, a world of hurt if the Lord used punishment as opposed to discipline. That being said, let me start with an analogy using some inanimate objects to introduce our focus today, enabling.
This Spring we had some new cabinets installed in the kitchen. The doors and the drawers are self-closing. You just nudge the doors. and gently push the drawers, and they close quietly and softly. This summer, moving from the kitchen to work on the bathroom, one of the little things I did was to replace the toilet seat with a self-closing seat and lid. Seems like neither of these home improvements would have caused a problem. But guess what? They did!
I was enabled to the point that I got lazy in shutting old doors on cabinets, closing old drawers, and even completely closing the refrigerator. Sliding closet doors were pushed just a little, as if they knew they were to finish what I started. Yes, many times in the last couple of months, I left the job of closing these objects halfway done, depending on the objects to do the work for me. You see, I had been conditioned, enabled by the modern technology of cabinetry and the enhancements of what I shall call “toiletry.” In other words I was being enabled by these newly installed, inanimate objects to the point I expected old, similar objects in almost every room to close by themselves. The approach of the inanimate objects was subtle, probably “thinking” they were helping me out. But no, they were keeping me from being responsible.
So that I won’t be accused of mimicking the inanimate objects that came to life in the story of “The Beauty and The Beast,” let me move away from my analogy and turn to actual situations. Sometimes along the way we have enabled others and at times we have been enabled. In either case, reaching the optimum level of performance in everyday life or in achieving excellence in our spiritual walk was negatively impacted.
When it comes to our children, we are obligated to discipline them. When we don’t stay with our responsibility to train them, discipline them, and bring them up in the fear and admonition of the Lord, we are enabling them to experience just the opposite of a harvest of righteousness and peace. If you don’t believe me, just turn on the early morning news today. Unfortunately, just as we enable out children, we do the same when we enable adults in our circle of family and friends to stray towards the streets, and the principle of the world, instead of to the Savior, His teaching, and His church.
I have nothing more to say this morning, but think about your personal interactions with others and determine for yourself if there is a “needs improvement” on your part In regard to enabling. If I did not point this out, I would be guilty of enabling you. Right? Side note: All teaching and preaching is not about making you feel better, it is about helping you follow the path to better. And it would be negligence, actually disobedience, if I did not say to you what the Lord put on my heart this morning. Right again? All of us, including me, have to watch enabling, both from the perspective of the one being enabled and from enabling others in a negative way that is invisible at the present time, but will pop up, exposed in future times. Let’s address enabling now, but remember to do it in love! Have a great Thursday! Be blessed!
“…rather speak the truth in love…” (Ephesians 4:15 English Standard Version)
Still committed to the climb,
Mark L. King