Disciplined Living #284

Every athlete knows practice makes perfect.College basketball players, who shoot over 80% from the charity stripe, practice. They shoot the ball hundreds of times to perfect that one shot from that single position. And the practice pays off.

The same thing is true in other areas of life. To do well at teaching, for example, you have to practice. The best performance in the classroom might come when a lesson or a course is being taught the third or fourth time. The principle also holds true in the spiritual realm. Listen to what the apostle Paul says to followers of Jesus Christ. "Just as you presented your members as slaves to impurity and to lawlessness resulting in further lawlessness, so now present your members as slaves to righteousness, resulting in sanctification" [or, holiness] (Romans 6:19). Paul is talking about doing something over and over again. He is telling us that holy living comes from practice. Of course, you must have the Holy Spirit living in you. But if the Holy Spirit is in you, you will practice living a holy life.

Just as practicing sin leads to greater sin, practicing good behavior leads to holiness. But this takes discipline. Just as a basketball player must be disciplined to practice to play the game, so life itself requires discipline and practice. Living a clean life without drugs, without promiscuous sex and without unseemly behavior takes discipline and practice. Living a Christian lifestyle takes discipline and practice. Overcoming a sin, such as using pornography, takes discipline and it takes practice. But with the power of the Holy Spirit present in your life, you can live a disciplined life which actually leads to holiness.

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Contributed by Dr. Dennis J. Prutow. Voice message and free tapes: 1-800-777-0389 [USA] Or order your free tapes online. Visit Dr. Prutow's site.