Discipline. For me, it’s the dreaded “D-word”! I have been discipline-challenged for many years. It’s just one of those nagging issues that I can’t seem to get a grip on. Can any of you relate? I am a laid back person who loves to linger in the quiet of my home and do things at my own pace. I can be quite the procrastinator, as well. I have initiated new routines in my life time after time, hoping that they would stick and that I would have the follow-through to keep going on a more disciplined track regarding exercise or eating or writing or…whatever. A few days or weeks later, lo and behold, I’ve fallen out of the routine  once again. I can’t tell you how many times I have joined gyms or the local YMCA, only to find myself coming up with all kinds of excuses not to go. And I have started and restarted healthy eating routines more times than I can count! It’s even a challenge for me to post on this blog with any regularity! I’m trying my best, though.

I am a person who prefers to let my day unfold as it will…reading when I want to read, writing when I feel like it, going for a walk when I have the energy, and doing the laundry when my kids tell me they are out of underwear. (Don’t think that my house is a mess, however. I am actually a meticulous housekeeper…I just don’t have a regular laundry routine…I don’t have a regular anything routine!) I have never been one to stick to a rigid schedule.

My husband, on the other hand, is a routine maniac. (I say that with love!) He gets up at the same time every day (the crack of dawn) and exercises, then proceeds to eat the same breakfast every day and then to take a nap in the recliner for precisely 15 minutes before he dresses for work. I can set my clock by it. He is a very disciplined and routine-driven person. He also swims for exercise on given days and has a regular weight training routine. Now why hasn’t any of that rubbed off on me in almost 25 years? Not fair!

Is lack of discipline the same thing as laziness? What do you think?

Is it important for us as Christians to live disciplined lives? What does the Bible have to say about it?

Here are some verses related to discipline:

“No discipline seems pleasant at the time, but painful. Later on, however, it produces a harvest of righteousness and peace for those who have been trained by it.”                  Hebrews 12:11 (NIV)

“Like a city whose walls are broken down is a man who lacks self-control.”               Proverbs 25-28 (NIV)

“The sluggard craves and gets nothing, but the desires of the diligent are fully satisfied.” Proverbs 13:4 (NIV)

“Do you not know that in a race, all the runners run, but only one gets the prize? Run in such a way as to get the prize. Everyone who competes in the games goes into strict training. They do it to get a crown that will not last; but we do it to get a crown that will last forever.Therefore, I do not run like a man running aimlessly; I do not fight like a man beating the air. No, I beat my body and make it my slave so that after I have preached to others I myself will not be disqualified for the prize.” 1 Corinthians 9:24-27 (NIV)

So, basically, living an undisciplined life has spiritual implications. Discipline and hard work are valued greatly by God and therefore, should be important to us, as well. I have been praying about this issue in my life and have come up with a plan to work on it. I am initiating some new habits and dropping some old ones, as well as, developing a workable structure for my day (better known as a schedule). I will let you know how it goes.