Don't Forget the Holy Spirit

Spiritual discipline sounds a bit like a call to a rigid monastic routine of prayer, fasting, reading Scripture, meditation, singing, and making bread. When I see the word discipline, I cringe and run. “Guilty as charged!” (I have the bread-making part down, though.)

As a young mother, my excuse for not having a regular prayer and Bible reading routine was two children, the youngest of which was two. Hectic, to say the least.

The original Greek though, sheds light on the word discipline because there are two meanings. Paideia – for parents to instruct, train, correct a child. Who knew I had practiced a spiritual discipline by simply raising children in the Lord? 

Reading Bible stories, taking them to regular Bible classes and worship, teaching their Sunday School. Talking to them about Jesus and God. Answering questions, some of which were shockingly deep for such young ages. 

Mathetes is the other word: a disciple, a learner, a student. When we practice “holy habits” as Kenneth Boa calls them, they draw us closer to Jesus. 

Bible study, prayer, meditation, fasting, singing, silence, solitude, journaling, confession, koinonia fellowship, simplicity, stewardship, guidance, witness, worship, celebration, service, sacrifice—all these various practices bring us into God’s presence.

The part we tend to skip is spiritual, but it’s huge. Discipline is often combined with the word self, as in self-control, or will power. We start out and make lists, buy calendars or organizers, put up reminder sticky notes. We make a PLAN and tell ourselves, “I can do this!”

That is self-motivating. When we rely on ourselves, we’ve taken the first step AWAY from true spiritual discipline and ignored the work of the Holy Spirit. 

All self-efforts at discipline and control will eventually fail without the Holy Spirit. The Spirit is tasked with helping us, empowering us, to do God’s will. I tried a lot of things to remember to pray for the people on my prayer list – written lists, set a time, bought a fancy prayer journal, you name it. Nothing worked until I made a standing Note in my phone, labeled Prayer List. 

I can access the list any time of day now, add new or remove answered prayers, and it’s been successful for several months.

Here are five other suggestions to get you started.

1.     Pray for forgiveness and confess your sins. Ask the Spirit for help.

2.     Examine excuses. 

3.     Read relevant Scriptures.

4.     Discover what works for you.

5.     Find an accountability partner 

Remember the more you practice, the easier it gets. As Ken Boa noted, “You won’t regret prayer and Bible study, but you will regret not doing it.” 

Accept that life will intervene. Spiritual disciplines will help to drive sin out of our lives, but we won’t be perfect no matter what. As humans, if we start with the Holy Spirit and proceed in the Holy Spirit, despite how little or much we accomplish, it will have been done by and through the will of God. 

And that’s all we need to keep trying.

“Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.” Rom. 12:2

Question for Reflection: 

Think back to when you might have ever said any of these:

“I need to pray more often.” 

“I’ve got to read my Bible daily.”

“I should eat less and exercise more.”

How did you start out making a routine of them? Were you successful or not?