Discipline and Devotion

There's a misconception that when we quit working or retire we can finally have these awesome three-hour quiet times and get deep in the word. 

But no matter what, it keeps coming back to discipline and devotion, because even if you have a less active schedule, you have an enemy that is always trying to pull you away and distract you from spending time with our God. 

We can see this struggle described in Romans 12:1-2 where it talks about the living sacrifice. One thing we need to know is that in those times the altars had horns. Obviously, that's where the Israelites would kill animals, so it's a pretty slimy thing. This meant that slipping off the altar was a problem. And that's what those horns were for, to place parts of the animal on or even hold onto. 

So, bringing that thought into what Paul is saying here helps us draw a picture. In times where discipline and devotion are lacking, we can easily just slide off the altar. We can put ourselves up there as a living sacrifice, but we can simply slide off and get selfish again. The horns of the altar—the things keeping us on—are always discipline and devotion. 

The lesson then is that we need to pin ourselves to the horns of that altar as a living sacrifice through discipline and devotion. God says if we draw ourselves closer to him, that he'll draw himself closer to us. These two practices can help us experience that truth.

Donnie Smith was appointed as President and CEO of Tyson Foods in 2009 where he guided Tyson Foods to be a company with a conscience, focused on feeding the world great, affordable food, while also making a positive difference in people’s lives.