“No discipline seems pleasant at the time, but painful. Later on, however, it produces a harvest of righteousness and peace for those who have been trained by it.” — Hebrews 12:11
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Have you ever driven somewhere and didn’t remember actually driving? Maybe you had something on your mind and you were daydreaming. Maybe you zoned out. But you don’t actually remember pressing the gas or the brake, or stopping at traffic lights. It can be disconcerting when it happens and you start to realize just how powerful your subconscious mind is. It’s birthed from years of repetitive motion or practice. When we do something so much that it becomes instinctual, you don’t really have to think about it anymore, and that can be a good thing too.
In your sport, it happens every time you go to dribble a ball, or pass, or shoot, or turn. You just know it deep in your bones. Your body knows what to do because you’ve spent countless hours practicing those things.
What if we spent so many hours learning and practicing what God tells us to do that it becomes second nature? When faced with a problem, the answers would pour out of a heart simply overflowing with His words because we know His Word. When faced with sin, we’d see the right path and take it. When faced with an issue that seems insurmountable, we’d know in our hearts that God has it taken care of, simply because we’d practiced knowing this and it became a part of our very souls.
We can train our instincts to do anything without hesitation. Some people don’t have to think about it when they lie, or think inappropriate sexual thoughts, or grab that drink (or four) every night. It’s automatic.
What are we intentionally training ourselves to do instinctually? May we serve, love, pray, help, encourage, exhibit patience and be a blessing wherever we go — because our renewed nature (Romans 12:2) becomes second nature.
— Steve Hawthorne, New York Red Bulls chaplain
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