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Endure hardship as discipline; God is treating you as his children. For what children are not disciplined by their father? . . . [Our human fathers] disciplined us for a little while as they thought best; but God disciplines us for our good, in order that we may share in his holiness.

I don’t know if you’ve noticed this, but life is hard. You get sick. You take a financial hit. You lose someone you love. Any number of awful things can happen at any given moment. When hardship strikes, it’s natural to ask, “Why would a loving God let this happen to me?” Hebrews 12 gives a clear answer: because he does love you.

God doesn’t want you to see hardship as punishment for sin. That punishment has already been poured out on Jesus. The hardships you face are not wrath—they’re his love in action. It’s not payback. It’s training.

Just as earthly fathers discipline their children, so does our heavenly Father. But his discipline goes deeper. Earthly discipline shapes behavior. God’s discipline shapes hearts. His goal isn’t to harm but to grow your faith, refocus your priorities, and lead you to share in his holiness.

That training might stretch you in ways you never expected. To teach trust, God might allow illness to linger. To wean your heart from worldly wealth, he might loosen your grip on financial security. To build patience, he may delay answers to your prayer. Each hardship is a reminder: You belong to God. If he didn’t discipline you, you wouldn’t be his child.

Still, discipline hurts. But it’s the pain that builds spiritual strength—like an athlete straining in training for the joy of victory.

Through hardship, God is shaping you for the final goal: the peace, righteousness, and glory of eternal life. He sent his Son for that very purpose. Jesus suffered and triumphed for you. So fix your eyes on him. Don’t view hardship as punishment but as the loving discipline of your Father—who trains you for life with him.

Heavenly Father, help me trust that you are training me for my good and give me strength to endure hardship. Amen.

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All Scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV®. Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc. ™ Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved worldwide.