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“Do you not know that those who run in a race all run, but only one receives the prize? Run in such a way that you may win. Everyone who competes in the games exercises self-control in all things.” – 1 Corinthians 9:24-25
Most of my life, I have lived fairly undisciplined. Sometimes, I wake up at 5:30 am, other times, not till 8. I’ll go a few days eating more proteins and vegetables and less carbs, but inevitably pizza night comes. I schedule myself to go to the gym three times a week at 4:30 pm, but then something else comes along that I will prioritize over the workout.
And these examples are just the ones I feel comfortable sharing. Like so many of you, I think if my life were truly put under a microscope, it would be a severely humbling thing.
There was a time when I experienced a sharp improvement in disciplined living. The nine weeks I spent in the US Army Basic Training program to this day serves as my perfect example of living a very structured life. I was told when to get up (4 am). I was told when to eat and even what to eat. Drill sergeants told us when to exercise, when to sit down, and when to sleep. They even taught us how to shower. I’ll say no more on that.
But the tension I carry with me years now after being out of the service is that the most disciplined period of my life was a result of the external pressure applied by other people, namely drill sergeants.
You see, the verse above (and others like it) talk about self-discipline. 1 Corinthians 9:25 does not say that the Spirit or Jesus or any other force is compelling me to behave in a disciplined way to run this race of life. It says that the competitor exercises SELF-control.
Galatians 5:22-24 reminds us that the qualities of living a self-disciplined life are the result of, or the fruit of the Spirit. So, I acknowledge that the ability to be self-disciplined for the follower of Jesus comes from that indwelling Spirit. But the response to that gifting of ability is on me. Call it obedience. Call it free choice. What we all need to grasp is that, at some point, living a disciplined, well-ordered life, is on us.
So, why the tension, as if that needed to be asked? Most of us do not rise to the full potential of our Spirit-given ability. We have moments. For weeks, the bed gets made, the promises we made to others get kept, and so on. But with time comes complacency. How it slips in is anybody’s guess, but most of us find that it is difficult to stay the course.
And, well, I just don’t like that. Constantly, God says to me, “live according to the Spirit I have given you.” Be the man I enabled you to be. Keep your promises. When you commit to a particular pattern of behaviour, keep your commitment.
So, a plan to eat better (assuming it’s a realistic plan) should be sustainable. A commitment to speak kindly of others behind the wheel should be totally doable. Reading my Bible daily at 8 am, waking up regularly at 6, going to bed at 11…you get the idea.
If I sensed that this was only a “me” problem, I’d not even write the article. But because I know so many of you deal with the same issues day in and out, it should at least be said we understand one another as it relates to the life-long challenge of self-discipline.
So, what can we glean from the passage above that might help us? Notice the words just before that bit about self-control: run in such a way that you may win. Before self-control comes a reason. A purpose. A cause.
Before I shipped off to basic training to get hollered at by drill sergeants, I prepared for eight months to be physically fit enough to handle what was to come. I ran five days a week. I did sit-ups and push-ups most every day. I behaved in a way very unlike most of my life. Years later, I look back at that period and marvel at what was so different then. The answer, I suspect you already have figured it out, is that I had real purpose. A solid goal that stirred my soul. I hungered to be fit enough to pass that first PT test to come. I ran the race as if to win.
You have so much going for you. First, as a follower of Jesus, you have the empowering Holy Spirit living inside of you opening doors to your ability to live a disciplined life. Second, by virtue of being an adopted child of God, you have been given a vocation to participate in building God’s kingdom. That’s another way of saying you have purpose of the highest order.
Once you truly believe that self-discipline becomes something within your grasp. Hey, you’ll still fail along the way. You’ll still have days of complacency. But I’m willing to believe they’ll be fewer. And less derailing.
So, let’s you and me go win a few races together.