"Don't go past this point"

As I walked along the beach yesterday I saw a father entering the ocean with his kids. I heard him say, "have fun but don't go past this point." He was referencing the danger of the waves, which were quite turbulent. I thought, "good move dad." BUT, then I wondered how the kids received their father's word. I wasn't near them to see their response, but it did cause me to ponder this simple moment as I wandered on down the beach.

The kids could have responded in at least 2 ways. First, they could think to themselves, or maybe even say out loud, "dad just doesn't want us to have fun, his job is to destroy our dreams, he is so controlling." OR they could think, "Thanks dad for pointing out danger to us and loving us enough to draw boundaries for our good."

What are the chances of each occurring? The response for each actually flows from the child's core assumption about law and whether their father is controlling or loving. We can see law as either the instrument of reward and punishment established by the one who has power to control us. OR, we can see law as information to help us live the best life possible. One role of law is to communicate to us the boundary between prosperity and destruction for our benefit. The problem is that human nature is biased to see law as something trying to control us - to which we should push back or rebel.

The Grace core assumption about law is the latter. Renewing our mind to see law with the eyes of Grace can transform our joy and freedom. BUT, we must see our Heavenly Father as One who loves us, not One whose purpose is to control us and take all fun out of life.

It may be worthwhile to spend a moment testing your core assumption of law, that's what we do with you in b4Worldview, a transformational learning experience......