The Church needs discipline!
I’ve been writing a series of prayers for the Church, each focused on a different area over the last several weeks. I’ve lifted up a number of areas already (see list and links below).
Discipline isn’t always thought of in a positive light, but it’s necessary for the Church. Discipline was certainly a big word for early Methodists. To this day, the United Methodist Church’s official guidebook is called “The Book of Discipline.”
Our love/hate relationship with the word discipline comes from knowing that discipline is good for us; it’s just hard to practice. And, sometimes it’s painful. In the Church, disciples need discipline to learn, grow, and follow Jesus!
O God, thank you for the love, commitment, devotion, and discipline of all those who’ve gone before us that have brought the Church to where it is today. Thank you for those who’ve sacrificed blood, sweat, and tears for the sake of Jesus Christ!
Help us to be inspired by those who’ve modeled a life of discipline and devotion to you. Help us to be disciplined ourselves so that our character may grow strong and be a model for others.
Give us personal discipline so that each of us may become more and more like Jesus in every way. Give us discipline as a community so that we may be faithful to the mission of making disciples of Jesus Christ and to the leading of the Holy Spirit!
Help us, O God, to have the discipline and fortitude to deny ourselves, take up our crosses, and follow you! May Jesus be honored in our lives! Amen.
(Previous prayers included: awakening, transformational leaders, urgency, hope, health, compassion, action, unity, power, favor, endurance, and trust.)
Randy Willis
Pastor
Follower of Jesus. Husband to Joleen. Dad to Ethan & Sarah. Pastor to Wehnwood UMC.