Discipline: my “favorite” character trait…
Okay, maybe this one is NOT my favorite character trait but it is an important one none-the-less. If perseverance is pressing on even in bad circumstance or discouragement, discipline is “pre-deciding” what it is we will do and be and then allowing for no excuses. At least that is my current take on it. I suspect that I’ll be hearing from others about their thoughts regarding the same trait from other perspectives and the collaboration will enrich us all.
I do think that “discipline” has gotten a bad rap. In my most disciplined moments, I hold to my boundaries, I hold to my values, I keep my focus on the important priorities in my life (keep Jesus first is the biggest piece in that!) So while I may not love the discipline of living faith, I see the positive results. When I exercise, I feel better and reduce my stress, see clearer, understand more. I don’t “want” to do it sometimes but always find it worth it when I go ahead and do it anyway. That is the essence of discipline- doing it anyway.
Hi James,
For some reason, I seem to link discipline and piety. Doing it anyway, though I really don’t want to. Writing that prayer, reading that scripture. Doing the things Wesley would have us do to stay connected with God through daily, weekly, monthly and meaningful resources. Consider it spiritual exercise. What are the results of this exercise?
I think you are right that piety and discipline are linked. I think , though, that discipline even for us Jesus-followers must stretch beyond the bounds of of piety (though I am not saying you were limiting it to matters of piety) to every aspect of our lives. Now perhaps we could include all acts of our lives that grow from faith as acts of piety and as such requiring discipline. In part, I see discipline as the decision to face life with courage, to love the neighbor when it isn’t the first response, to show patience when there is an urgency. It is choosing our way of acting before it becomes time to act and the living the choice.
Discipline has many nuances and I think we need to live all of them. Physical restraint, determination, doing the things that are right even when we do not want to do or feel like doing them. At the core of our Methodist heritage, I believe our “rule book” is called The Discipline because it is filled with rules and more because it had it origins in the connectedness and order it was to bring to our faith communities.