I’ve been thinking about these two words a lot today. And, what I’ve seen is that I have a lot more punitive in me than I’d like to have.

Is life’s job to harshly punish us when we make a mistake or to correct us so that we get back on track?

How do we relate to ourselves? Are we bad and wrong and need to be punished (most people’s orientation) or do we sometimes need to be corrected?

Is God waiting for us to goof up so that God can leap out and punish us or is God watching to correct and uplift us when we stumble?

What about the significant people in our life? Do they need to be punished or do they need to be lifted up, supported, and corrected?

The punitive view makes life a scary, uncertain, and harsh thing. The corrective view makes life far more calm and relaxed, and empowers us to do better and to become better.

And for clarity sake: let’s say my daughter does something that she knows she is not supposed to do. I can impose a consequence because she is bad wrong and must be punished. In order to do this, my heart must be closed. I can also impose a consequence because I love her, want the best for her, and want to direct her to a more beneficial path. In this case, my heart stays open.