It seems that everywhere you look there are new answers to the situations we face every day. When we have a baby, we look at the latest ways to take care of them. How to feed them, how to discipline them, and even how to love them. When we feel anxious or distressed, we find a doctor who can order a prescription that will change our world, or change our emotional response. When our loved one dies, we look to find books that will help us to cope. When we are overweight, we run to the store and find a pill or a new method that will make it easier to lose weight. I could go on and on with how we have determined, that the answers man has established, are better than what our creator has instructed. Please do not misunderstand, I am not trying to say that medicines aren’t necessary for certain situations. There are multitudes of doctors and counselors that are Bible-based that can help us find the answers to life, but they are only as good as the sources they use. There are no magic pills, or writers smarter than God, to make life easy.
This is a very controversial issue because we have sought out answers to life’s problems and found relief in the wisdom of man. Why, because we are seeking comfort, but not true solutions to our problems. We want a bandaid to stop the bleeding, instead of seeking the healing that only comes from God. We are an instant society and we want instant solutions.
For instance, to lose weight we must change our way of eating and stick with it or we will lose and regain the weight. I have often felt like my weight was a roller coaster ride. However, if I followed the direction God gives in scripture it would not be that way. In I Corinthians 9:24-27, Paul speaks about a runner and how he must be disciplined to win the race. He goes on to tell us we must discipline our own bodies. He reminds us that if we can’t discipline our own bodies, we will have no positive effect on others. Is this difficult? Absolutely, it is not something we can do well in the flesh. We must have the help of the Holy Spirit to guide us and we must be willing to yield to His leadership. Is it possible? Yes, God never asks us to do something that we cannot do through Him. Our problem is that we want God to control some of our life, but we are not willing to allow Him to control all of it.
I Corinthians 9:24 “Do you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only one receives the prize? So run that you may obtain it. Every athlete exercises self-control in all things. They do it to receive a perishable wreath, but we an imperishable. So, I do not run aimlessly; I do not box as one beating the air. But I discipline my body and keep it under control, lest after preaching to others I myself should be disqualified.”
I love what missionary and teacher Elisabeth Elliot wrote. “Discipline, for the Christian, begins with the body. We have only one. It is this body that is the primary material given to us for sacrifice. We cannot give our hearts to God and keep our bodies for ourselves.”
Discipline in any area of life takes commitment and time. There are no areas that escape hard work and consistency if we are to be successful in our obedience. Almost every time the Word gives us instruction, the world offers a counterfeit. For instance, training our children as God instructs, is vital to their well-being, and our obedience to the word. However, it seems that when training our children gets hard, we start looking for new ideas or new tools to accomplish our goal of having well-behaved children, rather than stay the course with God’s word.
In Galatians 5:22-23, we are given the fruit of the Spirit that dwells within each Christian. There are nine qualities that the Spirit brings to dwell within us when we are saved. At the end of that list is temperance. The proper translation for that word is self-control. The ability to govern ourselves lies within us but it is up to us to exercise it. We need to employ self-control to stay the course with God’s plan.
Galatians 5:22 “But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, Meekness, temperance: against such there is no law. And they that are Christ’s have crucified the flesh with the affections and lusts. If we live in the Spirit, let us also walk in the Spirit.”
God has the answers in His word for all of life’s questions if we will seek Him to find them. If we study, the Holy Spirit will help us to understand. If we lack wisdom, James tells us to ask and we will have it. God wants us to spend time getting to know Him through His word. He wants us to be disciplined enough to wait on Him to work on our behalf. We are to trust His ways and Him for everything we need. Follow His direction and obey. When we don’t feel we understand, He wants us to trust that He knows what He is doing, that He is in full control. When you need answers run to Him. He is the answer to all our needs.
