I know it sounds a little cheesy and maybe even a little obnoxious (where's the barf bag!), but I'm experiencing some of the deepest inner satisfaction and best performance results I've ever experienced in life... almost every. single. day.
I'm 3 months into making some small and large adjustments in life. And each day I wake up to the fruit that is the result of the good decisions I made yesterday, and the good decision I made the day before that, and the day before that, and so on, and so on for the past 12 weeks. I'm literally experiencing the compound interest of consistent good and great decisions. It's actually more than compound interest, it's compound blessing. I'm reaping what I've been sowing.
It's all based on God's Word and a result of my prayer time with God. And it's an awesome experience. Especially since I was physically worn down and beyond exhausted just 4 months ago. I was so overworked and under rested that I believed I was only a couple of months from being hospitalized for exhaustion. I could feel my body withering. So I drew a line in the sand and started fighting back for every piece of fullness of life Jesus provides, but we have to intentionally and purposefully strive after.
We live in a sowing & reaping environment. So if I'm reaping exhaustion and fruitfulness then I'm sowing overwork and neglect. When that's the result, that's not God's fault - it's mine. The great thing about sowing and reaping is that if you drive yourself down a dead end street then you can put the car in reverse and drive back to the wrong turn and change your heading. And that's what I did.
I entered new coordinates into my daily GPS and focused on increased discipline and increased application of wisdom to every area of my life. I sought wisdom and then applied wisdom. Day in and day out. Whether I felt like it or not. It wasn't emotion-led. It was founded on discipline. So it isn't affected by the emotion of each day. Emotions are fair weather friends. There one day and gone the next day. Motivation is the result of emotions so you can't count on motivation to get you up out of bed on days you don't "feel" like doing whatever you need to be doing.
But discipline is different. It's an all weather friend that most consider boring. But it can be the best friend you ever have. Discipline takes you from inconsistency to consistency. And when you consistently start making good choices day after day after day then you quickly begin to reap the rewards of those good choices.
I had to discipline myself to stop overworking so much. I had to discipline myself to go to bed by midnight each night. I had to discipline myself to workout as soon as I wake up each day. I had to discipline myself to choose to eat healthy 6 days per week. I had to discipline myself to not check my emails, social media, or watch the news until I've taken care of my top priorities each day. I had to discipline myself to set my first ten actions for each day regardless of circumstances and situations. I committed myself to wisdom. But it was discipline that put wisdom into action.
Don't get me wrong. My life isn't a list of rigid disciplines. I've also included plenty of space for freedom, recreation, relationships, interruptions, etc. But it's discipline through the power of the Holy Spirit that keeps it all going and growing.
So I'm 3 months into this transformation and it isn't fleeting because it's not built on emotion. It's built on something way stronger and way more dependable - DISCIPLINE. I've always had it, but not to this degree. And now, each day I wake up (and even all throughout the day), there is an inner reward that happens that's almost indescribable... my conscience, my self talk, and the Holy Spirit each constantly whisper, "Well done!" That's priceless. Plus, the actual performance benefits that result from wise decisions consistently implemented is extraordinary.
It's like hitting a game winning homerun everyday. =)
STRiVE to THRiVE!
