Contrary to common perceptions, discipline is not a four letter word! Though culture does it's very best to convince us otherwise, we truly are better off living disciplined lives, wouldn't you agree? While the disciplined dieter may miss overindulgence, he/she is no doubt healthier and more energetic. The disciplined student may miss out on the party lifestyle of the undisciplined, but will certainly enjoy a more fulfilling education and likely a more prosperous career. Likewise, the disciplined Christian will grow in ways that the hit-and-miss churchgoer never will.
I've been trying to live a more disciplined life lately. I posted last week about my running regimen. I've been more conscious of my diet. And Spiritually, though I'm journaling less, I find myself meditating on Scripture more, if only to find things to write on this blog. I've also rediscovered a book I've read once or twice.
If you're looking for good, rich, and readable book on Spiritual disciplines, let me recommend Don Whitney's "Simplify Your Spiritual Life." Dr. Whitney led a men's retreat at a prior church of mine several years ago, and his lessons on prayer still affect me greatly. It was at this retreat that I bought my copy of this book, and it's quick 1-2 page chapters on various disciplines has proven very helpful.
Early in the book is a great line, which some of you may have seen me post recently on Facebook and Twitter:
"Our experiences do not determine whether the Bible is true; rather the Bible determines whether our experiences are true."
Is this a verifiable, objectively true statement? Or is it just a cute but figurative way to show the value of the Bible?
Dr. Whitney writes this sentence in the context of viewing a beautiful sunset or really any other of those wonderfully pleasant experiences we find from time to time. Watching children play, feeling the sand and water squish between our toes at the beach, or being warmed by the sun or cooled by a breeze all sometimes cause us to exclaim "God is so good" or words to that effect. And He is! But we need to be wary that we believe that because of the witness of Scripture and not solely due to emotional or physical pleasures. In other words, God is good because we see His goodness throughout the Bible, and the happy times we experience are gifts that He gives us to remind us of His goodness. These happy times are not causes or evidences of His goodness.
In a similar way, our feelings toward God at any given moment do not define Him in any way. Today I feel in close fellowship with Him- does that mean that He loves me? What if I don't feel so close to Him tomorrow? Does that mean that He has stopped loving me? I love emotions, and I love emotional worship, but such reliance on emotions to define our relationship with Him only leads to crushing defeats after falsely stimulated "mountain top" experiences. God loves us because He says He loves us. In fact, God loved us even when we didn't love Him. "God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us" (Romans 5:8). I know when I sin that I don't feel close to God (nor should I), and I often question whether He could/should still love me. But as the children's song goes, "the Bible tells me so!" Therefore, letting Scripture judge the truthfulness of my experience leads me to truth.
How did I get here after starting today's blog on discipline? Getting into the discipline of reading/studying/meditating on Scripture teaches you real truth, truth that can and will change your life.
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