SGH

Yesterday for five hours the US Congress' oversight committee grilled Roger Clemens and a former trainer in a "he said/he said" disagreement regarding whether or not Clemens had ever taken Steroids or Human Growth Hormone (HGH). Clemens maintained his innocence and said of friend and fellow major leaguer Andy Pettitte who corroborated the trainer's story, "He mis-remembers."

Whatever. Clemens is right when he asserted that he will never be able to clear his name, and his attempt to set the record straight will likely not be advantageous to him.

It caused me to consider shortcuts. HGH is a shortcut to better performance. Rick Warren recently said that shortcuts are another name for temptation to sin. There are no shortcuts in a life of integrity; it's always the long way around. I feel the same way about making disciples. There are no shortcuts. There is no way to microwave disciples, the fact is it takes time and effort to disciple and be discipled.

But I find among many Christians a desire for some SGH (Spiritual Growth Hormone). When times get difficult and they have not effectively prepared for performance, they want to rub on some scripture as a topical cream that will boost their faith to stand against their circumstances. It just doesn't work that way. Following Christ in a way that truly reflects discipleship requires the work of going where Jesus goes, listening to what Jesus says, learning how Jesus thinks. The essence of discipleship is found in Knowing, Being, and Doing like Christ. There are no shortcuts.

We have to do the disciplines to be disciples.

--Ben