Training to Run

“No discipline seems pleasant at the time, but painful. Later on, however, it produces a harvest of righteousness and peace for those who have been trained by it.”
Hebrews 12:11

Discipleship takes discipline, and discipline is rarely easy.Discipline is painful and time consuming. Discipline is often difficult and stretches us beyond what we think is possible, but just as the verse above states, the effort “produces a harvest of righteousness and peace”.

Earlier in the same chapter of Hebrews we read that we are to “run with perseverance the race marked out for us” but I think if we were honest we wish that verse said “mosey with semi-regular consistency the lap marked out for us” because that’s often what our training or discipline looks like.

We hope for a stroll, but Jesus calls us to run.

Think of times in your life when you have trained for something. Maybe it was a race, or a new skill. A job, or a lifetime goal. Remember the effort and time you put into that? That is what our dedication to our faith is supposed to look like, because as followers of Christ we are in constant training to become more like Him. In fact I can’t find a single verse that speaks to effortless discipleship, despite my ongoing desire to find one.

Discipleship takes discipline, and discipline is rarely easy.

Will you join me in training to become more like Jesus? It may seem like it takes more time than we have, it may be painful and messy, and there may be times when we want to quit. But if we will persevere in our training, we will grow in the likeness of Christ and experience peace and righteousness that only He can give.