Two Cent Tuesday – Spiritual Disciplines

Fellow GtS writer, Jeff Patterson and I have been talking about Spirituality. It seems today everyone is spiritual. I remember reading an article in which atheists were describing themselves as spiritual. Jeff and I were talking specifically about the Spiritual Life which got me to thinking about Don Whitney’s ministry devoted to the Spiritual Disciplines. Dr. Whitney has written a couple of books dealing with the spiritual disciplines. The first was Spiritual Disciplines for the Christian Life (read a chapter here). The second was Spiritual Disciplines Within the Christian Church (read a chapter here). He followed both of these up with Simplify Your Spiritual Life which I recommend to be read as a devotional (read about 30 of the chapters here). There are a few other books, but you get the idea.

That got me wondering what others think about the Spiritual Disciplines. I have been told that they are nothing less than legalism and I have been told they are like the key that unlocks hidden treasures in one’s walk with God. Dr. Whitney says that the Disciplines must be practiced for the right reasons. If they are not, they will become drudgery. Here is what he says on page 17 of his book Spiritual Disciplines for the Christian Life:

Godliness is the goal of the Disciplines, and when we remember this, the Spiritual Disciplines become a delight instead of drudgery.

Personally, I have found most of them to be a delight. The ones I have found to be drudgery, I simply do not do. So, what do you think about the Spiritual Disciplines? We would love to have your two cents.