FOR MEN ONLY:
The League of Disciplined Gentlemen
Statements fly
everyday that say the future is bright. The future is big! The future is for
you! However, the critical disclaimer that is never appended to these
beautifully crafted words whenever quoted is this; only applicable to those who are disciplined now.
All of us men
will pay; some for enduring discipline and some for the lack of it. The chief
gaping difference between men ten years from now will be their investment in
discipline. Their wives will either say I’m glad you did or I wish you did.
Their children will either say I wonder if dad or I’m glad dad did. Awesome
daddies who deserve the kryptonian S on their chests need to realize that their
families are not waiting for them to be awesome daddies when they get married
or when they become fathers. Their families, even when they do not know it,
wish these men would invest in their families now. When is the best time to
make a relationship work? Five years ago. Let me explain.
Five years ago
if Jeremy took his time with the Lord seriously, he would be mature enough to
pray when the enemy attacks his wife and kids and encourage them. He would have no fear of looking
hypocritical when he tells his kids that they need to go to Church. He would be
a living example. Five years ago if Allan took his health and fitness
seriously, he would go to the gym with his wife before complaining that she is
overweight and telling her to do something about it. Five years ago if Peter
had read a book a month without fail, he would now have more knowledge
concerning life issues. Jeremy, Allan and Peter have something in common. Five
years ago if they had been disciplined they would have had happier lives today.
Men more than
women I believe need to nurture discipline for the following reason. Men are
the heads of households or will be one day when they marry. If they lead their
girls will follow. A friend once told me that he was enjoying life. When he
reaches 27 he will start thinking about life and settling down. I get surprised
when I inquire what “enjoying life” means only to discover it involves playing
around with a girl's heart/ body, fooling around with some alcohol or drug,
raving every Friday and waking up with a list of consequences one never
anticipated. It is so much fun that we do it again next Friday. As they enjoy
life more than half if not all ladies will not wait for a man like that to
mature. It’s like watching grass grow. They will look for a currently mature
one. Postpone your discipline and postpone your happiness.
If you will want
a good wife by age 27, you had better start working on your character way in
advance. Ladies are not waiting for you to stop enjoying life then start a
fresh when you’re ready. Imagine a girl who says, “He’s such a nice guy. He
just watches 10 hours of TV everyday and sits in the house doing nothing. Let
him enjoy life. When he’s ready to get married, I will be right here waiting
for him.” I assure you if she does wait, elephants will be driving automobiles.
If you desire a
godly family at age 30, then you better be ready to be their spiritual guide.
You won’t become one overnight or when your first son is born. You had better
start meditation on scripture years in advance. You see, every man pays. The
ones that pay for discipline will sacrifice two hours of sleep each day to
ensure they are physically and spiritually fit. They will replace 10 hours of
television with 10 hours of leisure reading. They will dedicate time to grow
their gifts as opposed to going on Facebook and Twitter five hours a day. They
will pay and they will pay now. The second category of men will pay later. They
will pay lots of money to take their kids to counselling. They will pay lots of
time and money in filing divorce papers. They will spend a lot of emotional
energy trying to explain why they can’t be dependable people. There are ways to help build your discipline
You see, the
future is not necessarily bright. The future is being lit up or being doused by
your discipline or lack of it. At the end, its brightness will be evidence of
discipline. Its lack of lustre will be evidence of the lack of discipline. For
the league of disciplined gentlemen, let’s put it like this. Today is the
future made present. Make the future bright.