Celebrate Discipline – Page 4 – REACHING HURTING WOMEN MINISTRIES

In our Celebrate Discipline column each month we are learning a new Spiritual Discipline, how to apply it and hopefully grow into the people God wants us to be.

SPIRITUAL DISCIPLINES: habits that nurture spiritual growth; exercises unto godliness.

SIMPLICITY: freedom from complexity, pretense or guile; direct expression; absence of luxury.

“Actually, I don’t have a sense of needing anything personally. I’ve learned by now to be quite content whatever my circumstances. I’m just as happy with little as with much, with much as with little.” ~ Philippians 4:11-12 (The Message)

All the Spiritual Disciplines are important, but I believe Simplicity is a linchpin to our spiritual growth. Our culture has us so busy, our homes and lives so cluttered with possessions and noise that we can barely think let alone hear God’s still small voice.

Starting in 2006, because of several moves for my husband’s work, we were forced to sell most of our possessions. At the time we owned a 3000 sq foot home that was full to the brim with “stuff.” We needed to trim that down to the bare minimums required for survival as we moved back and forth across America; the rest went into a 10′ x 20′ storage room. It was a challenge but well worth it.

After four years we came out of that experience with a decidedly simplified lifestyle. We learned valuable lessons that taught us how much we really can live without.

If you want to live life free, take your time, go slowly. Do few things but do them well. Simple joys are holy. ~ Celtic Daily Prayer Book

Simplicity is more than eliminating possessions and adjusting lifestyle. It must begin with our heart attitude.

Thoughts Toward Simplicity:

What am I clinging to?
Am I buying things for their usefulness or for their status?
How can I avoid media marketing that drives me to buy?

Simplicity is the breath of fresh air we desperately need to revive our weary bodies and souls. It begins by trusting God for our everything, in our heart, our mind and our spirit!

What step will you take today to create a simpler lifestyle?

Click here to watch Part One of Richard Foster and friends discussing the Spiritual Discipline of Simplicity. You can find Part Two here.

RESOURCES:
Celebration of Discipline by Richard Foster
Spiritual Disciplines Handbook by Adele Ahlberg Calhoun

Whether college students or students of life, when trying to learn something new we need the discipline of study. It’s the same when it comes to our personal spiritual growth. Let’s look at how we can become better students of and for God.

Our goal of integrating the Spiritual Disciplines into our lives is to transform our total person, to re-place old destructive thoughts and habits with new life-giving ones. Today we’ll learn four steps that will help us make the most of our valuable study time. But first let’s look at our definitions for this week:

SPIRITUAL DISCIPLINES: habits that nurture spiritual growth; exercises unto godliness.

STUDY: application of the mind to the acquisition of knowledge.

The Bible tells us that we are transformed through the renewal of our mind. And our mind becomes renewed as we apply the things we’ve learned in new habits. Some of us have naturally good study habits but many of us need help in this area.

Here are four steps that I learned from Richard Foster’s book Celebration of Discipline:

- REPETITION ~ channels our mind in a specific direction by ingraining thoughts. Whether rereading, re-writing or reciting material aloud, repetition always works for me.

- CONCENTRATION ~ our brain’s natural ability is enhanced by centering our energies on our subject of study. Remove distractions and find a quiet place where you can focus. Again key for me.

- COMPREHENSION ~ understanding what we are studying is not always an easy task, but when we put the previous steps to work, comprehension is more achievable. Before we know it we have that light-bulb moment!

- REFLECTION ~ once we have defined our subject through comprehension we are ready to bring significance to what we have learned. With reflection we can now apply what we have learned to our life.

Whether listening to audio books, studying nature on a daily walk, or doing an intense scripture study, there are many ways we can become attune to the message of God’s love in our lives.

One of the most important things I’ve learned from Richard Foster these last several years is don’t get stuck reading only current books or publications. By alternating classic Christian literature into my reading, more depth has come into my spiritual learning experience. Now the classics are my preference.

If you are unfamiliar with Christian classics, I encourage you to check out Spiritual Classics by Richard Foster. This excellent book contains excerpts from many of the greatest books ever written. It’s designed like a devotional or can be used as a small group study.

Whatever your do turn off the TV, put down the smart phone and pick up a good book. You won’t be sorry!

What’s your favorite Christian classic book?

RESOURCES:

Celebration of Discipline by Richard Foster
Spirit of the Disciplines by Dallas Willard
Spiritual Disciplines for the Christian Life by Donald S. Whitney
Spiritual Disciplines Handbook by Adele Ahlberg Calhoun