I myself am convinced, my brothers and sisters, that you yourselves are full of goodness… Yet I have written you quite boldly on some points to remind you of them again… Romans 15:14-15

Now that my kids are seventeen, fifteen and eleven, correcting them is a bit trickier than before. They get defensive and think the problem lies with me – that I’m being overly critical.

I’ve found myself having to explain how it works: They are great kids. But they should never get complacent and stuck in their ways.

It’s my job to help them learn, grow and try harder to fix bad habits and mistakes. I love them too much to let them settle for being good when I know they can be great. The only way to achieve that is to become aware of their mistakes, own them, correct them, and then do better the next time.

Paul knew this. That’s why he wrote Romans 15:14-15 to the Christians. He loved them too much to let their mistakes go by the wayside. They were good, but he knew they could be great. He considered it his job to lead them on that path.

No one likes to have their mistakes pointed out, especially us adults. That doesn’t mean we don’t need correction. But it’s difficult to find the Paul’s of this world. There are very few people who have that perfect style of highlighting our errors without judgment, and in a way that inspires us to do better.

That’s why we have the Bible. If we use it like a mirror to look into, God reflects back where we’ve gone astray, and how to get back into the fold. He does it with so much love that we crave what is good so we can become better.

Questions for Reflection:

• In my prayer time, do I allow God to show me where I’ve gone astray?
• Have I felt His love inspire me to do better?

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