Necessary Things

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, NIV).

A friend who works from home messaged me recently about her workday: five hours of meetings, from 11:30 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. with one thirty-minute break. Sheesh!

I commiserated with her as she prepared to be sitting all day in meetings that were not fun but required. Her job relies on a group of folks working together on projects that, without a detailed outline of responsibilities and deadlines, can be very difficult to complete and meet essential client parameters. Thus, the meetings are necessary to do the job well.

One of the things she has shared with me about her job is how important it is that everyone on the team be on the same page regarding the process by which they complete their projects. Each person on the team must follow the steps outlined by the company during the training process as they complete their responsibilities. This requires a certain amount of discipline, and when that doesn’t happen, it creates a mess for everyone involved.

As we discussed this concept, my mind was drawn to the scripture from Hebrews 12:11, which says: 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. It may seem interesting to apply this particular scripture verse here, but for me, it serves as a reminder that we often have to do the necessary things, even if they aren’t what we want to do, in order to reap the harvest later on.

For the particular example I’ve shared, when each person contributing to the project uses their training and skills, it allows everyone to work together and produce a high-quality final product.

Not just with our jobs, but with everything in life, we often get tired, want to stray from our training, and do things our own way. Though it seems easier at the time, it will never lead us to a place of productivity or peace. What are the necessary things in your life that you might be avoiding? It’s definitely something to think about.

If you know Jesus and call Him your friend, remember to fall back to your training and be sure you have a team of believers who are walking through your journey with you. If you’re new to this concept of following Jesus, I want to remind you that saying yes will require you to engage in a disciplinary process that will bring pain.

However, if we commit to discipline, surround ourselves with a group of people who have different gifts, and work together toward the common goal of glorifying God, our training won’t fail to produce. It won’t always be easy, but the harvest will far outweigh any pain you may go through during the training process.

So, I leave you with this reminder today: Do the necessary things.

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