I believe there are three essential areas in successful ministries. With the assumption that someone already knows the Lord and called to His service, there are three essential areas: self-motivation, self-control, and self-discipline.
The first is self-motivation, which I have outlined in my book Thriving in Life. Every individual must learn to encourage himself. There will not always be someone close by that can lift your hands, give you a pep talk, and encourage you along the way. Remember that you can’t encourage others if you yourself are not encouraged. The Bible gives account that David “encouraged himself in the Lord” (1 Samuel 30:6) before he saw victory. It is crucial that an individual, especially a spiritual leader, learn to encourage himself in the Lord in order to continue forward in life.
The second is self-control. Life is an emotional roller coaster, but we can learn to control our emotions instead of being controlled by them. Discouragement, anger, resentment, apathy, and laziness are a few of the emotional weeds that want to sprout within each of us. According to the book of Proverbs, a person who cannot control his spirit “is like a city that is broken down, and without walls” (Proverbs 25:28). Conversely, Proverbs says that a person who controls his spirit is better than a mighty man that conquers a city (Proverbs 16:32). Fear, bitterness and anger do not have to control you. Here are some more verses to study about emotions:
- Proverbs 16:32
- Proverbs 14:29
- Proverbs 15:18
- Proverbs 19:11
- James 1:19
- Proverbs 25:28
Not long ago I read the book Becoming Emotionally Whole by Charles Stanley, and I gleaned so many wonderful thoughts from the book. This paragraph is a sum of what I learned from the book. The Bible is the ultimate book on emotions. You should be aware of your emotions since God uses them, but you should not depend on your emotions for your spiritual life. You cannot be totally surrendered to God if you are in bondage to your emotions. God gave emotions to serve you, not to master you. But you cannot control your emotions by yourself, you need the help of the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit is the key to controlling our emotions. Abiding in Christ will influence your emotions. Prayer is talking to God, and you would be wise to talk to God around the clock, seeking His help and guidance. Trust in God means you turn over all your results and concerns completely to God. Your best answer for anxiety is to praise God. A mind dwelling on God‘s goodness has no time to dwell on negative and difficulties. And a mind dwelling on negative and difficulties has no time to dwell on God’s goodness. Many times, when people are angry, the root issue is that they are angry at God for what He did or didn’t allow to happen. You do not have to suppress your anger, or even express your anger, the best way is to confess your anger, and confess it to God. Disappointments happen to everyone, but discouragement comes from dwelling on disappointments. Trusting the Lord with all your heart and leaning not unto your own understanding will get you out of discouragement.
The third, which I have outlined in my book Self-Discipline Reboot, is self-discipline. At most workplaces, you are told what time to arrive, what time to leave, what to wear, and the details of each day’s tasks. Many do well in this type of environment because someone else provides the needed discipline. But what about all the other areas of your life? Your spiritual life, marital life, and personal life? Many fail in the other areas because they do not apply self-discipline.
Self-discipline is doing what you should do, when you should do it, whether you feel like it or not. The feeling will not always be there, but if you want the results, then you must apply the discipline. Anything good in life is going to take a lot of discipline. Good feelings, a pep talk from someone, or strong desire might get you started, but self-discipline is required to get the job done. You do not have to be smart, rich, talented, or well-connected to accomplish much in life. You must simply apply lots of discipline. Without self-discipline, you will spin your wheels and stay in the same spot. Without self-discipline, all hopes, desires, and dreams are mere wishes. With self-discipline, however, you will make it further down the road until you reach the desired destination.
Self-discipline is awakening and applying what is needed in order to succeed in life. It is time to reboot self-discipline so you can achieve more. When discipline is applied, almost every area of life is better. It is time you awaken the God-given discipline within you. It is time to reboot self-discipline!
The Bible recounts the story of Moses commanding Israel to possess the Promised Land. Before this old prophet died, he repeated over and over that Israel needed to “go in and possess” the land God had sworn to them (Deuteronomy 1:8; 4:1; 6:18; 8:1; 10:11; 11:8). The land was already promised, and God’s presence was clearly with them, but they had to get up and do something. They would never get the land by sitting and hoping; they had to realize it was time to move.
Throughout the pages of Scripture, God’s children are promised “exceeding great and precious promises” (2 Peter 1:4). God has the answer for a great marriage, genuine happiness, good friendships, and a thriving ministry, but self-discipline is required to obtain each of the desirable areas. God’s Word has the promise, the plan, and the path, but the blessing of possession does not happen without applying self-discipline to one’s life. The problem is not knowing what God has promised, the problem lies in doing what one knows. Self-discipline is actively applying what is needed to obtain what is desired.