Embracing Discipline That Brings Order

On October 25, 2019, the Department of the Interior Local Government (DILG) officially released a Memorandum Circular number 2019-181 for Disciplina Muna National Advocacy Campaign. The advocacy targets three (3) types of audience – the youth as the next leaders, the young professionals as the contemporary and rising leaders in the present time and the general public. Its pillars include (1) road clearing, (2) disaster preparedness resilience, (3) anti-smoking, (4) ease of doing business, (5) liquor ban, (6) tourist spots clean up, and (7) functional Barangay Anti-Drug Abuse Council (BADAC). With the pandemic, it has  focused its efforts in ensuring adherence to health standards. One of the advocacy’s principle is to increase the consciousness among the citizens with regards to our critical role and responsibility in sustainable development and maintenance of peace and order as a shared responsibility. This campaign encourages us, as individuals, to make one’s discipline a top priority for us to attain a peaceful and orderly nation.
​
Who loves discipline? Only a few does because this word is commonly associated with correction, chastisement, castigation, and punishment. People tend to shun away from this word because it is painful and unpleasant. It requires us to change, control ourselves, and follow rules and the like. We tend to overlook its essence because we are so much focused on the inconvenience the process would give us. Our negative perception about it hinders us from experiencing the lasting benefits.
Discipline is defined as a training that corrects, molds or perfects moral character by the NIV Family Devotional Study Bible Dictionary. It is a manner by which we implement things to set something in order, be it in personal, societal, organizational, or institutional application. Dr. David Jeremiah, an American writer, said that training, discipline and correction are painful but not permanent. For instance, a person who is suffering from an illness needs to exercise discipline in following dietary instructions in order to reach the goal of being well. Another, an athlete who aims to bag a gold has to observe discipline in every aspect of preparation. If a person fully understands the reason and the outcome of the process, then it would not be a struggle to embrace discipline regardless of the inconvenience.

Our nation has already began its advocacy towards an orderly and peaceful society in the midst of a worldwide pandemic through the Disiplina Muna National Advocacy Campaign. Will you be willing to be a part of the change and embrace a discipline that will bring an orderly outcome?

No discipline seems pleasant at the time, but painful. Later on, however, it produces a harvest of righteousness and peace for those who have been trained by it. Discipline produces a better person impacting an orderly nation. (MAT,CRFV)