The Forgotten Disciplines

by Alex Hoffer

As a type-A, twenty-first-century, faith-driven entrepreneur, there is a single word I turn to that consistently evokes enthusiasm throughout my soul. That word is discipline. 

In my own words, I define discipline as true effort and hard work in the context of overall goal setting and performance of action. On a more personal level, discipline has become an indispensable characteristic of my daily and weekly routines, and foundational to my way of life. 

Discipline drives my embrace of the rigor of my role as the Chief Revenue Officer of a leading U.S. manufacturing company. It shapes the vision I have for myself as a loving husband and engaged father. Furthermore — and perhaps most importantly— it concentrates my commitment in my walk with Jesus. Through daily Bible reading, prayer, and serving others, I have experienced the splendor of His word. 

Life is good. God is good. So what was I missing amid the dedicated time blocks designed and structured by art and discipline of doing? The nudge into further exploration of this question came during a session with my Executive Coach. He observed, “Alex, you are soul sick. You have become a 'human doing' and are trying to do enough stuff to feel good enough as a husband, dad, and business leader.” 

Why was he suggesting that I pursue less? 

The Christian thinker Henri Nouwen once wrote that “in spiritual life, the word discipline means the effort to create some space in which God can act.” Amidst my 5:00am mornings, Bible reading, podcasts, books, writing, one-on-ones with direct reports, committing to tucking my kids into bed each night alongside my wife, I left no time to “be still and know that [God is] God” (Psalm 46:10). To be honest, I even subconsciously argued with that scripture, which in hindsight was demonstrative of the depth of my dependence on “doing.”  

It was in this search for more that I came across the work of Pete Scazzero about emotional health and the two forgotten disciplines: solitude and fasting. 

In my truest type-A fashion, I scheduled time in my calendar to set aside a four-hour block away from work to be in solitude. I also decided to fast from food starting at 6 p.m. the night before. I made my first appointment to reintroduce myself to the disciplines of solitude and fasting — and boy did I hesitate. I came close to convincing myself otherwise.

By the time the first hour settled in, I still felt strange. Am I allowed to check my email? As the minutes turned into an hour, something inside me began to change. By the second hour, I wrote this line in my journal: “Rest is a complete trust in God’s faithfulness.” There it was. All my routine, rigor, planning, and discipline, was leading to a false sense of trust in myself, not God. This reminded me that in the wilderness Jesus answered the devil’s temptations by saying, “Man shall not live on bread alone,” and “worship the Lord your God and serve him only” (Luke 4:4,8). My sojourn to fasting and solitude had reminded me that I was whole in Christ alone.

There are countless other lessons this experience taught me, but the lesson I want to leave you with is the truth I was reminded of in solitude: all of our disciplines of “doing” aren’t always the surest way to will not lead to healthy relationships with Jesus and others. Like Mary, we need to create space to sit and marvel at our Lord’s feet (Luke 10:39). It is only when we are whole in Christ that we can be our best selves for those we lead and love.

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[ Photo by Thao Le Hoang on Unsplash ]