Celebration of Discipline:
An Introduction
(Downloadable Word document)

GOAL: To become deep, genuinely changed people; to become transformed (Rom. 12:2)

WHY? For the purpose of godliness. (1 Timothy 4:7); i.e., to be like Jesus.

PROBLEM: Superficiality - the desire for instant gratification. For the Christian this translates into a belief in the effort-at-the-moment-of-action alone to accomplish what we want and completely ignores the need for character change in our lives as a whole.

SOLUTION: Following Christ in the overall style of life he chose for himself (this is a grace versus works thing)

MEANS: The Spiritual (or classical) Disciplines

• Inward Disciplines (those that have a primarily inward effect)
  Meditation: (Ps 119:78) - the ability to hear God's voice and obey His word.
  Prayer: (Mt. 6:5-15) the interactive conversation with God about what we are doing together.
  Fasting: (Mt. 6:16-18) the voluntary denial of an otherwise normal function for the sake of intense spiritual activity.
  Study: (2 Tim 2:15) the process whereby the mind takes on an order conforming to the order of whatever we concentrate on.
  
  
• Outward Disciplines (those that are demonstrated outside ourselves)
  Simplicity: (Mt. 6:22-24) an inward reality that results in an outward lifestyle.
  Solitude: (Mk 6:31) the creation of an open, empty space in which we can be found by God and by which we are freed from competing loyalties.
  Submission: (Eph 5:21) the discipline, which frees us to let go of the everlasting burden of always needing to have our own way.
  Service: (John 13:1-16) experiencing the many little deaths of going beyond ourselves, which produces in us the virtue of humility.
  
  
• Corporate Disciplines (those that we practice as a group)
  Worship: (Jh 4:23) entering into the supra-natural experience of the Shekanyah or glory of God.
  Guidance: (Acts 15:28) knowing in daily life an interactive friendship with God.
  Confession: (James 5:16) entering the grace and mercy of God in such a way that we experience healing of sins and sorrows of the past.
  Celebration: (Phil. 4:4) a life of "walking, leaping and praising God" (Acts 3:8)

RESOURCES:
Celebration of Discipline: The Path to Spiritual Growth by Richard Foster
Corresponding video with Richard Foster
Celebrating the Disciplines workbook by R.J. Foster and K.A. Yanni
R.J Foster's Study Guide for Celebration of Discipline
Other resource materials chosen for specific disciplines to be discussed.

POINTS FOR DISCUSSION:
•Individual sin acts vs. sin condition (ingrained habits)
•Dealing with sin: willpower & determination vs. gift of God
external effect vs. internal change (inner righteousness)
•Disciplines of the spiritual life are the means of allowing God to transform us; (parable of the farmer)
•The path of disciplined grace
disciplined = something for us to do
grace = free, unearned, unearnable

WARNING:
•The spiritual disciplines are intended for our good. But they must not be turned into another set of soul-killing laws (legalism).
• "We must put to rest our passion to set others straight."

CLASS EMPHASIS:
•Application of the disciplines in our personal lives (the "how to")