Execution of Discipline – Work

“Little children, let us not love in word or talk but in deed and in truth”

1 John 3:18

“Therefore, preparing your minds for action, and being sober-minded, set your hope fully on the grace that will be brought to you at the revelation of Jesus Christ”

1 Peter 1:13

There are two types of execution. One is to exterminate or kill. The other is to carry out action with focus. When it comes to our discipline, we must be executing it every day. We must be exerting our will over our nature at every moment. Men, we must command our strength to outweigh our weakness at all times. We must make the mind control the body, rather than the body control the mind. Discipline must be carried out stoically and without distraction.

The man focused on the execution of discipline is not bogged down by the emotions of the weak, he focuses only on his discipline.

He knows that desiring to do what is right is not always possible. An emotional pull to take the right actions does not always exist for men. In fact, a strong longing to do evil takes the place of what once were righteous intentions. The execution of discipline overrides desire. It does not matter what combination of emotions are circulating in the mind of man, it only matters if he executes the discipline or not. 

Action is the death of intention, because intention is passive and does nothing while action is active and leaves intention in the dust. Everyone has good intentions, but this is irrelevant. All that matters is that you discipline yourself to take action every day. You can intend to do a  multitude of deeds and never lift a finger to any one of them. 

A man of discipline might never have the desire or intention to do good deeds yet he does them anyways.

This is how life of a Spartan Christian should be. Men do not wait around for motivation to find them, they take action through discipline. Men do not wait for the right time to get started, they begin their work immediately. Strong men do not need emotions to drive them because their focus is more than enough to power them and all the men around them. Discipline triumphs over weakness, emotion and motivation. Be a man of discipline.

Mantra

I force myself into action at this moment.

Application

The breeding ground of discipline is a power over the mind and thoughts. Without this power, you will find it difficult to build your discipline. The thoughts you carry in your head should be such that they empower you to greater discipline instead of tempting you towards weakness. Most men make mistakes here and focus their minds on the comforts they desire rather than the benefits that are brought on by the application of discipline over time.  Turn your thoughts to your goals and long term desires, rather than your current cravings. 

The discipline of the day is driven  by the discipline in the morning.

The morning is where you must execute discipline and force yourself into action. If you can just get the ball rolling then you will gain momentum. Once you gain momentum, discipline becomes easier to maintain throughout the day. 

It is difficult to recover from a morning of weakness and undisciplined action. It is hard to get the engine going in the afternoon if you have been dragging your pathetic self around all day. Make it a point to win in the morning. If you win the morning, you win the day. Win in the small detail disciplines. Taking the stairs instead of the elevator is a small win for discipline, for example. Rack up on those small wins because they will add up to victory. And avoid stacking up those small losses because they will add up to defeat. 

Win the day.

Discipline yourself. 

Control your thoughts. 

Stack up positive patterns of thinking. 

Be in command of your emotions. 

Start the execution of discipline.

Conduct yourselves like men.