Self-Discipline was far and away the most requested quality to talk about during this series. We didn't all ask for self-discipline because we're all so good at it; most of us recognize self-discipline, or the lack of self-discipline, as the most significant growth barrier between who we are and who we want to be.
1 Corinthians 9:24-25 NLT
24 Don't you realize that in a race everyone runs, but only one person gets the prize? So run to win! 25 All athletes are disciplined in their training. They do it to win a prize…
The minute we start talking about self-discipline, somebody's going to equate self-discipline with will-power immediately. If due to past failures, you've already labeled yourself as someone with no will power, you wrongly assume that a disciplined life is out of reach for you.
If you struggle with self-discipline, you don't have a will problem, you have a reward problem. Paul said, the runners in a race run that they might win the prize. The value of the award fuels their self-discipline.
Elite athletes don't live disciplined lives because they think disciplined lives are virtuous. They live disciplined lives and endure all kinds of self-denial because they want the pleasure of the prize. They believe the satisfaction of the medals, trophies, rings, and records are superior pleasures to eating whatever they want or sleeping in and not working out.
The power for self-discipline does not come from admiring self-discipline; it doesn't come from wishing we were more self-disciplined. It doesn't come from making new resolutions and detailed plans and schedules for self-discipline. Those things can help, but in the end, they aren't enough fuel to keep us motivated. And self-discipline certainly doesn't come from being cynical about our lack of self-discipline.
The fact is, when the reward of what we want (heath and fitness, living on a budget, etc.) becomes a greater joy to us than our current pattern of living, we will find the self-discipline to change.