Discipline is Normal

Do you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only one gets the prize? Run in such a way as to get the prize. Everyone who competes in the games goes into strict training. They do it to get a crown that will not last, but we do it to get a crown that will last forever.     -1 Corinthians 9:24-25

Today I heard a group of people talk about the pain and glory involved in physical training when they've not been used to it.  What resulted was anger/cursing, resentment, accusations from their own hearts ("You can't do this."  "You need to stop."), guilt/shame, and a general feeling that they were trying to tackle something impossible.

What I took away from their inspirational stories was that WE ARE SOFT.  Me included.  WE DESPISE DISCIPLINE.  We've all been acclimated to comfort and instant gratification and the (vain) pursuit of life without pain.  It's the calling card of our culture and we were trained up honest, right in the middle of it.  It's the air we breathe.

Unfortunately, this will not do, going forward.


1.  Our endurance is crap.

      The one who endures to the end will be saved.   -Mark 13:13

Endurance is the ability to undergo pain for long periods of time.  Most of us throw up our hands at ANY sign of pain, much less the slow burn described by the word "endurance".  That stuff is in short supply around here, and I'm emboldened any time I see it on display around me.  People who fast as a discipline (as opposed to a one-off "don't let me die, God!" emergency move- I mean those are good, too, but when somebody decides they're going to fast as a lifestyle move, I want to take my shoes off.  Holy ground.), pray through the night, repeatedly and decisively pour their lives out for the poor, etc. are special people.  They are building ENDURANCE.  Ask any distance runner and they'll tell you that you can NOT start having 10 hours of running in the tank.  You start small.  It hurts.  You run.  It's exhausting.  You lose hope.  Then you ramp up again, give it another go, and you can go a.  little. bit... farther.  Repeat, ad infinitum, and you get Mucho Endurancio.

2.  Discipline is part of the deal.

     Endure all hardship as discipline.   - Hebrews 12:11

We all like the idea of being disciples.  Sounds great!  But the idea of being DISCIPLINED, or "living a life of discipline" or whatever it looks like in action?  We run the other way, screaming.  "I've earned this car, even if I can't really afford it."  "But it's the holidays and candy is everywhere!  How am I supposed to resist?"  "Get up earlier than I already DO, just to spend time with God??"  We use innumerable excuses to dodge discipline... and yet we call ourselves disciples!  ...I think somebody's fooling themselves.

3.  Discipline is voluntary discomfort.

     I strike a blow to my body and make it my slave so that after I have preached to others, I myself will not be disqualified for the prize.     - 1 Corinthians 9:27

     I'd like to think that discipline in money, physical discipline, discipline in my relationships (like scheduling a date night with my wife then sticking to it), discipline in my prayer life, etc. are all just electives.  "I can add one here or there if I want bonus points with God."  This is not so.  Submitting oneself to discipline is a prerequisite, not an add-on, to maturing in Christ.  It's all over the Bible, but it's not a popular thing to discuss, because it indicts about 99.9% of us (I'm certainly in that group).  We are going to have to bow our head to a life of discipline (intentional living, army-type living, a more spartan, not-all-luxury-all-the-time attitude) if we want to taste the Kingdom.  It's just the way it is.  "Whoever wants to gain his life must lose it."  What do we think Jesus meant by that?  Just changing our goals in life from "selfish" to "moral"?  We can live a moral lifestyle for selfish reasons, you know!  SelfLESS living means that my whole life looks engineered for God's purposes.  It's intentional, and strategic, and less mushy.  No getting around it.

4.  Endurance and discipline will be called upon.

      The seed falling among the thorns refers to someone who hears the word, but the worries of this life and the deceitfulness of wealth choke the word, making it unfruitful.   -Matthew 13:22

     We're coming into the very end times- the last days.  They will be hard days.  Miraculous days, to be sure, but hard days.  There will also be a massive falling away, during these desperate days, by those who call themselves believers.  It seems that those who fall away will be those who 1) were told that God only does happy things, never hard things, 2) have avoiding all suffering, so never been toughened up into people with endurance, and 3) are too weak and cowardly to face pain with boldness and yes, even love.  I do not want to be in that group.  So I'd better start to see discipline, and its resulting pain, as a friend.



Revelation 12:11, as many of us quote, says "they defeated [the devil] by the word of their testimony and by the blood of the Lamb."  True.  But it goes on to say "they loved not their own lives, even to the point of death."  Do you love your life today?  Sure you do.  Your comfort, your pleasure, ease in Zion- these are all things we hold precious to us, actually, as Americans.  Well, praise God, I think we're going to have to have some cold water thrown in our faces that will wake us up to the present and coming reality that discipline will be required for the days that we're headed for.  And because it's God, I know it's good.  My flesh is weak but praise God, my spirit is willing.  I'm into making my spirit the lead horse on the Stevie team, so that weak flesh will have to fall away.

The kind of endurance and discipline the LORD is calling us into these days is a high calling.  It is not for the sissies.  It is for the warriors.  I might not be one yet, but I'm in training.  I'm happy to admit alongside you that training hurts.  But I'm coming to believe that it's good.  It's provision from God.  It's salvation.  It's a little-regarded form of His protection. 



THEREFORE:  

Take a minute and consider-

Where are you avoiding discipline right now?

Eating habits
Sleeping habits
Sex habits
Spending/saving habits
Prayer/study habits
Physical fitness habits

Now take a moment and consider-

What am I going to do to undergo the pain of discipline in this area?  How can I build it into my calendar?  What can I use for inspiration or encouragement?  Who can I enlist to keep me accountable?  Do I need to spend some money to make this happen?  Etc.

I wish I could force each of you to do this exercise (you'd be better off).  But then again, we won't answer to each other; we'll each give an account to the Captain of the Hosts.


Consider it a sheer gift, friends, when tests and challenges come at you from all sides. You know that under pressure, your faith-life is forced into the open and shows its true colors. So don’t try to get out of anything prematurely. Let it do its work so you become mature and well-developed, not deficient in any way.  If you don’t know what you’re doing, pray to the Father. He loves to help. You’ll get his help, and won’t be condescended to when you ask for it. Ask boldly, believingly, without a second thought. People who “worry their prayers” are like wind-whipped waves. Don’t think you’re going to get anything from the Master that way, adrift at sea, keeping all your options open... Prosperity is as short-lived as a wildflower, so don’t ever count on it... Anyone who meets a testing challenge head-on and manages to stick it out is mighty fortunate. For such persons loyally in love with God, the reward is life and more life.     -James 1