I think discipline is something a lot of us want. We have goals we want to achieve, people we want to be strong for, and more things we want to do in life. But sometimes we are our own worst enemy and we get in the way of our plans, maybe due to distractions, personal weaknesses, or struggles.
So if you are someone that wants to grow in discipline and in spiritual strength, here are five steps to help you get there. Step number one Find a mentor. Matthew Chapter 28 versus 19 to 20.
Go there for and make disciples of all the nations baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. In this passage, Jesus commands His disciples to go and make disciples and to baptize them. And it's important to note here that after Jesus made disciples, He commanded His disciples to go out and make disciples.
And the way Jesus made disciples was by spending time and living life with 12 men that He chose. And he hung out with them, answered their questions, and equips them with knowledge and experience that they needed. So when it comes to being disciplined, you need to have a Jesus like figure in your life who can equip you with what you need.
For me, I've had five mentors in different chapters of my life, and whether it was hanging out at a coffee shop or at their home after a Bible study, these men pour 2 hours of their time into me and I learned how to serve in ministry. I learned steps on how to overcome sin. Tips on how to be closer to God and advice on how to teach.
And because I hung out with them regularly, I saw firsthand what men of God should look like and how I ought to respond and love, strength and humility. I honestly can't recommend this enough. If you are someone who wants to grow in discipline, find someone who is capable of discipling you in the same way that Jesus disciple the 12.
Some quick tips. If you're a guy, be disciple by a guy and if you're a girl, be disciple by a girl. Also, pray for a mentor if you don't know who to go to and look for someone who is spiritually more mature than you and possesses traits or characteristics that you admire.
And if you're under 18, you need to communicate with your parents about how you meet with these people. But once you find someone, humbly ask them if you can have coffee with them and if they'd be willing to disciple you and teach you how to be a man or woman of God. Step number two Find a team.
Matthew Chapter ten, verse one. And when he had called his top disciples to him, he gave them power over unclean spirits to cast them out and to heal all kinds of sickness and all kinds of disease. In this passage, Jesus gave his 12 disciples an assignment to help people, and He gave them power to heal and to cast out demons.
And please note here that Jesus didn't send his disciples alone, but they had each other to lean on. So it seems as if he wanted to give them the blessing of companionship. If you look at the night of Jesus's arrest and betrayal, despite the fact that Jesus, his disciples ran away, hid and acted fearful and cowardly, most of them still stayed together.
And later, in the Book of Acts, you see that the disciples stood together through persecution and helped build Christ's church side by side. So once you find a mentor to pour into you, I would suggest that you also find other like minded people who want what you want. Find people who also want to be closer to God, that want to serve in ministry, that want to break away from sin and want to be better.
Will you always succeed in your goals together? No. But if you're surrounded by people who keep trying to be better, soon you'll grow to be like them.
And when it comes to the people you surround yourself with, please pay attention to first Corinthians chapter 15, verse 33, which reads, Do not be deceived. Evil company corrupts good habits. In this passage, Paul warns the church not to fool themselves into thinking that they can hang out with evil company and not be affected.
So if you want to grow in discipline, be very cautious of who you spend your time with. Some people will promote discipline while others will tempt you to break it. So find a team.
Look for people who have similar goals, perhaps even with people who are stronger and more dedicated than you and build relationships with them. Because if you surround yourself with strong and disciplined people in time, you will grow to be like them. Step number three Find a fight.
Second Timothy Chapter two versus 3 to 4. You therefore must endure hardship as a good soldier of Jesus Christ. In this passage, Paul tells Timothy that he must go through hardship in the same way a soldier does.
So the next important thing that you should do, if you want to grow in spiritual discipline, is to find a fight or a cause to take part in. Look. Soldiers don't train for fun.
They're supposed to train for something bigger than themselves. And good soldiers are willing to lay down their lives for the safety and protection of their family, friends and their country. So if we're supposed to be good soldiers of Jesus Christ, the question that I need to ask is what do we fight for?
I mean, yeah, we want spiritual discipline, but why? What are we going to use it for? What do we believe in and what do we want to fight for?
Because I'll tell you what, If you find a fight worth fighting that can make a difference in people's lives. You'll have a reason to be strong. And that reason will drive you to greater discipline.
Step number four Find a habit. Luke, Chapter five, verse 16. So he himself often withdrew into the wilderness and prayed.
In this passage, we see that Jesus had the habit of separating himself from everyone and making it a point to pray despite his busy schedule. And here we have a small glimpse into what discipline looked like for Jesus. And the takeaway I see is to live like Jesus and to make it a point to regularly do something that would be spiritually uplifting in our life.
So my suggestion is to find one habit that you believe that could encourage you in your walk with God and to keep trying to master that one habit until it becomes part of who you are. Maybe you make waking up earlier habit or having regular prayer walks or journaling, etc. .
I'd also add that some of the best habits to build are learning to have deeper prayer and having more in-depth studies of God's Word. I would say that the focus, though, should be to make attempts to regularly do something that would be beneficial to you and to keep doing them until it becomes part of your daily routine. And once you get that one down, learn another habit.
The idea is to regularly take small steps in a healthy direction so that one day discipline just becomes something that you naturally do. Step number five Find a sacrifice. Matthew Chapter five, verse 30.
And if your right hand causes you to sin, cut it off and cast it from you, for it is more profitable for you that one of your members perish than for your whole body to be cast into hell. In this passage, Jesus presents an extreme idea, and it's to cut off your right hand. If it causes you to send.
This passage, though, isn't meant to be taken literally, but it's an encouragement for his followers to take extreme actions to get rid of sin in their life. So if discipline is something that you want, you must find a habit to build and at the same time you must find a bad habit to get rid of. Discipline is more than just getting better at something.
It's also a process of removing harmful habits or things that can get in the way of our progress. So I'd encourage you to identify what could possibly hurt your goals and to take steps to limit them or remove them entirely. Okay.
So if you're someone who wants more discipline in your life, please consider these five steps. Find a mentor, a team, a fight, a habit, and a sacrifice to close. Be patient with yourself and your goals as you move towards greater discipline.
I'd say it's important to have a marathon mentality, especially when it comes to the pursuit of greater godliness. So if things aren't progressing as fast as you'd like, keep going if you fall. Continue to take small steps.
Rest in God's grace and always remember Jesus loves you.
