7 Practical Suggestions for Living a More Disciplined Life

Metropolitan

December 3, 2019

How do you and I become disciplined people?

Becoming self-disciplined begins with a conviction from Romans 15:3 that “even Christ did not please himself.” In the same way, we should not seek to please ourselves. This is the foundation.

Here are 7 practical suggestions of where to start in living a more disciplined life:

Don’t try to run or fly; start by walking, and even crawling if need be. Do the little things. A disciplined person will always seek to avoid making unnecessary work for others, so hang up your clothes, put your trash in the garbage can and help with the children; don’t wait for others to do it for you.

Don’t avoid challenging responsibilities but welcome them and tackle them quickly. Don’t say, “Tomorrow I’ll do it. Later I’ll find the time.” Do them right away so that they are done. It is hard, but if you do this, you will find that things will be much easier in the end.

It is a myth that important people should be late to meetings. If others have to wait for you, you are being undisciplined. Plan enough time into your schedule to ensure that you make all of your meetings on time.

Discipline yourself to deal with the feel-sad and feel-good moods throughout your day. Do not allow your feelings to influence your work negatively. Make your moods obey you.

We should not busy ourselves trying to find out everybody’s problems. You be concerned about your own business. Curiosity about other people’s business can make you imagine things, and the devil will use that against you.

To grab something before God’s timing is to spoil it. Let us be a people known for our patience.

Many of these things cannot be changed overnight. Nothing changes instantly. We have developed patterns and habits from our culture and our own behavior, so be patient with yourself and others.

Don’t become angry with people who are struggling in these areas. Instead, go forward learning, growing and helping others. By walking in self-discipline, we surround our lives with walls of protection that keep us and the ministry safe.

Today, evaluate where you are currently with these small disciplines. Set achievable goals for yourself to grow in self-discipline.