Greetings,
Scripture has some blunt comments about discipline.
"Whoever heeds discipline shows the way to life, but whoever ignores correction leads others astray," (Proverbs 10:17).
"Whoever loves discipline loves knowledge, but whoever hates correction is stupid," (Proverbs 12:1).
Yikes! I don't want to be thought of as stupid. But, doing hard things is… well, hard. Spiritual, physical, educational, financial or emotional discipline, all of it is hard. The work that it takes is often arduous, boring, long and, in general, bleh.
We know that being a disciplined person is important and we are far more fruitful and we feel better when we do right things and keep our lives in order. There are a number of lies our flesh, Satan, and the world try to convince us of in order to lead us away from doing the hard things. Lies such as, "we would be better off eating unhealthy because it is quicker and less stressful" than choosing to eat healthy and preparing good food. Or, "Sunday is the only day that I get to myself" and we plan activities or come up with excuses that keep us from fellowship with other believers. We slowly fall out of the routine and church becomes something that we use to do.
Desire or “want to” is the driver for discipline. If we are desperate enough for change, we will become motivated to make changes no matter how hard they are. Desperation leads to devotion and devotion leads to habits. Often, our desperation leads us to make a temporary change in behavior. Even after we see some results, we could decide we are more dedicated to a lifestyle of convenience than we are to the systemic change that we recognize is needed but is hard to obtain. I totally get that! I would much rather eat the cookie now and risk dying at a younger age than exercise restraint or exercise at all.
There are some really hard things that God calls us to do. He asks us to be faithful and obedient in many areas of our lives. I am certain that you know in what areas you are being challenged to be faithful. I encourage you to pray and plan. Pray that the Lord would reveal what hard things God wants you to work on. After that, make a plan to take faithful action and seek accountability to do those hard things. Our family is choosing to do some hard things in order to be faithful and healthy. It is not easy. It is hard. But I am sure the rewards will be great. Please pray for us to be strong and courageous and love discipline, and we will be praying for all of you as well!
Love you,
Chris
Greetings,
Just after World War II came to an end, Europe began picking up the pieces. The old country had been ravaged by war and was in ruins. The saddest sight of all was that of little orphaned children starving in the streets of those war-torn cities.
Early one chilly morning an American soldier was making his way back to the barracks in London. As he turned the corner in his jeep, he spotted a little lad with his nose pressed to the window of a pastry shop. Inside, the cook was kneading dough for a fresh batch of doughnuts. The hungry boy stared in silence, watching every move. The soldier pulled his jeep to the curb, stopped, got out, and walked quietly over to where the little fellow was standing. Through the steamed-up window, he could see the mouth-watering morsels being pulled from the oven, piping hot. The boy salivated and released a slight groan as he watched the cook place them onto the glass-enclosed counter ever so carefully.
The soldier's heart went out to the nameless orphan as he stood beside him.
"Son . . . would you like some of those?"
The boy was startled, "Oh, yeah . . . I would!"
The American stepped inside and bought a dozen, put them in a bag, and walked back to where the lad was standing in the foggy cold of the London morning. The soldier smiled, held out the bag, and said simply: "Here you are." As he turned to walk away, he felt a tug on his coat.
He looked back and heard the child ask quietly: "Mister . . . are you God?"
"God so loved the world, that He gave..." (John 3:16). It is so easy to hold onto the many things that we have and we buy into the worldly wisdom of storing away for later. It requires great faith to be a giver. In fact, we reflect the Lord when we give.
I know how hard it is to make life make sense in this high priced culture, surrounded by the many people who have really neat things that would look great in our garage. However, we are not called to be cheerful gatherers. God tells us He "loves a cheerful giver" (2 Corinthians 9:7).
Some believers have a deep desire to give but aren't sure what the next step is. As we seek God diligently, he will make it clear how he wants us to give. Giving could look really different for one believer than another believer. Regardless of what and where and when you give, strive to become a cheerful giver and watch what God does!
Love ya,
Chris
Greetings,
If you are a follower of Jesus, if you trust that He is who He says that He is, if His death, burial and resurrection have transformed your life, then hopefully you have heard that there is more for you. There is more to this Christian life than salvation alone. Salvation is the beginning of your life as a disciple. What does being a disciple really look like in this northwest culture?
Discipleship is not something that comes naturally to most northwest Americans. Generally, northwesterners are self sufficient, independent and sophisticated. They don’t believe that they require anyone to guide, teach or lead them. After all, anything that we want to know is demonstrated on YouTube or Pinterest.
Discipleship begins with believing the powerful words of Jesus, that He is the way, truth and the life and that no one gets to the Father except through Him. That message should so move you that you choose to follow Jesus’ teachings, obeying what he has called you to do. That calling is to be an imitator of Christ. To love God so much that you can’t help but to tell others about His love for them. It is to love people so much that you want to see them have peace with God in their hearts. So you tell them, show them and help them to see Jesus for who He is! Not a cheap knockoff, or a “good person,” but a genuine disciple, lover and imitator of Christ.
A disciple is only a disciple if they follow the leader in word and deed. Discipleship is living out the hope that is in you. It should be natural, but unfortunately it is not.
Discipleship appears irrational in this culture. It doesn’t make sense to have people in your home, speaking truth into each other's lives. Discipleship is a long walk, uphill, on a narrow path. It is not always exciting or fun, it is often full of pain and suffering. But discipleship is always worth it. When you get to be a part of life transformation in a person, it is powerful.
Count the cost, disciple, be encouraged, steadfast and patient, knowing that your “...suffering produces perseverance and perseverance, character; and character, hope. And hope does not put us to shame, because God’s love has been poured out into our hearts through the Holy Spirit, who has been given to us.” Romans 5:3-5
We need each other and all of the beautiful gifts that the Lord has blessed us with to show this culture the beautiful and powerful life of a follower of Jesus!
Love ya,
Chris