It’s Monday, my day off. Diann and I just returned from a commercial orchard we visit every fall. The air was crisp, the dew heavy, and the sun bright. We picked apples. Later today we’ll bake a pie together with Diann doing the crust and me preparing the filling. Before we start the pie, however, Diann needs to make a few phone calls and I want to reply to your last letter.

You wrote that you’re trying hard to get beyond your comfort zone in your effort to follow Jesus. You also hinted that you’re trying to break some old habits of the ways you’ve always thought, spoken, and acted which you know aren’t Christ-like. It’s good that you’re trying. I’m sure your intentions are good, but can I suggest a better way of approaching this business of trying to be the person the Lord wants you to be? Instead of emphasizing trying, why not emphasize training? I’ve come to realize that training to be Christ’s person works a lot better than simply trying to be Christ’s person. Let me explain.

My wife can sit down at the piano and play a melody that sounds great. She doesn’t even have to try all that hard. I, on the other hand, could sit down at a piano and try with all my might and I won’t be able to play chopsticks. The difference is that Diann has trained herself to play the piano for years, ever since she was a little girl. I’ve never had a piano lesson in my life.

The same principle applies in the area of sports. I drove by the high school the other day and saw our Bedford football team at practice in the stadium. They can try hard to win Friday night’s game, but if they didn’t practice and train in the pre-season and between their Friday night games they don’t stand a chance.

What I want to say is that succeeding at following Jesus Christ takes much of the same approach required to do well as playing the piano or winning a football game. It takes constant attention to discipline. Let me list some of the disciplines that I find I need to give attention to on a regular basis as part of my training regime.

(1) Affirm the principle often that tough times train. God uses troubles, setbacks and challenges to make us more into the people He wants us to be. It’s always good to ask, even in the smallest of frustrations, "What are you trying to teach me or do with me through this, Lord?"

(2) Find ways every day to be a servant. Jesus calls us to first serve Him, and in the serving of Him we will find Him calling us to serve the needs of others. We should make it a regular practice to look out for the interests of others in the ordinary day-to-day contacts that make up so much of our lives.

(3) Read something in God’s Word every day. Read it with the intention of applying personally what’s read.

(4) Find a time every day to spend a few minutes in quiet conversation with God. Make this appointment with God a priority and a part of your daily routine.

(5) Go to church each week with the intention of really worshiping God.

This is by no means a complete list of disciplines that can help a person be Christ-like. Throughout the centuries people serious about being a follower of Jesus Christ have come up with various lists of spiritual disciplines. These five, however, are a good start. I know we’ve covered most of them in detail in previous correspondence, but it’s important to see them as part of God’s training for us.

I’ve come to realize that trying to live a life pleasing to God isn’t enough. I need to train for it! Training has the imagery of muscle-cramping, bone-tiring, sweat-producing effort. Training emphasizes a persistence that pushes us beyond where we would like to quit and enables us to leave our old best efforts in the dust. Training is the way to win the game of life God calls us to live.

Diann’s starting to prepare the crust for that apple pie. I guess I’d better get to peeling those apples.

A fellow seeker after truth,
Dave