Discipline Is Not a Dirty Word
 

Discipline Is Not a Dirty Word by Joyce Meyer
All of us have some sort of dream or vision—areas of our lives where we want to better ourselves or achieve more.

Maybe it’s to get in shape or have better physical health. Maybe you want greater financial stability or greater success in your business. Some of you may be believing for greater ministry opportunities.
Whatever your goals are, there’s one thing for certain—it will be almost impossible to get there without discipline and self-control.
There was a time in my life when I would think,If I eat one of those chocolate chip cookies, I’ll have to eat a dozen.Why? Because I had no self-control…and I had absolutely no faith in myself ever changing.
But here’s the truth: We can change. By the grace of God, we can begin making right choices and developing new habits that will bring us the life we desire.
Know Your Power Source
First and foremost, living a disciplined life and establishing new habits requires a lot more than just will power.
“ Whatever your goals are, there's one thing for certain—it will be almost impossible to get there without discipline and self-control. ”
I’ll never forget the time years ago when I heard a teaching about the power of words. That day, I left church and said, “That’s it! I’m going to shut my mouth and not say one bad thing. I’m going to discipline myself!”
You can probably guess how that turned out. Actually, I did manage to keep quiet, but then I realized I was depressed. The Lord spoke to my heart and said, “You shut your mouth, but nothing on the inside has changed.”
Here’s the lesson: Even when God asks us to do something, we still cannot do it successfully unless we lean on Him. John 15:5 has changed my life. It says, …Apart from Me you can do nothing (NAS).
Take a little time each day to read God’s Word and talk to Him in prayer. Some of my greatest breakthroughs have been the result of simply sitting quietly in His presence, letting Him know that I can’t do anything if He doesn’t make it happen.