Are You disciplined?
Hey Partners and Friends!
Today I want to ask you two questions: are you seeking God? Are you disciplined? Twenty years ago the Lord asked me the same two questions. He started with the discipline question. At that time, I was still coaching so he used my players as an example. He said, “Are you as disciplined to Me as your players are to you?” Wow! I had to think about that because my players were disciplined! I could call them at 2 AM and tell them to meet me at the field to run laps and they would say, “yes, sir, coach”. No whining, no complaining. They’d just do it!
Why? Because they trusted me, and they craved the championship. They were willing to do whatever it took to win. So, when the Lord asked me if I was that disciplined to Him, it took me back a little. It was tough to answer. Like I stated in last week’s blog, I wasn’t backslidden. My family went to church. I was reading my Bible every night before I went to bed. In that second it dawned on me; I was just a regular, “plain ol’ Christian.” No extras added to my life in my relationship with God. I was not the champion that God had called me to be. Champions crave the championship with their whole heart. They will spend extra hours practicing, lifting weights to get stronger, reading books, and watching films to make them smarter at their position. They do all of this to help them understand and prepare for their opponent - seeking after the championship is their number one priority.
Upon asking myself “Am I disciplined?” I realized that I was not as disciplined with God as I was in running a state championship program. I realized that just going to church and “clocking in” was not enough. Reading my Bible verse every night was not enough either because Bible study had become something that I just did right before I fell asleep. I would read, “Jesus wept” and fall asleep. That is not a disciplined Bible study life! Our number one calling in life is our relationship with God. I realized that day that my job, my family, and watching this baseball game on TV was more important to me than disciplining myself to spend time with the Lord and truly read His Word. You see, when athletes discipline themselves to work out, they are not just “clocking in.” They push themselves past the level of just clocking in to a disciplined level that brings great results. They no longer look at the discipline set before them as a drudgery but something that will make them better, stronger, faster and healthier.
It’s the same thing with God! Our disciplined lives set before Him will make us better, stronger, faster, healthier, wiser, and equip us with everything we face in life.
Come visit the website next week to see the second question God asked me.
Don’t Forget! The 18th annual Champions 4 Christ youth rally in Branson, MO is coming soon! This powerful week of meetings has great speakers like Chip and Billye Brim, Steve Munds and other impactful speakers. For more information please go to our website, Champions4Christ.org or check us out on Facebook at C4C Rally or Instagram @c4crally. See you July 23-27!
-Coach Brim