Discipline defined: Discipline is the art of collecting knowledge and learning a skill through training and experience that enables a person to act in a way that's both desirable and consistent.
This definition may not be a great one, but it is certainly one that I can work with. I've acquired a lot of information, I've been trained in many ways, but have those ways enable me to act in a desirable and consistent manner? I think you already know the answer.
Sure, I "know" what discipline is. I have seen it in others and even witnessed it in my own life, but it seems to be something I find very elusive. Maybe you can relate. Whether it's my commitment to eat better, or to workout more, or finish what I started, I find it very difficult to remain consistent. I have often started a book only to come back to it a year later with a dog-eared page in the middle of the book. Then the thought comes to mind, "Why didn't I finish this?"
It's a great question really, but not one I ever truly answer. I tend to make excuses more often than not. "I got too busy", "I was reading three other books at the time", "Reality T.V. is so much easier and less time-consuming". Whatever the excuse, they never really answer the question. I think the reason is that I don't really want to admit the truth. The truth being that I'm not really that disciplined with most things in my life.
I have been told that I am an "easy-going, free-thinking, spontaneous, live-in-the-moment kind of person." "That's just who you are." In some ways (most ways actually) I agree with that assessment. One reason being is that it's easy. It is what comes natural to me. I am mister fly-by-the-seat-of-my-pants. I don't like it, but that is who I am. You might say that I should embrace how I have been made. I get that, but that is not what I am talking about here. What I am talking about is there is a deep desire to to act in a way that is consistently healthy, healing, and beneficial to my life and the lives I influence on a daily basis.
That is why discipline is important to me. I don't have a grasp on it in every area of my life....but I'm learning. What the Bible has taught me more than anything else in the area of discipline is that I need to be aware of where my heart is at all times.
In Proverbs 4 there is this famous phrase that reads, "Above all else, guard your heart, for everything you do flows from it." The writer is saying to protect your heart because it's the source of life. Not just obvious physical life, but a more important spiritual life as well.
But the writer doesn't end there. He goes on to say, "Keep your mouth free of perversity; keep corrupt talk far from your lips." Essentially, what he is saying is that from the heart comes words out of your mouth that can have lasting effects.
The next verse says, "Let your eyes look straight ahead; fix your gaze directly before you." The writer is saying from the heart comes different thoughts so be mindful of where your sights are set. Where is your focus and what does that have to do with your heart?
The next verse says, "Give careful thought to the paths for your feet and be steadfast in all your ways." What the writer is getting at is that from the heart comes certain actions as well.
The last verse in this chapter says, "Do not turn to the right or the left; keep your foot from evil." The writer is saying that our heart is so vital that it can dictate our direction and future.
If you're anything like me, when thinking about becoming more disciplined in an area of your life, you quickly think about what you need to change. Those changes are usually current habits, actions, or lifestyles that are not necessarily desirable. But if you examine this passage carefully, the writer is saying that if you really want discipline in your life, if you really want to be wise about your next step, it has less to do with your words, thoughts, or actions, and everything to do with your heart.
So for those who struggle with discipline....where is your heart? It's a difficult question sometimes. But if you're ever going to be able to truly change, if you're every going to be seriously disciplined, you must consider where your heart is first, do all that you can to guard it, and then enjoy the life the springs from there.
