but disciplines??

okay, i have two thoughts before i get into "reprise again."

1. i saw another sea turtle today during the morning swim... they are probably my favorite. so so beautiful.

2. i don't know that i've ever read two books in a row as good as "same kind of different as me" and "what is the what." thanks cara and lakyn. i highly highly recommend these books to anyone. i may have gotten emotional reading them... thrice times.

Celebration of Discipline is one of my favorite books. i read it in college and haven't been able to get it out of my head. i looked for it in my apartment yesterday and realized i didn't bring it to guam. i don't think i ever fasted or practiced solitude before reading the book, and i love the idea of simplicity being a discipline. mr. foster is the first to say that his book doesn't encompass every discipline in the christian life, but his book was a beautiful starting point for me on my "following Jesus journey."

now whenever i read about the life of Jesus or listen to his words or see prophecies about his coming i wonder if i'm missing some other... somethings. we can read our bibles, pray often, fast, and worship only to see that our following him goes only so far (Isaiah 58). passages like matt. 25 throw me for a loop when Jesus himself says to live lives that visit the prisoner, clothe the naked, visit the sick, and give the thirsty something to drink... for if we don't live lives like this we really aren't his disciples at all. i've heard these things preached to me before, and i've tried to do some of these acts randomly, but i usually feel awkward or don't know where to begin.

i feel the same when i try to start running after the holidays. i know i should run. i know i can eat all the green beans i want and drink all my water, but if i don't run then i'll still be out of shape. yet when i start it feels awkward and i'm sore for three days. this is simply because i'm not disciplined in my running. in fact, i don't even like running until i can run 3-5 miles and feel fine.

and so i think its the same with the actions of Jesus. in mark it says, "as was his custom, jesus taught them..." it may not be our custom to teach others about life, but maybe we should discipline ourselves so that it is. the same goes for feeding the hungry. my best friend helps out with loaves and fishes feeding hungry people in austin, but its taken time for him to feel comfortable doing so. we aren't born with a desire to give or to visit hospitals or to practice hospitality... those things have to be learned. we have to do them over and over so that we enjoy them more and more until they become a part of our natural life.

thats why we are calling these acts of Jesus "disciplines." thats why here in guam we are going to take a long hard look at the way Jesus lives, the acts that surround his self, and the things that seem to make him the most happy. it seems throughout scripture that feeding the hungry is just as important as fasting, if not more. and caring for the orphan or widow just as important as corporate worship. its not natural for us "to lose our lives in order to find it..." so maybe thats where we start, we pray God helps us find the discipline to lose our lives...