Coemgen was among stones
On the border of the lake on a bare bed,
With his slender side on a stone,
In his glen without a booth over him.
Hard was his bed on the flag-stone,
Stretched out till morning without beauty;
He did not seek for anything easier in the world,
Though it were harder (still), he would persevere in it.
– The Monk Solomon, Life of Coemgen
From the Jews five times I received forty stripes minus one. Three times I was beaten with rods; once I was stoned; three times I was shipwrecked; a night and a day I have been in the deep; in journeys often, in perils of waters, in perils of robbers, in perils of my owncountrymen, in perils of the Gentiles, in perils in the city, in perils in the wilderness, in perils in the sea, in perils among false brethren; in weariness and toil, in sleeplessness often, in hunger and thirst, in fastings often, in cold and nakedness—besides the other things, what comes upon me daily: my deep concern for all the churches. Who is weak, and I am not weak? Who is made to stumble, and I do not burn with indignation?
– 2 Corinthians 11.24-29
Subjugating the body
Celtic saints like Coemgen went to extremes to discipline their bodies. Of course, all Christian discipline is aimed at bringing soul and body into line with the will of God, that we may know His Presence and enjoy the pleasure that comes from obeying Him.
Spiritual disciplines—prayer, Scripture reading, worship, fasting, solitude—aim at preparing the soul for its role of leading the body.
Relational disciplines shape us for loving our neighbors as ourselves.
Vocational disciplines aim to help us be efficient and excellent in all the work we’ve been given to do.
Communal disciplines draw out the gifts God has given us for serving His Body, the Church.
And provisional disciplines help us to deal with temptations and trials.
Such a course, which is aimed at helping us make the most of the time God gives us (Eph. 5.15-21), may seem extreme to some of us. But we all have a regimen of disciplines in place in each of these areas. That is, we all have ways of doing in these areas—relationships, roles, and responsibilities—which we have taken up either consciously or unconsciously.
But are they the right disciplines? Those that will enable us to redeem our time and live for the gloρy of God in everything we do?
Sound hard?
A disciplined life, one consciously chosen and pursued to serve Jesus in all these areas, doesn’t come easily. Paul says we must work out our salvation (Phil. 2.13). His own experience should encourage us to take that charge seriously, learn the necessary skills, plan our lives accordingly, and live a disciplined life for Christ in every area of our lives. We won’t be sleeping on stones, like Coemgen, any time soon, but if we will work hard at growing in our salvation, the muscles of our soul will grow hard as rock and we will be ready for whatever challenge, opportunity, or hardship the Lord brings our way.
Coemgen and others went to extremes, it’s true. But this was his way of joining Paul and Jesus in subduing his body for daily service to the Lord. He would indulge no comforts, covet no leisure, and settle into nothing like an easy life, for he had committed himself to Jesus and he would do whatever was necessary to bring his body into whole life subjection to the Lord.
Coemgen looked at the life of discipline his calling required and said, “Bring it on!”
Let this be our attitude as well. It’s hard work to discipline our lives to follow Jesus. But we need to cry, “Gimme the hard stuff!” and work out our salvation through a disciplined approach to all we are and do.
For Reflection
1. Review the various disciplines mentioned in this article. What is the state of these in your life?2. If we don’t redeem the time God gives us, what happens to that time?
Psalm 19.7-11
(St. Christopher: Beneath the Cross of Jesus)
The Law of God is perfect,
His testimony sure;
the simple man God’s wisdom learns,
the soul receives its cure.
God’s Word is right, and His command
is pure, and truth imparts;
He makes our eyes to understand;
with joy He fills our hearts.
The fear of God is cleansing,
forever shall it last.
His judgments all are true and just,
by righteousness held fast.
O seek them more than gold most fine,
than honey find them sweet;
be warned by every word and line;
be blessed with joy complete.
T. M. Moore
If you have found this meditation helpful, take a moment to give thanks to God. Then share what you learned with a friend. This is how the grace of God spreads (2 Cor. 4.15).
Other columns of interest: This week: In our ReVision series on “The Kingdom Economy” we are investigating the values that we expect to see in God’s economy. Our Read Moore podcast begins working through Joy to Your World!. The focus of our Scriptorium daily study is Ephesians 6. Click here to see all the other columns and writers available to you.
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Except as indicated, all Scriptures are taken from the New King James Version. © Copyright 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved. All psalms for singing are from The Ailbe Psalter.
