Self discipline

There are a lot of people in the world who are responsible for other people and often have to use discipline. Some examples are parents, bosses, teachers, Policemen, and superiors. With that responsibility comes a lot of things. All these people have 1 thing in common...one of their goals is to help guide other people towards being their best selves!

Another huge example of someone who shares the goal of directing people to become their best selves is God the Father! He gives us all the tools necessary to do His will but we sometimes turn away from it because it's too hard or too uncomfortable. For example, he gives us the batter, the eggs, the oil, the pan, the bowl, the mixer, the pot holder and the oven but we complain because we have to mix it together and bake the cake! Think about how selfish that is of us! Does that scenario not make you feel so guilty and so selfish? I know I do!

Let's look at a few ways the examples use discipline..

1. The parents; time outs, taking away toys, going to bed earlier, spanking (yes I said it), setting an example of the right way, sending them to their room, etc.

2. Bosses; write ups, more assignments, extra duty/shifts, firing, etc.

3. Teachers; moving desks, notes to parents, bad marks, sending to the principal, expelling students, etc.

4. Policemen; tickets/citations, arresting people, jail, etc.

5. Superiors; this matches bosses but also goes for adults to kids and such. And

6. God the Father; God's discipline is not punishment, as Jesus already bore our punishment. Nor is His discipline motivated by a desire to inflict pain. Nor is God's discipline from anger. He does not lose His temper, treat us unfairly, or allow us to suffer anything that is not for our ultimate good. Rather, God's discipline comes from His great love for us. It is a token of His adoption of us as children. He loves us too much to allow us to remain in our sin. He loves us so much that He will do whatever is necessary to make us holy. Sometimes the medicine must taste bad, but that doesn't change the fact that the physician's motive is mercy. While discipline is sometimes painful, God's purpose in disciplining us is for our own good, our holiness. The ultimate good for a Christian is to be sanctified, which is to be conformed to the image and likeness of Christ.

God allows us to undergo trials and temptations so our faith will be tested and we will grow in maturity as Christians. God uses these trials to discipline us for godliness. When suffering comes, it is wise to examine ourselves and to repent of any known sins. The best example of this is Job. Job's friends believed that because he was suffering, he must have some secret sin. However, this was not the case. In fact, God recommended Job because of His uprightness. Another example is found in the gospel of John in the man who was born blind. Another example is Joseph being sold into slavery by his brothers; Joseph suffered due to the sins of others, but ultimately God used it for His good purposes. Discipline is not merely corrective, but also involves training. Just as an athlete disciplines his or her body through physical training in order to prepare it for competition, God disciplines us by training our souls to make us holy and prepare us to be in His presence.

Now let's look at self discipline! There are 10 basic rules for self discipline!

1. Know your weaknesses! If you can't admit what you're doing is wrong, you probably aren't ready for a commitment to change.

2. Remove temptation! As I've said before, if your weakness is junk food, stop buying it! If it's alcohol, stop putting yourself in a situation to be around it!

3. Set clear goals and have a plan. Make yourself a schedule of your daily activities down to snacks and tv time if necessary. Fill in every hour so there's no room for error.

4. Build your self discipline! We aren't born with it and it does require daily practice!

5. Create new habits by keeping it simple! Start small at first and grow from there. It would be quite overwhelming to go straight from the couch to a 5k in a day. Keep it simple and attainable.

6. Eat often and healthy! So many people think the more they eat (meaning times a day) the more weight they'll gain but that's not the case at all! You're body reacts best to 5 or 6 small meals per day full of nutrients!

7. Change your perception about will power! If you think will power is just denying yourself the things you want the most then you'll only grow to despise it! Train your brain to think differently, think better, think healthier! Instead of saying I can't habe that candy bar, try telling yourself I don't want to put that into my body because it has no value.

8. Give yourself a plan B! Going to a party? Take your own snacks in case there's nothing there that you should/want to eat.

9. Reward yourself! Lost 50# and want to celebrate? Get a milestone tattoo (my reward), or take yourself shopping for a new outfit.

10. Forgive yourself and move forward! Missed a day at the gym? Don't beat yourself up! Just go tomorrow. Eat a candy bar instead of the lunch you had packed for lunch? Write down your thoughts about it such as if you feel guilty or wish you wouldn't have. Then next time you want to buy a candy bar, read that note and sat your prepared lunch, write down how you feel about that and compare the notes!

It's all a learning experience! No one has all the answers and they're lying if they say they do! Let's just all stick together and make it through this and on to our best selves to glorify God!!

Much love yall! Until next time,

Kay