I believe it’s important as new generations of fathers and mothers in the faith are rising to mention that while the Lord tests us He does not provoke us.

”Fathers, do not provoke your children to anger [do not exasperate them to the point of resentment with demands that are trivial or unreasonable or humiliating or abusive; nor by showing favoritism or indifference to any of them], but bring them up [tenderly, with lovingkindness] in the discipline and instruction of the Lord.“ Ephesians 6:4 AMP

This language isn’t meant for only the home life, though applicable to how we treat the “children of God” entrusted to us, and anyone we relate to is an opportunity for trust.

It seems we are at a tender place of the ‘in between’. In the process of the changing of the guards, rising and repositioning, dismantling and re-mantling.

Let us not quench the Holy Spirit by leaning to our own understandings. Even when Elijah was entrusted with the opportunity to mantle Elisha, he tested him though did not provoke him. The only tests we are required to ‘pass’ are Gods, not man’s – and yet even so we can not abandon the order of submission, honor and love. And clearly in this illustration of Elijah and Elisha, God uses man to test man. This is where we need discernment; is this God initiated through man, or man initiated through self understanding?

In this place of ‘in between’ our actions in fathering and mothering at large may be well-meaning and unintentionally harmful, though in this tender place we need to be careful not to provoke and break the spirits of the children of God (I am not however referring to genuine discipline and consequences to sin, and unrepentant hearts).

And for that matter, regardless of age, title, or position, we are ALL the children of God. From a wide lens we are able to comprehend that we are to be subject to one another in Love regardless of how we relate, whether co-parenting, co-laboring, co-leading, father to son, son to father, peer to peer, etc.

”“Behold, I am going to send you Elijah the prophet before the coming of the great and terrible day of the Lord. He will turn the hearts of the fathers to their children, and the hearts of the children to their fathers [a reconciliation produced by repentance], so that I will not come and strike the land with a curse [of complete destruction].”“ Malachi 4:5-6 AMP. In this passage the goal is heart connection before land repossession. It shows us what the Lord values, He is prioritizing heart restoration over land restoration. Yet there was a consequence for the unrepentant, loss of land equates with loss of inheritance. We see the same principle in the book of Jeremiah, ”For I know the plans and thoughts that I have for you,’ says the Lord, ‘plans for peace and well-being and not for disaster, to give you a future and a hope. Then you will call on Me and you will come and pray to Me, and I will hear [your voice] and I will listen to you. Then [with a deep longing] you will seek Me and require Me [as a vital necessity] and [you will] find Me when you search for Me with all your heart. I will be found by you,’ says the Lord, ‘and I will restore your fortunes and I will [free you and] gather you from all the nations and from all the places where I have driven you,’ says the Lord, ‘and I will bring you back to the place from where I sent you into exile.’“ Jeremiah 29:11-14 AMP.

The point is blessing and restoration is found in the heart of the Father. Even the prodigal son in the parable in Luke 15 had to return home (repent) before he was fully restored after he carelessly wasted his fortune. In this parable the father who restored the “spiritually dead son” did not provoke his obedient elder son to jealously, though this is what ensued after his elder son thought he had been treated unfairly because of the celebration of the unwise younger brother after he returned to his fathers house.

And this is the difference; We cannot control other’s reactions, but we can as fathers and mothers, leaders, and servants of one another in the faith encourage and restore without provoking the other ‘children of God’. The father in the parable above did not provoke his elder obedient son, yet the sons heart was revealed in the story, and yet not to a place of shame, but simply the heart of the Lord in goodness and joy revealed his heart posture. With understanding of the father’s heart now clear, he could either join in the celebration or not.

In essence when we provoke we perpetuate the orphan spirit and religion, whereas when we allow God to test the hearts of man it leads to genuine advancement and or repentance, and restoration. We may be instruments called to protect and build the Body, purify and unite the House of God, to lead others to His ways and paths, though in all these things we should be careful to subject our understanding and will as all flesh are under the Mighty Hand of God.

Above all, whether learned patterns or reliance on our own understanding, may we remember love covers, and the Lords grace is sufficient as we navigate much uncharted territory.

In the place of in between may we consider, ”This, then, is how you ought to regard us: as servants of Christ and as those entrusted with the mysteries God has revealed. Now it is required that those who have been given a trust must prove faithful. I care very little if I am judged by you or by any human court; indeed, I do not even judge myself. My conscience is clear, but that does not make me innocent. It is the Lord who judges me. Therefore judge nothing before the appointed time; wait until the Lord comes. He will bring to light what is hidden in darkness and will expose the motives of the heart. At that time each will receive their praise from God.“ 1 Corinthians 4:1-5 NIV

”If we [claim to] live by the [Holy] Spirit, we must also walk by the Spirit [with personal integrity, godly character, and moral courage—our conduct empowered by the Holy Spirit]. We must not become conceited, challenging or provoking one another, envying one another.“ Galatians 5:25-26 AMP

Jesus, help me to humble myself under Your Mighty Hand, may our endeavors be for Your Kingdom to come, on earth as it is in Heaven.