Christian Discipline By Sis. Toyin

Discipline is the practice of training  yourself to obey a rule or a code of behaviour


—Spiritual Discipline— For Christians, though there is more to life than "spirituality", there isn't much more! Without the proper relationship with God, everything else that we have or do is quintessentially meaningless, ultimately. So in prioritizing how to discipline our lives to make us more effective for God, we have to start with the spiritual stuff. That's just "keeping it real". And so that is what we will do here in this study. :)

In the 6th chapter of Matthew, Jesus cites three different things that we can do to deepen our relationship with God. These three things are praying (speaking/seeking to listen to God alone), fasting (missing meals), and giving to the poor (or acts of charity -- pay special attention to the fact—that all three of these acts are supposed to be done secretly). 

We as Christians need to discipline ourselves to CONTINUALLY do these things, if we are to stay in touch with God. If we slack off in any one of these are as (i.e. praying, fasting, or giving to the poor), our spiritual livelihood will suffer as a result. The choice, initiative, and wherewithal lies entirely with us, and is the truest testament of our personal faith and sincerity (or lack thereof). Critically examining our progress in this secret area of personal discipline will help to ensure that we maintain that vital link with God, which only God and we can ever truly have the full story on.