Discipline is patient.

“Only those who have the patience to do things perfectly,” Friedrich Schiller said, “will acquire the skills to do difficult things easily.” 

You have to show up day in and day out. You have to keep showing up and doing the work necessary even when results are small or unseen. 

When you feel as if you’re not making the slightest bit of difference. 

And when you everything in you says, “Give up.”

Discipline knows that reward comes to those who wait.  

To those who apply themselves to their craft with focus and determination over the long haul. 

There are zero overnight successes. Not in art. Not in music. Not in sports. And not in life. 

Behind every supposed overnight success is a lot of sweat, hard work, and patience. 

It may take years to reach your goal. 

And that’s ok. 

All that sweat and patience is building within you the character and discipline you need. It is shaping you into the person you need to be. It is making you worthy of your accomplishment. 

You wouldn’t rejoice if things came easy. You’d do what most people do with easy achievement—ignore it. 

The goals you're chasing are valuable and life giving because they are hard. Their difficulty is their magic. 

They are asking for the drive, determination, and patience required. In short, they are demanding discipline. 

Don’t quit when things get hard. 

Don’t give up because it’s not easy. 

Don’t move on to something new instead of sticking it out and seeing it through. 

Be patient. 

Stay the course. 

Apply discipline and remain patient. 

Results will come. Just give it time. 
 

Inconsistency is an opportunity

You’re inconsistent. 

You think and act in ways that fail to mesh with your values in principles. 

Not just you, but all of us are walking and talking hypocrites. 

But that’s not the whole story. 

The rest of the story is that each time you catch yourself living inconsistently with your values is an opportunity. 

An opportunity to:

• change,
• correct course,
• confess,
• ask forgiveness, and
• begin again. 

Of course, it’s also an opportunity to:

• bow up,
• double down,
• give up,
• quit, and
• blame.

Hypocrisy isn’t the end of your story. It’s an intimate and defining part of it. 

How you respond to your inconsistencies will go a long long way towards determining what happens in your life. 

Choose the first set of responses rather than the second. 

They are hard and uncomfortable steps to take but lead to healing, hope, and happiness in the end. 

Most of all, they lead to growth and your best self.  

Humility

Humility is essential to success. 

It’s almost impossible to get there without it. 

You have to be willing make an honest assessment of yourself, to learn and to ask for help. 

Each requires humility. 

Be humble. 

Take stock of where you’re weak and own the problems and solutions. 

Ask for help along the way. Even the Lone Ranger had Tonto. 

Humble yourself and seek to improve in every area of your life. 

There are no finished products this side of Heaven. Embrace this truth and it’ll change everything. 

Showing up isn't enough

Even bad employees and teammates show up. 

To stand out, and reach your goals you’ve got to do more. 

You must give everything you have to make every moment of your day the best it can possibly be. 

Squeeze every ounce of potential from each minute of your day. 

Every moment is a growth opportunity. 

You can use it to build a better, stronger and healthier future or not. 

Ask yourself what should you be doing right now to maximize your abilities and improve your results.

Are you respecting each minute of your day, or wasting a few?

Go all in and leave nothing on the table. 
 

Keeping Truth Before You

“Everything,” Andre Gide said, “that needs to be said has already been said. But, since no one was listening, everything must be said again.” 

And better still—it is worth hearing again.

There are messages you need to set before your eyes and ears on a regular basis. 

Cheif among them are the truths of the gospel of grace. 

Preach it to yourself daily, even moment by moment if need be. 

Make it the refrain of your life. 

Reading excellent books is one of the best ways to keep biblical truth before you. 

I’m inviting you to read Spiritual Disciplines for the Christian Life by Donald Whitney with me for this reason. 

You can find out more about what we’re doing here if you missed last Sunday’s post. 

I am excited to dive into the Spiritual Disciplines once more and see all the Lord has in store for us these next thirteen weeks. 

We will kick off the series next Sunday, August 20th and I would love for you to jump in with us. 

If you’d like to read along, I found the best price on Amazon. You can order it here if you’re so inclined. 

Note: The link above is an affiliate link. I earn a small commission should you choose to use it while making your book purchase.