A week of growing in Discipline

“to the weak I became as weak, that I might win the weak, I have become all things to all men, that I might by all means save some. Now this I do for the gospels sake, that I may be a partaker of it with you.” 1 Corinthians 9:22-23

God has called me to be a missionary for Him in Costa Rica for 6 months and here in Antigua, Guatemala for 3 months. So to me these verses have a huge impact on my life right now. Technically they still had an impact on me when I was back home but it is just a more noticeable thing here.

Here I do not speak the language fluently, I stick out like a sour thumb because of my looks and I am an American. All of these things can put up barriers if I am not careful. One thing that has been super hard for me to get used to is the greeting. Here you need to greet a person whenever you see them and I have always struggled with initiating conversations. So this is an area that I need to work in and have been growing in. I try to remember to say, “Buenas!” every time that I walk into the kitchen and see Maria. I am not perfect at it yet and several times I have left the room and hit myself on the head because I forgot to say it. And I think that it has helped me a lot when it came to building a relationship with Maria.

Can you imagine if after I realized what a big deal the greeting is I had the attitude of, “Well this is not how I do things so I am not going to do it. If they want to talk to me they can start the conversation!” Now all of a sudden those three things that I listed as possible difficulties just became giants. Because I was not willing to become all things to all men, I have just ruined my chances to witness to people. And for what? A non-salvation issue. I can understand mot changing the issues regarding salvation but to not be willing to step out of your comfort zone to not be a stumbling block to people you are witnessing to is the height of selfishness.

I am not saying that I am perfect in this area, God knows I am not but I want to get better.

“Do you not know that those who run in a race all run, but one receives the prize? Run in such a way that you may obtain it.” Philippians 9:24

There is something about a sports analogy that really resonates with me. It could be the fact that I come from a very competitive family or that I just love sports. But for whatever the reason might be this verse just hits home.

I am not the type of person that likes to lose. So whenever I play a sport I always like to be doing my best. This means some very long hours kicking or throwing the ball. All of my IGNITE classmates know that I am quite devoted to kicking the soccer ball. I do it up to 3 times a day. I do this because I want to be good. But am I doing this in a spiritual sense? Am I spending long hours reading and praying? Am I devoted to the things of Acts 2:42? Is it obvious that I am devoted to spending time with God?

Sadly, I have to answer in the negative in some of these areas. But just like in sports what to you do when you have formed a bad habit. You stop practicing it! If you practice an incorrect technique you will play incorrectly. If you practice the correct technique you will play correctly and efficiently. I want to obtain the prize and I want to run well. Not to be panting and hobbling by the end but to finish strong by having run well.

“Now everyone who competes exercises self-control in everything. However they do it to receive a crown that will fade away, but we a crown that will never fade away.” 1 Corinthians 9:25

For my last Inductive Bible Study, I talked about how because I love to play soccer I practice it three times a day and that it is obvious that I like it. And how when it comes to Spiritual matters it needs to be the same thing. Well I am going to continue on that line of thought for this Study.

When you are playing a sport it takes a lot of self-control to practice enough to excel in it and it takes a lot of self-control during the game too. I don’t know how many times the opposing team in soccer has hit me pretty hard with a soccer ball in the stomach, or head. Or how many times I was illegally kicked. It takes a lot of self-control to not retaliate in these circumstances. And what is the reason that you do not retaliate? Because you do not want to be kicked out of the game. You do not want to have that on your sports record. If your team is doing well and because you couldn’t control yourself the other team gets a free kick and gets a goal. You are pretty much a punk that could lose it for your team.

And I think that this can also apply to the spiritual. How many times do I need to exercise self-control to help out my team? No matter how I am treated or if someone is purposely being a punk, I cannot retaliate because that will hurt my team.  I do not want to be disqualified from the prize because I thought it was my right. No matter what happens I need to totally give all the control to God and take myself out of the equation that I may win the crow.

“Therefore run thus: not with uncertainty. Thus I fight; not as one who beats the air.”  1 Corinthians 9:26

Ok, once again it is time for another soccer reference. Monday I was having a pretty hard time with two of the Bible college students leaving. They had become really good friends of mine and I couldn’t understand why God would let me get close to them and then take them away from me. And as I was talking to God I was kicking the soccer ball barefooted. Well my first couple of kicks where good but as it started to hurt my foot I started to brace myself for the pain before I even kicked the ball. And as a result the ball would go flying in every direction except where I wanted it. And God spoke to me right there, “Haley what happens when you are scared of the ball in baseball? What happens when you cringe before kicking the ball? You get hurt and you do poorly. Why do you think it is different spiritually? If I am telling you to do something, do it without fear or doubt.”

Yikes! Wake up call right there. And this verse is saying the exact same thing. We need to run the race that God has called us to with certainty not with fear or doubt. In James 1:6-8 it talks about a double-minded man that does not ask in faith but doubts, so he is a unstable man who is like a wave in the sea tossed to and fro. I am supposed to be running a race so I need to be completely confident in my God and his character. As Pastor Jim said the other day, “God proved His character on the cross.”

“But I discipline my body and bring it into subjection, lest, when I have preached to others, I should myself become disqualified.” 1 Corinthians 9:27

Ok, so have you ever had a coach that is teaching you all these techniques on how to play better, eat better, and work out more effectively and then you looked at your coach and they are not in shape and they cannot do the things that they are telling you to do. And for me at least, it comes to a point where you ask why don’t you practice what you preach? I don’t mean to sound like a punk. It is just one of those things that when someone is telling you how to do something you expect that they are doing what they are telling you to do. If you are telling me to eat a certain way to maintain my health, I am expecting that you are eating this way and it is really helping you. If they are not, then it can be a stumbling block.

And Paul right here is going to avoid that stumbling block by being disciplined and putting his body into subjection just like he has been encouraging the Corinthian church to do. Now was Paul perfect? No! He was the first one to admit that but he was constantly fighting his flesh. Perfection is not the requirement for me to listen to someone.