Importance of correction
A few years ago, I watched a series of good quality interviews with people who were successful in their art careers. Most of them were 2D or 3D artists, but a few were filmmakers and animators as well.
I am not really sure why I watched them except for the fact that I was to gain more about this lesson I am about to share (and how to film professional interviews, possibly…).
I wasn’t too much into most of those areas of art at the time, even though I did work in 3D with Blender for a few years.
Still, I found it fascinating to hear what they had to say, especially concerning receiving correction.
These individuals (at least the majority of them) were not believers, as far as I could tell, sadly, yet they all seemed to echo this one truth:
Love correction as hard as it is to receive sometimes.
Every single one of them said the same thing: that correction, constructive feedback from others, is THE thing that you must have in order to improve whatever you’re doing (art in their case). Some of them even went in depth about the fact that though it can be really hard to receive, correction only makes you better. It shows you where you’re lacking in your skill and what you need to improve.
As I listened to those interviews, and they repeated the same thing, I thought, “Wow, now if only they would take that principle (which some of them have obviously a good hold on) and apply it to their life spiritually.” And oh, I pray that Yahweh opens their eyes and each one of them does that!
If those people who really don’t know anything about Yahweh or His Word can grasp this truth (at least partially), then, as believers in Messiah with the power of His Holy Spirit, we should just run with it, understand this, and apply it to our daily lives.
How good are we at receiving constructive correction from someone? It is very important that we do receive correction from others as it can make us better, turn us in the right direction and (overall) make us wise.
Now, yes, I didn’t have to hear this echoed by a bunch of people in the world to realize it. I also don’t recommend listening to those interviews just to gain that (hence the reason I didn’t link to them here…). However, I believe there is an excellent lesson here.
You see, they realized how important correction was, and they knew that if they wanted to improve their skills, they needed someone to come along and show them their mistakes (put bluntly…).
Why don’t we apply that to our lives in general? When someone corrects us from Yahweh’s Word and shows us our mistakes, why do we not receive the correction gladly? (I am speaking from experience here…and I am not just talking about other people but myself also…)
The problem is that we’re prideful creatures by human nature. We don’t want to be “told what to do” and what we’re doing wrong in our lives.
Sadly, man decides to go his own way (opposite of Yahweh), following after our natural, fleshly, carnal nature that just doesn’t want to die, period! Death, both spiritually and physically, results with eternal separation from Yahweh as the end of it.
It doesn’t have to be that way for you and I, though…
Yahweh gave us His Word, the Bible, to show us the right way to walk; how to walk in the true way of love, but by default we reject it. It is only when Yahweh opens our eyes to see the truth and we make the decision to give up our ways (which are evil, sinful and wicked) and walk in His ways (which are righteous, pure and Holy) that we are really open to correction from others and Yahweh Himself.
It is then that we realize that correction is THE thing we need to grow in faith and we earnestly desire it from others (especially those who are wiser than us).
For whom Yahweh loveth He correcteth; even as a father the son in whom he delighteth.
Proverbs 3:12
Yahweh loves those He corrects —so we should desire it from Him knowing that!
Also, Yahweh has given us the perfect example of how to walk out our lives through the example of Yahushua the Messiah. It is by looking at how He lived His life on the earth that we can correct ourselves whether we are truly walking in love and righteousness as He did.