I have come to believe that discipline is necessary to live a fulfilling life. The pandemic linked lock-down has been an eye opener for me. I have tried to be disciplined in certain areas of my life. The other areas were subject to binging. Those areas of my life where I practiced discipline would flourish even during bad times. And those areas of my life which were not disciplined would derail me in bad times.
Less than a week before the pandemic I had transitioned roles in the church I work at. I was expecting to be move out of the church for a season of training and further studies. And suddenly everything changed around the world. I was left with nearly no work to do. I am thankful that I had a paying job and my family was provided for. But for the first time since I began working, I was free of deadlines or deliverables.
Ordinarily, I had a set of tasks that I would perform week after week. Each week had a rhythm of its own. Of course there would be those other meetings and calls that any pastor would have to attend.
But, just before the lock-down, I had one foot out of the door. But the door was suddenly slammed shut. Which meant I remained inside but without as much work to do.
This left me with little to do in the areas that I had disciplined my life. And it opened up the area of my life that had no discipline. The first two weeks for me were just wait and watch. Both literally and proverbially. I hoped that things will change quickly – it did not. I spent my time binging food, videos and sleeping.
We all have habits – good or bad is subjective. We are creatures of habit. If our habits are helpful in realizing the goals that we desire to achieve, then we are on the path to success. Such a life is a disciplined life. When our habits are unhelpful to us. They put us on a path of self destruction or cause us to waste away our lives.
And that is why I have come to believe that without discipline we are in for a disaster.
I am trying to steer my life back to a path of discipline. I am human – filled with my bad habits. I have been able to discipline a few hours of my lock-down life. I am still thinking and trying to work on the other areas of my life. It is not that I do not know what to do with my time. It is just that I need to make massive changes in terms of habits.
I am working on it and I hope to improve. I will share my success here in time. I hope to be able to do so. I know that I have already begun being mindful of what I eat. In my case of what I should not eat and how much I should not eat. I am mindful of my screen time; both entertainment or otherwise, I am trying to walk as a I listen to lectures and books. So, there are a few hours that I have gained. But those habits have not yet established. They are in the works. I rejoice in the effort. And hopefully they will become part of my life soon.
Do you agree that life without discipline will be a disaster?
Featured Image by Caroline Ebinger on Unsplash
