Discipline.

I struggled for awhile to write this. I've thought long and hard about this recently, and after seeing Gran Torino tonight, I think it all has come together. Clint Eastwood portrays a man we all know. The grumpy, bitter, old man who remembers "the good old days." The days when you looked a man in the eye, or you gave a firm handshake. The days of old when you treated one another with respect and dignity. I can understand their gripe. In a world of unmade beds and clothing sold to fifteen year old girls that barely cover their private parts, it would seem as if the world had turned in on itself.

In our drive for ease and comfort we have given hard and rigid over to light and fluffy. Strict time schedules are put in the annals of history with text messages apologizing for being fifteen minutes late. Instead of accepting the ways of the world, we bend our own worldview to make things fit to our ideas and whims. We are, in essence, "spoiled rotten."

If there is anything to take from the angry old man whose shirts and slacks are always pressed and the yard is always kept, it would be the ancient idea of discipline. Maybe this seems to be such a dusty subject because of my own life, or possibly our nation at large, but it almost seems like I'm speaking another language. It feels, archaic.

Have some self respect. - Clean your room. Wash your clothes.
Have a backbone. -Spend the day doing yardwork. Sweat a little.
Work for something. - Get a job.
Patience, pride. - Watch something be made with your own two hands.

I understand the frustration now. I think I'm going to fold my clothes and make my bed.


The practical applications of discipline are much greater and expansive than what I have mentioned. Since it's what I always relate back to, let us talk about faith. Do we have discipline in our relationship with Christ? What does it mean to be a disciple? Why do we call the first books of The Bible, the "Law" of Moses? Do's and don'ts. Wills and won'ts.

All of these rules had a purpose once. Although this all may seem abhrasive, let's be critical here. The Bible states very plainly how it feels about murder and theft and adultery. Now, we punish things like, murder, and theft pretty severely. But lust...I'm not hurting anybody, am I? I am enjoying myself, everyone has a right to that, right?

You want to talk about immorality? Or perhaps the images we feed our kids? It starts here. With us bending and breaking these rules that we have been given aeons ago. We were given them for a reason. There were here to guide our lives, and the decisions we made. I feel like it's time someone take responsibility for a life. Maybe I'll accept my own.


I've never felt more conservative in my life.