Enjoying the Journey
Posts Tagged ‘Discipline’
Are You Still Running?
The other day a friend I had not talked to for some time asked if I was still running. Yes, my times have not been quite as good as I would like but I am still running. Travel schedules and winter weather pose challenges – but, if it is not one thing it is always another. The key is to put on the shoes again and just keep running. As I have reflected on our conversation the Holy Spirit has stirred my heart about a race that is far greater than any physical exercise (1 Timothy 4:8; Hebrews 12:1). New believers often come out of the starting block with great enthusiasm. They run! And then…they don’t. Are you still running?…
Read MoreThe Most Important Lessons I Learned in My College Years
A few days ago I had the joy of addressing a group of college students in a local church. There were freshmen and upperclassmen, full of hope and excitement as they approached the beginning of a new year. Life is divided into seasons and every season has a purpose (Ecclesiastes 3:1-11). The college years are a time of preparation. In these days God is at work in so many ways to prepare young people for all He has for them. All of college was good for me. Dorm life. Student Events. Even History of Civilization. As I reflected on my college years I began to see that it was in this season of life that I began to understand that some…
Read MoreLessons Learned on My Daily Run
Running has become for me many things. It is a means to stay in shape, a stress reliever, time to think. Recently it has become a classroom in which the Teacher has been showing me so many important lessons. It is not by accident that God refers frequently in the New Testament to our life as a race to be run. Henry Drummond wrote a great deal about how the physical world mirrors so many spiritual realities. This should be no surprise to us, for the creation simply reflects the Creator. This is why the Lord Jesus so often used parables – physical, earthly, every day things – to speak of much higher truth. In this way, running has begun…
Read MoreRun Your Race!
About five months ago I did something I have never done – I started running. I should have started years ago. While physically it has helped me, I am amazed at how much clarity and quiet it provides to think and pray. But this is not a blog about running. It is about life. Many times in the last few months I have realized the similarities between running and the daily disciplines of life. The Apostle Paul spoke frequently of this parallel… “…that I might finish my course with joy, and the ministry which I have received of the Lord Jesus, to testify the gospel of the grace of God” (Acts 20:24). “Know ye not that they which run in…
Read More7 Things A Blog Has Taught Me About Writing
We were standing in a bookstore surrounded by thousands of good books when I asked the question: “How do you begin writing?” The advice of one of my spiritual fathers that afternoon has been of immeasurable help to me. He said three things. First, get a copy of William Safire’s Fumblerules. I still have that helpful little volume, but more importantly I learned that to be a writer you have to work at it. Second, he counseled me not to publish too early. “When you are older your ideas will have formulated more clearly. You will be glad you waited.” He was right. Finally, he said, “Start. Begin with writing short articles and you will develop a style and the ability…
Read MoreA Daily Habit Everyone Should Form
All of my books have my name in them. They are like members of the family (just ask my wife!). In part, I put my name in the flyleaf of my books because I enjoy sharing them with others, but I always want to get them back. To share a good book is to invest in the life of another. When I am with friends one of my first questions is: “What have you read recently that is good?” There is no book like the Bible. It is God’s Book and unparalleled by anything man has to write. Yet those who study the Bible will tell you that one of the best things you can do for your mind and…
Read MoreWhy I Write In A Journal Every Day
At the end of 2008 I decided that I would try to begin writing in a journal each day. I am sitting in my study tonight looking back through old journals. The Lord has been so very good to me. There have been difficult days, but these pages are filled with the faithfulness of God. For me, writing in a journal each day has been the most helpful daily discipline I have ever followed, outside of prayer and the reading of God’s Word. David kept a journal. Read the Psalms. I have the journal of David Brainerd and George Muller. People keep a journal for different reasons, but there have been several benefits for me. 1. A journal helps me…
Read MoreDiscipline Makes the Difference
Through the years that I have been privileged to work in a Bible college I have met so many extremely talented, capable young people. And yet, it has always puzzled me that the ones who seem to have the greatest promise often do not finish. On the other hand, there are students with far less ability who finish, finish well, and go on to serve the Lord. What is that unseen, unknown quality that is the difference between those who dream and those who do? Discipline. Educational institutions speak of disciplines, or branches of instruction. Yet few of the students that pass through those halls ever learn the power and joy of a truly disciplined life. Discipline is more than…
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