The Rewards of Discipline

Discipline is a must if we are to attain our goals & live life to the maximum. We have to be disciplined if we are to continue on when we are tired.

Discipline is a must if we are to attain our goals & live life to the maximum. We have to be disciplined if we are to continue on when we are tired. The Rewards of Discipline "But reject profane and old wives' fables, and exercise (gymnazo) yourself toward godliness. For bodily exercise (gymnasia) profits a little, but godliness is profitable for all things, having promise of the life that now is and of that which is to come." (1 Timothy 4:7-8) The Greek word translated "exercise" is gymnazo, from which we get the English words "gym" and "gymnasium". The word means to "exercise vigorously, in any way, either the body or the mind" (BlueletterBible.org). The verb form in verse 7 is a present active imperative verb, meaning, we must continually be exerting our bodies and minds. To exert or exercise your body or mind means you have to have discipline. Discipline sounds like persistence, courage, and perseverance, but it is different. I describe discipline as an inner fortitude that refuses to quit, an intangible drive that compels you to do what needs to be done when you do not necessarily feel like doing it. Here is another quote on the subject of discipline from my friend Rob Daniel. Rob serves on our DFEA Board of Directors. He is 64 years young and has run 52 half marathons (13.1 miles) and 24 full marathons (26.2 miles). He is one of the top motivational speakers in Keller Williams Realty. During this pandemic, He has almost finished getting his appraisal license and has also enrolled in college to finish up his bachelor's degree. Rob says this about discipline: "Discipline is a mindset; almost everything in life is 90% mindset, 10% doing. Waking up early every morning and exercising or meditating on the Word is a mindset, a discipline, a decision or choice to get out of bed and go do something. It's not how many hours you put into a day; rather, it's what you put into those hours. It's about scheduling your day and not cheating on your time blocking; that is discipline, and you will get so much more done than if you have flexibility. A quote that I always give is 'discipline is freedom', not flexibility. If you have discipline, you can take it one step further and form habits, so you must have the discipline to form habits to get everything you want out of life." Discipline is a must if we are to attain our goals and really live life to the maximum. We have to be disciplined if we are to continue on when we are tired, worn down, or not very excited about the project at hand. Desmond Doss certainly had this inner fortitude, this discipline of mind and body. He was the heroic medic featured in the movie, Hacksaw Ridge. He kept going back to rescue his fallen comrades in the bloody battle of Okinawa in World War II. Doss saved 75 lives, all without bearing arms. He did not believe in shooting other people, even in war, but he was relentless in saving lives. Here are a couple of good articles I came across while researching the topic of discipline: Deep Patel shares 10 ways to become more self-disciplined. Here is another helpful article, written by Kerry Siggens. Be sure and read my devotional tomorrow as I share my "Top Ten Insights on the Grand Topic of Discipline". Podcast of the Week 10 Principles for Effective Living: Discipline Pastor Danny focuses this episode on the principle of Discipline, discussing what it really means to have personal discipline in various areas of life, including diet, exercise, sleep schedule, & most importantly, one's relationship with God. Download on iTunes Listen on Stitcher Watch on YouTube Facebook Twitter Instagram Website Spotify SoundCloud Share Tweet Fwd Copyright © 2020 Danny Forshee Evangelistic Association, All rights reserved.