Devotions with Pastor Delinda

“....Discipline yourselves for the purpose of godliness...”
-1 Tim. 4:7-8

Hello church family,

I’ve been thinking about discipline a lot lately.  Before you think about it, I don’t mean the kind of discipline you give to your children although the way my kids are acting right now maybe that’s what I should be working on. 

I’m talking about Spiritual Discipline.  I’ve been reading “Spiritual Disciplines for the Christian Life” and in it Donald Whitney says “So many professing Christians are so spiritually undisciplined that they seem to have little fruit and power in their lives.  I’ve seen men and women who discipline themselves for the purpose of excelling in their profession, discipline themselves very little for the purpose of godliness.  I’ve seen Christians who are faithful to the church of God, who frequently demonstrate genuine enthusiasm for the things of God, and who dearly love the Word of God, trivialize their effectiveness for the Kingdom of God through lack of discipline.  Spiritually they are a mile wide and an inch deep.

He goes on to compare spiritual discipline to a musician who works hard at learning to play an instrument knowing that it takes years to acquire the skill or someone who will work hard to lower their golf score knowing it may take years and countless hours of practice or those dedicated to their career who will risk everything else in life to get ahead.  He says “These same people will give up quickly when they find the Spiritual disciplines won’t come easily, as though becoming like Jesus was not supposed to take much effort.”

How are you in the area of spiritual discipline?  Are you more faithful at scrolling through Facebook or posting your next selfie on Instagram?  Are you more devoted to your work?  Your hobby?  Are you in the mile high and inch deep club?  What area are you lacking in?  Bible intake?  Prayer? Worship?  Evangelism? Serving?  Stewardship? Fasting? Silence and Solitude?  Journaling?  Pick one and make that your focus this week, or this month and begin developing  your spiritual discipline.  Pick up a copy of this book, maybe it will help you as it is helping me. 

“The goal of godliness isn’t found on the surface of Christianity, it has to be dug from the depths with the tools of the disciplines...for those who persevere the treasures are more than worth the trouble.” (-Whitney)

It takes time, it takes work, it takes discipline to grow in Christ, are you willing to do that?  Join me this week in taking the time you spend on social media, or even just a portion of it,  your evening TV time, a portion of the time you spend on your hobby, whatever it may be and spend it on one of the spiritual disciplines.  Let’s do this together!  I will be focusing on Bible intake and Prayer.  (I’d say silence and solitude but I can’t even go to the bathroom alone or take a shower without the door being beat down...I’ll work on that when the kids get a little older.)
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Much love and many blessings,
Pastor Delinda

Photo by Dominik Scythe on Unsplash