Week 11 Discussion Post 3 Document

Topic: Spiritual Disciplines

 Donald Whitney writes,” Discipline without direction is

drudgery.”[1]He explains that discipline in any aspect of life without a

goal is laborious, tedious, and loathsome. For a Christian, spiritual

discipline without a goal results in missing out on the joy of being a

Christian. Whitney states, “’Discipline yourself for the purpose of

godliness.’ Godliness—being like Jesus—is the purpose, but the God-given

path to that purpose is through certain activities found in Scripture known

as Spiritual Disciplines.”[2]Dave Earley calls this spiritual formation. He

that this is not an overnight accomplishment. He discusses the ten-

thousand-hour principle. He explains that it takes approximately ten

thousand hours to perfect a skill, which requires discipline. Unlike other

activities, spiritual discipline is a Christian’s lifelong endeavor. The apostle

Paul wrote to Timothy in 2 Timothy 3:16-17 that God’s Word is “profitable

for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness.

That the man of God may be perfect….”[4]This perfection, or godliness, is

achieved through diligent application of the spiritual disciplines.

 I agree with Donald Whitney’s argument. Some Christians harbor

an attitude that corporate worship is all that is necessary to become more

Lifeis a biblically-based book. The spiritual disciplines, which are

definable, practiced activities that Whitney discusses, are found in

Scripture. He further explains that the spiritual disciplines are a way to

achieve godliness, which is a closeness and conformity to Christ.

[5]Whitney comments, “Without this purpose in our practice, the

performance of Spiritual Disciplines—no matter how consistent or

vigorous—is vain and nothing more than an empty husk of godliness. So

while we cannot be godly without the practice of the Disciplines, we can

practice the Disciplines without being godly if we see them as ends and

not means.”[6]Dave Earley writes, “Paul told Timothy, you must train,

evaluates are interdependent. For instance, Bible intake depends on

praying for wisdom and understanding, worship involves Bible intake,

evangelism and serving go hand-in-hand, and a few spiritual disciplines

are best accomplished through silence and solitude. A final point that

Donald Whitney makes, and I firmly support, that our actions alone can

obtain godliness. He writes, “We must perpetually remind ourselves that

despite the most fervent diligence to our responsibility to discipline

ourselves ‘for the purpose of godliness,’ we cannot make ourselves more

like Jesus. The Holy Spirit does that, working through the Disciplines to

bring us closer to Jesus and making us more like Him.”[8]The prophet

“Despite the penultimate importance of prayer, however, statistical

surveys and experience seem to agree that a large percentage of

professing Christians spend little time in sustained prayer. While they may

offer a sentence of prayer here and there throughout their day, they

rarely spend more than a very few minutes—if that—alone in conversation

with God.”[10]I am guilty as charged. I perform nightly prayers, sporadic

daily prayers, and participate in corporate worship prayers; however, I am

not diligent in constant daily prayer with God. Dave Earley writes, “Prayer

is the foundational spiritual discipline. In a sense nearly all other spiritual

disciplines incorporate prayer. It is a primary means for spiritual

realize that I am missing out on invaluable communication with God. I

need to pray more, not because it is a requirement but because it is an

expression of love. Setting aside time at a scheduled time(s) of the day

will help to reinforce the practice of prayer. Keeping a prayer journal,

which will be a personal record of prayer requests and answers, will help

to foster the need for and benefits of prayer.

 The second is fasting. Admittedly, I understand fasting as primarily

an Old Testament practice, with some instances in the New Testament.

Also, fasting is a spiritual discipline that rarely gets taught or preached

about in church. Donald Whitney comments, “Christian fasting is a

fasting. He cautions the reader with this statement, “It is useless to fast as

a way to impress God and earn His acceptance. Faith in the work of Jesus

Christ makes us acceptable to God, not our efforts, regardless of their

intensity or sincerity. Fasting has no eternal benefit for us until we have

come to God through repentance and faith.”[13]Dave Early provides

many valuable points to begin a fasting regime. Importantly is to set aside

time, review the purpose(s) for fasting, prepare spiritually by repenting of

sin, and set aside ample time to be spent with God.[14]

 The third is journaling. I remembered watchingWar Room(2015)

when it first came out. It solidified my perception of journaling as a

practice that prayer warriors maintained. However, after reading Donald

Whitney’s chapter on journaling, I realized journaling encompasses more

than prayer requests. Whitney writes, “A journal (a word usually

synonymous with diary) is a place (tangible or digital) in which a person

works and ways of God in your life.”[15]Dave Earley writes, “A journal is a

safe and sacred place to record your deepest or most mundane thoughts,

feelings, fears, dreams, ideas, questions, and emotions… Keeping a

journal is a way to practice meditation, contemplation, and meaningful

reflection. It is a means of organizing and understanding your spiritual

journey.”[16]Maintaining prayer requests and answers is only one aspect

of journaling. Journaling involves all spiritual elements that affect a

Christian’s life. It is a powerful personal tool that enables a Christian to

reflect upon their life and “for thinking about and applying the life and

death of Jesus.”[17]As with prayer, I need to set aside a specific time(s) of

Bibliography

Earley, Dave, and Rod Dempsey.Spiritual Formation Is…: How to Grow in

Jesus With Passion and Confidence. Nashville: B&H Academic, 2018.

Whitney, Donald S.Spiritual Disciplines for the Christian Life, 2nded.

Colorado Springs: NavPress, 2014.

James Version(Chicago, IL: Moody Publishers, 1994).

[5]Donald Whitney,Spiritual Disciplines for the Christian Life, 2nded.

(Colorado Springs: NavPress, 2014), 9.

[6]Ibid.

[7]Dave Earley, and Rod Dempsey,Spiritual Formation Is…(Nashville:

B&H Academic, 2018), 34.

[8]Donald Whitney,Spiritual Disciplines for the Christian Life, 2nded.

(Colorado Springs: NavPress, 2014), 290.

[9]Ibid., 291.

[10]Ibid., 80.

[11]Dave Earley, and Rod Dempsey,Spiritual Formation Is…(Nashville:

B&H Academic, 2018), 121.

[12]Donald Whitney,Spiritual Disciplines for the Christian Life, 2nded.

(Colorado Springs: NavPress, 2014), 192.

B&H Academic, 2018), 132.

[17]Donald Whitney,Spiritual Disciplines for the Christian Life, 2nded.

(Colorado Springs: NavPress, 2014), 251.