Discipline

Discipline. Now there's a word for you. Who wants to be disciplined? The very word connotes a lack of spontaneity that sucks the life out of you. And discipline won't get you on television. Think about it. Who are the sports players who get a majority of the media's attention? The ones who aren't disciplined; the ones who do dumb and provocative things (like Plaxico Burress, who recently shot himself in the leg). Who gets to be on reality shows? Typically only complete imbeciles make for "good TV" nowadays, and the less they can control themselves, the better. And why are there so many home foreclosures out there? Among other reasons, many people weren't disciplined enough to only buy as much house as they could afford.

Discipline. My family's recent income adjustment (taking the form of a 10-month-old boy) has made us become much more disciplined financially. As a result, we have a strict monthly budget that we follow, and if we want to make a major purchase, we have to figure out a way to save up the money for it. Instant material gratification is all but gone at our house. We have chosen to be disciplined financially to allow for my wife to stay home and raise Brodie and to better our financial position at the same time. Let me tell you, that requires lots of discipline!

Discipline. One of the distinctive features of Denver Seminary is their mentoring program. All students are required to do a number of learning contracts in which the goal is to become better in an area of spiritual formation or at a ministry skill. Students are required to write out a needs assessment, a goal statement, and at least six specific actions to take to achieve the goal. Students then meet with mentors and small groups for accountability.

Discipline. I used to be a competitive runner. I ran some pretty respectable times and placed in some pretty tough races. To get to that point, though, required running, on average, 8-10 miles per day, every day, whether I wanted to or not, year-round. There were countless days where I was tired, or weather conditions were extreme, or I simply didn't want to run. But I did anyway.

Even though living a disciplined life isn't always fun and usually very hard, it is also very rewarding. I think about our financial discipline. Through it, God is teaching us how to rely on him and helping us to reevaluate what we really need and what we can live without. And you know what? We are just as happy now as ever. When I performed what seemed like countless learning contracts, it was those disciplined times the Spirit used to lay a strong spiritual foundation in my life (one that has been put to the test on many occasions!). I was able to be highly competitive as a runner solely because I put in the countless miles of hard work to get there, and I have some great memories and experiences because of it.

In short, the best and strongest parts in my life are due to discipline. Through dedicated, structured, purposeful and hard work, God has allowed me to achieve some pretty impressive things, and I truly think my family and I have a great life due to the fact that we have learned to be disciplined. But I never wanted to be on TV anyway.