A Disciplined Lifestyle

In my post Achieving Authenticity, I broke down the components of discipline and how it relates to authenticity. However, I still feel like I need to understand the idea of a disciplined lifestyle in terms of how it relates to me. Authenticity is different for everyone, and discipline, while it may provide templates, also varies for each person depending on who they want to be.

Habits are often used to define us. If you think someone is kind, it is probably because they think before speaking, hold the door for others, or volunteer their time. If you think someone is selfish, it could be because they often talk ill of others, don't offer assistance, or have a negative outlook. While our habits do define us, we also choose which habits to drill into our lives.

I want to embrace discipline as a lifestyle (41). In terms of faith, I want to practice prayer, spiritual reading, and Adoration. I want to grow within my church's community and within the Catholic community of the world. I want others to think of me and think of the characteristics that define a Christian: forgiving, merciful, loving, and compassionate. I want to discipline my faith because faith alone will not save me; I need action as well.

Kelly describes disciplined action within faith as the key to human perfection (68). God loved David because he was a man after His own heart. God knows we cannot be perfect in His way, but we can be perfect in the way we worship, praise, and love Him. If we actively and earnestly seek Jesus Christ, that is our spiritual perfection.

Praying for guidance and the loved ones in our lives is a disciplined action. More so is praying for those who have hurt us. Attending church every week is a disciplined action. More so is getting involved in ministries and aiding our local communities. When we do all we can for Christ and His mission, we are reaching our highest level of discipline, and therefore enforcing these greatest habits into our authentic selves.

It's no mystery that our habits affect our character (129). The better our daily, weekly, and monthly habits, the better we are. For me, my regular habits include what I spoke about for the lifestyle (praying, reading spiritual titles, and Adoration) as well as playing video games, cleaning (husky life is hard), and budgeting. I also do smaller things like start each day with green tea and practice stretching. So long as each habit helps me grow into a better version of myself, it's a positive trait for me to nurture.

I aim to discipline the habits that I know will help me grow. I want to incorporate more whole foods into my lifestyle for the weekends and also improve on my goal of reading 30 minutes a day. Discipline is not easy for our society unless we're disciplining things of the world, but we are not called to obey society's rules if they go against the rules of our Creator.

My heavenly Father, help me to foster habits that mark me as a child of God. Guide me in my actions and thoughts, and fill me with moral courage for Your idea of discipline and truth. When I feel called to do something good and holy, compel me to do it immediately and without hesitation. May I trust in Your will. In Jesus' name, Amen.