Tag: self-control

Why Discipline Matters

We’re in debt.

We’re overweight.

We’re discontent.

Our relationships don’t last.

Yet the world continues to preach “do what you want when you want”; that the ultimate freedom is in living with a nearly reckless abandon.

But what if that’s not working for us? What if we decided to try the opposite?

We would have to think about why discipline matters and believe that freedom is actually found in living with greater self-control and self-discipline.

On the surface, this seems completely counter-intuitive: constrict or constrain what it is I do on a daily basis in order to do more?

Yes.

If we lived on a budget, we wouldn’t be in debt.

If we exercised and ate well, we’d be in better health.

If we stopped comparing what we have to what “everyone” on social media has, we’d realize we’re probably in pretty good shape.

If we kept our eyes focused on our marriages and families and made dedicated efforts to invest in those people, we would be more fulfilled than ever before.

These are the opportunities that discipline provides for us. This can be our world when we take time to sit down, set goals, have honest internal dialogue about what’s important to us and start taking responsibility for our actions.

2 Tim 1:7 tells us that “God gave us a spirit not of fear, but of power and love and self-control.” We were made to live with self-control. We can do this!

Is it easy? Absolutely not. Donuts are delicious (yet unhealthy). Last-minute outings with our friends are too good to pass up (and weren’t in the budget). But if our waist lines and our wallets become stretched by our normal decision making, we really ought to say “no”. But it takes discipline.

The truth is, deep down, we all know this stuff. The hard part is recognizing it, admitting it and doing something about it.

Discipline matters and makes all the difference.