“But if you are without discipline — which all receive — then you are illegitimate children and not sons.” ‭‭Hebrews‬ ‭12:8‬ ‭HCSB‬‬

Discipline! Our first thought on discipline is punishment, but there is a second thought that should be remembered. That is habit, or practiced training. That is to say, someone has a Christlike discipline. We are disciplined by God to remove an unwanted behavior, but it is our job to develop discipline for the things God wants us to do. 

We have talked about these before, but for those who needed to be reminded, the basic disciplines that need to be developed in our lives are The Bible, prayer, fellowship, and witnessing. 

There are five areas of the bible that must be disciplined in our lives:

1. Listening

2. Reading

3. Studying

4. Memorizing

5. Meditation

Visit this Navigators page to learn more.

https://www.navigators.org/resource/the-word-hand/

Likewise, five areas of prayer must be disciplined in our lives

1. confession 

2. petition

3. intercession 

4. thanksgiving 

5. praise

Visit this Navigators page to learn more. 

https://www.navigators.org/resource/the-prayer-hand

Fellowship is the third discipline that must be developed in our life. What is the difference between a group of people hanging out to watch a presidential debate and a bung of Christians hanging out to watch the same presidential debate? The conversations during and after! Because the Christians should engage in biblically-based discussion during and afterward on the rights and wrongs of each candidate based on the Bible. That is fellowship. The world calls it hanging out. And if we are not including a biblically-based conversation during our time together we are just hanging out too. 

“what we have seen and heard we also declare to you, so that you may have fellowship along with us; and indeed our fellowship is with the Father and with His Son Jesus Christ.”

‭‭1 John‬ ‭1:3‬ ‭HCSB‬‬

https://www.bible.com/72/1jn.1.3.hcsb

“And let us be concerned about one another in order to promote love and good works, not staying away from our worship meetings, as some habitually do, but encouraging each other, and all the more as you see the Day drawing near.”

‭‭Hebrews‬ ‭10:24-25‬ ‭HCSB‬‬

https://www.bible.com/72/heb.10.24-25.hcsb

“For where two or three are gathered together in My name, I am there among them.”

‭‭Matthew‬ ‭18:20‬ ‭HCSB‬‬

https://www.bible.com/72/mat.18.20.hcsb

The fourth, but not last, discipline that must be discipled into our life is witnessing. That is to tell the lost and dying world that Jesus is the way, the truth, and the life and that no one will go to heaven without Him. 

The Bridge to Life is an illustration developed by The Navigators to help explain salvation to someone from one verse or many. Check it out here: https://www.navigators.org/resource/the-bridge-to-life.

So let us change our thinking in the ways of discipline to include some of what God wants to discipline into our lives and not just what He wants to discipline out of our lives.

“Apply yourself to discipline and listen to words of knowledge.”

‭‭Proverbs‬ ‭23:12‬ ‭HCSB‬‬

https://www.bible.com/72/pro.23.12.hcsb

When as we are developing these four disciplines into our life two qualities will develop into our lives: Jesus the Center of our life and obedience in action to Jesus.

For more information on these six topics see the wheel from the Navigators at https://www.navigators.org/resource/the-wheel-illustration