Whitney’s main argument is that Christians need to discipline themselves
for the purpose of godliness.[1] Every Christian is indwelled with the Holy
Spirit, and it is the Holy Spirit that makes godliness our purpose, and we
pursue our purpose, godliness, by practicing spiritual disciplines.[2]
Spiritual disciplines are practices in Scripture that promote our spiritual
growth; they are things we do to become more like Jesus.[3]
Whitney provided a convincing argument on the importance of spiritual
disciplines. I agree with him when he explained that we should practice
spiritual disciplines for the purpose of godliness. The Bible is clear that we
are to mature and grow into the image of Christ ― “whom He foreknew,
He also predestined to be conformed to the image of His Son, that He
might be the firstborn among many brethren” (Rom 8:29).[4] In Romans,
Paul urges believers to be transformed by the renewing of their minds
(Rom 12:2). Spiritual disciplines help in our transformation, and as we are
transformed, our lives will honor Christ and enable us to be fruitful in
ministering the gospel.
The spiritual disciplines Whitney provided included Bible intake (hearing,
reading, meditating, and memorizing God’s Word), prayer, worship,
evangelism, serving stewardship, fasting, silence and solitude, journaling,
learning, and perseverance. The three spiritual disciplines I need to
strengthen are memorizing Scripture, meditation, and journaling.
There was a time when I would practice memorizing God’s Word, but I
have neglected that practice in recent years. With so much going on and
memorizing various details for school, I have not focused on memorizing
Scripture. It wasn’t intentional, and I have not given it much thought; I
just stopped. I’m in agreement with Whitney; memorizing God’s Word
provides spiritual power, strengthens our faith, prepares us for witnessing
and counseling, and stimulates mediation.[5] This class is helping me to,
once again, memorize Scripture. I plan to be intentional and memorize at
least one verse a week after this class is complete. In my daily reading, I
always come to verses that stand out, but I neglect to write them down,
so I end up forgetting them. Therefore, I will do less reading and spend
time writing down verses that I would like to memorize. Also, this is my
last class required to complete my degree, so I should have more time to
focus on memorizing Scripture.
Another spiritual discipline I like to enhance is meditation. I do meditate
on God’s Word, but I can do more. As I increase my memorization of
Scripture, I will enhance my mediation. Whitney makes an excellent point
when he asserts that we forget what we read in the Bible not because we
have a poor memory but because we fail to meditate on what we read.[6]
Meditation is the absorption of Scripture and absorption leads to
transformation.[7] My plan for increasing my mediation of Scripture is to
leverage what I memorize and be more intentional about meditating on
Scripture throughout my daily activities, i.e., exercise, driving, waiting in
line, etc.
The last spiritual discipline I would love to strengthen is journaling.
Whitney describes a journal as “a place to document the works and ways
of God in [our] life.”[8] There are occasions in which I write down spiritual
insights, Scripture, or prayers on a piece of paper or index card, but I end
up misplacing what I wrote down. Whitney pointed out that journaling can
help with mediation, memorizing God’s Word, and in expressing my
thoughts and feelings to the Lord.[9] These are all things I want to do. I
like and will use Whitney’s idea of using a loose-leaf notebook with pages
that can fit into a Bible or book.[10] That way, I can keep a notebook
page in my Bible for easy access and eventually file it in a notebook to
ensure it does not get misplaced.
[1]Donald S. Whitney,Spiritual Disciplines for the Christian Life,2nd ed.
(Colorado Springs: Navpress, 2014), 4.
[2]Ibid., 3-4.
[3]Ibid., 5-6.
[4]Unless otherwise noted, all biblical passages referenced are in the New
King James Version (Nashville: Thomas Nelson, 1982).
[5]Whitney,Spiritual Disciplines for the Christian Life,39-41.
[6]Ibid., 53.
[7]Ibid., 51.
[8]Ibid., 249.
[9]Ibid., 255-257.
[10]Ibid., 267.
