這件事發生在2016年6月，英國女王伊莉莎白二世的九十歲誕辰當天。那時，女王在馬車上向人群揮手致意，經過一長排身穿紅色外衣的士兵，他們個個站得筆直，保持立正的姿勢。那天英國的天氣相當熱，士兵們穿著傳統的黑色羊毛褲，紅色羊毛外衣的鈕扣一直扣到下巴，還戴著巨大的熊皮帽。正當士兵們在陽光下動也不動地站成一排，其中一位士兵開始暈眩。令人驚訝的是，他仍控制自己身體，只是向前倒下，當他的臉埋在砂礫中時，身體依然挺直如木板。他倒在那裡，在某種程度上仍然保持立正的姿勢。

這位士兵經過多年的訓練和實踐才學會這種自制力，即使在意識不清的情況下，還能維持筆直的身型。使徒保羅也描述了此類的訓練，說：「我嚴格訓練自己，克服自身的軟弱」（哥林多前書9章27節，當代譯本修訂版）。保羅也深刻體認到「參加比賽的選手要接受嚴格的訓練」（25節，同上）。

雖然我們所做的一切是靠上帝的恩典（而非我們的努力），但你我的屬靈生命仍應受嚴格的訓練。當上帝幫助我們約束、控制自己的心思意念和行為，我們便能學習專注於上帝，即使受到考驗或干擾時，亦是如此。

It was June 2016 during the official celebration of Queen Elizabeth’s ninetieth birthday. From her carriage, the monarch waved to the crowds, passing in front of long lines of red-coated soldiers standing at perfect, unflinching attention. It was a warm day in England, and the guards were dressed in their traditional dark wool pants, wool jackets buttoned to the chin, and massive bear-fur hats. As the soldiers stood in rigid rows under the sun, one guard began to faint. Remarkably, he maintained his strict control and simply fell forward, his body remaining straight as a board as he planted his face in the sandy gravel. There he lay—somehow still at attention.

It took years of practice and discipline for this guard to learn such self-control, to hold his body in place even as he was falling unconscious. The apostle Paul describes such training: “I discipline my body and keep it under control,” he wrote (1 Corinthians 9:27 esv). Paul recognized that “everyone who competes . . . goes into strict training” (v. 25).

While God’s grace (not our efforts) undergirds all we do, our spiritual life deserves rigorous discipline. As God helps us discipline our mind, heart, and body, we learn to keep our attention fixed on Him, even amid trials or distractions.