HWJC - Discipline the Way You’ve Been Disciplined (Bot9 #176)

After seeing the homestand and reconnecting with his players as a sign he has learned to "Love the way you've been loved," Justin Tucker is ready for his second lesson from Coach Petersen. This lesson will occur far from a major-league baseball diamond - a small, private, elementary school. Coach Tucker meets Craig, the head of the school, for coffee before going to observe at the school fo the day. Craig asks Justin about his thoughts around discipline and the two engage quickly in a deep conversation:

"Justin tried to repeat the key points of what he just heard, “I think you’re saying that discipline has the potential of leading us to self-righteousness. If we think we’re doing all of the work, when Jesus is actually the one leading us to transformation, we’re missing the boat.”

Craig leaned in even closer and said, “I really think that’s it. We didn’t write the Gospel - Jesus Christ did through His life. We didn’t create Communion - Jesus lived it. We didn’t create this paradoxical way of living - Jesus told us about it and it’s up to us to follow it. All we need to do is discipline ourselves to those three things - read His words, commune with Him, and tell others that He is the source of our life.”

Justin had a question burning in his mind, “Craig, this is great for us in our individual walks, but we are called to discipline others, especially students we teach and coach, aren’t we? That’s a different use of the word, isn’t it? How do we do that well?

Craig lit up again, “Of course! You’re going to hear some more about this during your day at the school as it applies to habit formation. But you make a great point that deserves a response here. When we discipline another person, we should restore that person in a spirit of gentleness. This is Galatians 6:1 in action. The “old-school” method of discipline lost track of this long ago. The second idea is discipline is training, not punishment. This is the education from God mentioned in Hebrews 12:6-11. Just like the Lord, we discipline the ones we love and we want them to share in holiness with us. When discipline is done in a spirit of gentleness within the context of training, we help the other person grow and grow closer to Christ.”

The second lesson of Well Coached is "Discipline as you've been disciplined." For those of us who felt or observed a more "old-school" style of discipline, or for those who felt the weight of legalism, a different definition of discipline can be difficult. When learning the Biblical concept of discipline in the spirit of gentleness within the context of training for the first time, we might be quick to reject the idea. However, as we look to Jesus and try this method, we find a new sense of life.

If you're interested in reading more about this lesson or the other four from Well Coached, Complete Game is offering a free eBook copy of the book throughout this series. To get your free eBook copy of Well Coached, click here now!