My practice of spiritual disciplines in my past have bordered on a check-list mentality. Read my
Bible, check. Prayed, check. Meditated
on and memorized a verse or passage, check.
I can be disciplined in these tasks daily. But does my discipline to accomplish these
tasks change me? Maybe a little. Maybe not as much as they could or
should. And now I know the secret of
success.
The secret of success in the spiritual disciplines is the
same as it is for any type of discipline.
It’s remembering the purpose.
Physical discipline of exercise – weight loss or fitness. Academic discipline of study – to pass an
exam or become an expert. It’s merely
looking toward the goal.
The goal of the spiritual disciplines is to become more
like Jesus - holiness, Godliness, spiritual growth. The discipline is merely the means to the
goal. We must keep our eyes fixed on the
goal as we practice the disciplines.
The spiritual disciplines will not automatically result
in holiness. It is a gift that comes
from God, and only He brings about the transformation. The disciplines are the
means through which we open ourselves up to God to receive His grace and all He
has to give that changes us. They are
the channels of His transforming grace. The
effort does not produce change; it merely puts us in the position to receive
it.
The disciplines position our hearts and minds to receive
what God wants to give. Our part is to
offer ourselves lovingly and obediently to God, and then God does His work in
us. We can’t demand Him to do His work,
but we can open ourselves up to Him through the spiritual disciplines in ways
without which we might miss Him completely.
Ultimately, as we remember the goal of the disciplines,
practicing them becomes a delight, not a drudgery. They increase our awareness to God and our
response to His Word in us.
One danger of the spiritual disciplines is the check-list
or performance mentality that sets our foot on the slippery slope to
self-righteousness. The protection we
must take is to focus on God and the goal rather than on ourselves and our
success (or lack of) at the actual practice of the discipline.
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