Reflections on The Daily Stoic:

• The Discipline of Perception
• January's Theme: Clarity
• Topic: The Day in Review
  
• Stoic: Seneca

Today's quote:

I will keep constant watch over myself and - most usefully - will put each day up for review. For this is what makes us evil - that none of us looks back upon our own lives. We reflect upon only that which we are about to do. And yet our plans for the future descend from the past.

- Moral Letters, 83.2

The Stoics practiced meditation both at the beginning and at the end of the day. Where Marcus Aurelius reflected each morning on how he would mentally approach the day ahead, here Seneca reflects each evening on his success or failure in his thoughts, choices, and actions in the day just completed.

I am reminded of the biblical practice of confession: assessing our thoughts, choices, and actions in light of God's law and will for our lives, and acknowledging where we have fallen short. And of course, we all do: "...for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God..." (Romans 3:23). Confession is merely acknowledging that we have fallen short, and asking for forgiveness.

If we do not engage in this practice, we set ourselves up for hardship. "If we claim to be without sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us." (I John 1:8-9) "If we claim we have not sinned, we make him out to be a liar and his word is not in us." (I John 1:10). But when we do, God promises us that he will be merciful. "Whoever conceals their sins does not prosper, but the one who confesses and renounces them finds mercy." (Proverbs 28:13)

Some Christian traditions consider confession to be a sacrament, performed in a ritualistic manner, with a priest or other intercessor. Other traditions consider confession to be primarily a personal matter between the believer and God. But regardless of degree of formality, there are times when we need to edify one another by confessing our sins not just in our hearts to God, but to other believers. "Therefore confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous person is powerful and effective." (James 5:16)

This act of self-reflection and acknowledgement of our own failure is inherently an act of humility. But when we are humble, confess to God, and ultimately, acknowledge our reliance on Him, he will forgive and will uplift us. "Come near to God and he will come near to you. Wash your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded. Grieve, mourn and wail. Change your laughter to mourning and your joy to gloom. Humble yourselves before the Lord, and he will lift you up." (James 4:8-10) "If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness." (I John 1:9)

Reflections on The Daily Stoic:

• The Discipline of Perception
• January's Theme: Clarity
• Topic: Peace is in Staying the Course
  
• Stoic: Seneca

Today's quote:

Tranquility can't be grasped except by those who have reached an unwavering and firm power of judgment - the rest constantly fall and rise in their decisions, wavering in a state of alternately rejecting and accepting things. What is the cause of this back and forth? It's because nothing is clear and they rely on the most uncertain guide - common opinion.

- Moral Letters, 95.57b-58a

The idea Seneca references here is what he calls euthymia. The general Stoic concept of euthymia is a general calmness of the mind. As explained by The Daily Stoic, Seneca expounds on this concept as "believing in yourself and trusting that you are on the right path, and not being in doubt by following the myriad footpaths of those wandering in every direction."

As Christians, we can confidently know that we are on the right path, because we trust God to guide us. Jesus called Himself The Way: "Jesus answered, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me." (John 14:6) The early church adopted the moniker The Way to describe followers of Christ. (Acts 9, 19, 24)

More directly, we are called to obey God's Word to ensure that we are on the right path. "How can a young person stay on the path of purity? By living according to your word." (Psalm 119:9) "I run in the path of your commands, for you have broadened my understanding." (Psalm 119:32) "Direct me in the path of your commands, for there I find delight." (Psalm 119:35) "I have considered my ways and have turned my steps to your statutes." (Psalm 119:59) "I have kept my feet from every evil path so that I might obey your word." (Psalm 119:101) "Your word is a lamp for my feet, a light on my path." (Psalm 119:105) "Because I love your commands more than gold, more than pure gold, and because I consider all your precepts right, I hate every wrong path." (Psalm 119:127-128) "Direct my footsteps according to your word; let no sin rule over me." (Psalm 119:133)

When we do so, we can trust that God will direct us on our path. "Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways submit to him, and he will make your paths straight." (Proverbs 3:5-6)

Reflections on The Daily Stoic:

• The Discipline of Perception
• January's Theme: Clarity
• Topic: Seeing Our Addictions
  
• Stoic: Seneca

Today's quote:

We must give up many things to which we are addicted, considering them to be good. Otherwise, courage will vanish, which should continually test itself. Greatness of soul will be lost, which can't stand out unless it disdains as petty what the mob regards as most desirable.

- Moral Letters, 74.12b-13

I've always liked coffee, even from a young age, when I would sip the cold, next-morning leftovers from my dad's night-before evening black coffee. But I really developed my love of coffee in college, thanks to a dear friend (in memory of whom I still occasionally have coffee with Kahlua) and a subscription to Gevalia (their Royal Vintner Kaffe became part of our family Christmas tradition for several years).

By the time I graduated and was working my first job out of college, I was easily drinking a pot - 10 cups - a day. I've never particularly been a caffeine fiend; I stopped drinking soft drinks early in high school (I started drinking primarily water, due to tennis and marching band). Even so, that much daily caffeine consumption can and will cause a physiological, chemical dependency - as I found out, when I realized that not getting my daily caffeine intake started causing migraine headaches.

That was the moment that I decided to start implementing regular coffee fasts, to break myself of that chemical dependency. (Side note: a cold-turkey caffeine fast is not recommended, unless you want to spend two days in a dark room, avoiding all sound and light and maxing out NSAID daily dosages. Spend a few days - or a couple weeks - tapering down daily caffeine intake.) I decided to make February my annual "coffee fast" month. I'm sure my liver appreciated the break, but the intent was more mental than physical: in principle, I did not want to be chemically dependent on anything. Now, I simply keep my regular coffee intake at 2 - 4 cups per day, well-below the level that would cause a chemical dependency/withdrawal symptoms.

Addictions, and their adverse impacts, can come in other forms. In our connected, mobile-device culture, cell phone notifications have become addictive, leveraging the same neural circuitry as cocaine and slot machines, and causing hallucinations in the form of phantom vibrations. Cell phone notifications literally cause a dopamine response in the brain. That, combined with a 24/7 news culture designed to keep stress levels elevated and a social media culture that encourages interactions that lack social norms for filtering of thoughts and attitudes (i.e. keyboard warrior syndrome) and the allure of "doom-scrolling" that keeps us focused on the worst sociopolitical aspects of society, has led to a pandemic of social media-related depression among teens (and, I suspect, adults as well).

Just as the types of fat we consume in our diet become the building blocks for the cells in our body - we literally are what we eat - in a mental sense also, we are what we consume, and what we focus our thoughts on. This is a biblical principle. "For as he thinks within himself, so he is..." (Proverbs 23:7 NASB) "Your eye is the lamp of your body. When your eyes are healthy, your whole body also is full of light. But when they are unhealthy, your body also is full of darkness. See to it, then, that the light within you is not darkness." (Luke 11:34-35)

As Christians, we understand that addictions - whatever their nature - distract and draw us away from our relationship with God. "You shall have no other gods before me." (Exodus 20:3) "“I have the right to do anything,” you say—but not everything is beneficial. “I have the right to do anything”—but I will not be mastered by anything." (I Corinthians 6:12)

So how do we overcome these types of addictions, particularly addictions of the mind? By mastering our thoughts, in turn by controlling that which we choose to consume (see, hear, etc.) and talk about. "Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things." (Colossians 3:2) "Those who live according to the flesh have their minds set on what the flesh desires; but those who live in accordance with the Spirit have their minds set on what the Spirit desires." (Romans 8:5) "Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things." (Philippians 4:8)

Reflections on The Daily Stoic:

• The Discipline of Perception
• January's Theme: Clarity
• Topic: Clarify Your Intentions
  
• Stoic: Seneca

Today's quote:

Let all your efforts be directed to something, let it keep that end in view. It's not activity that disturbs people, but false conceptions of things that drive them mad.

- On Tranquility of Mind, 12.5

I tend to be a rather deliberate person. Rarely will I make an arbitrary decision or take an arbitrary action; everything I do has a purpose. Yes; this attribute can be maddening to others, to whom it evinces anal retentiveness (perhaps only a few degrees separated from OCD, depending on whom you ask). But to me, it merely means that I am always acting toward some objective or goal - however big or small it may be. I read The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People in junior high, and started reading books on fatherhood and leadership around the same time.

I don't consider myself to be a particularly driven person, at least insofar as such drive is conventionally understood, toward wealth, fame, etc. I would like to think that my goals are more closely aligned with my own sphere of influence and with God's purpose for my life. Being remembered as a loving husband and father who loved God, worked hard, and provided well for his family will be more than enough of an epitaph for me.

That said, I do think that we are called to live life with purpose. Indeed, one of the 7 Habits, as referenced by The Daily Stoic, is "begin with the end in mind." As Robin Williams so memorably encourages his students in Dead Poets Society, referencing Robert Herrick's To the Virgins, to Make Much of Time:

Gather ye rosebuds while ye may,
  Old time is still a-flying;
And this same flower that smiles today
  Tomorrow will be dying

The Dead Poets, of which Mr. Keating was a member while a student at Welton, took Henry David Thoreau's introduction to Walden as their mantra (and literal calling to go into the woods) to live deliberately: "I went to the woods because I wished to live deliberately, to front only the essential facts of life, and see if I could not learn what it had to teach, and not, when I came to die, discover that I had not lived. I did not wish to live what was not life, living is so dear; nor did I wish to practice resignation, unless it was quite necessary. I wanted to live deep and suck out all the marrow of life..."

The stoics called this concept - the end or goal of stoic ethics - eudaimonia, roughly translated as "happiness" or "flourishing", and by which they meant "living in harmony with nature" through living a morally virtuous life.

To quote Mr. Keating: "The Latin term for that sentiment is Carpe Diem... seize the day. Gather ye rosebuds while ye may. Why does the writer use these lines? ...Because we are food for worms, lads. Because, believe it or not, each and every one of us in this room is one day going to stop breathing, turn cold, and die."

Morbid? Perhaps. But also biblical: "A good name is better than fine perfume, and the day of death better than the day of birth. It is better to go to a house of mourning than to go to a house of feasting, for death is the destiny of everyone; the living should take this to heart." (Ecclesiastes 7:1-2) "Just as people are destined to die once, and after that to face judgment..." (Hebrews 9:27)

What was Mr. Keating's point? "Carpe diem. Seize the day boys. Make your lives extraordinary."

As Christians, we are called to seize the day, to make the most of our opportunities, and to live life to the fullest in the furtherance of the kingdom of God. "Do not boast about tomorrow, for you do not know what a day may bring." (Proverbs 27:1) "Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own." (Matthew 6:34) "Be very careful, then, how you live—not as unwise but as wise, making the most of every opportunity..." (Ephesians 5:15-16) "Not that I have already obtained all this, or have already arrived at my goal, but I press on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me. Brothers and sisters, I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus." (Philippians 3:12-14) "Do you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only one gets the prize? Run in such a way as to get the prize. Everyone who competes in the games goes into strict training. They do it to get a crown that will not last, but we do it to get a crown that will last forever. Therefore I do not run like someone running aimlessly; I do not fight like a boxer beating the air. No, I strike a blow to my body and make it my slave so that after I have preached to others, I myself will not be disqualified for the prize." (I Corinthians 9:24-27)

Reflections on The Daily Stoic:

• The Discipline of Perception
• January's Theme: Clarity
• Topic: Be Ruthless to the Things That Don't Matter
  
• Stoic: Seneca

Today's quote:

How many have laid waste to your life when you weren't aware of what you were losing, how much was wasted in pointless grief, foolish joy, greedy desire, and social amusements - how little of your own was left to you. You will realize you are dying before your time!

- On the Brevity of Life, 3.3b

There is incredible power in the word "No" - especially in making the most of the finite time we have available each day, each week, each year, and in our lifetime. Modern society makes much of - or at least, pays lip service to - work-life balance; but even aside from that balance, what of our choices in how we spend our time away from work? And what about the thoughts and emotions that occupy our minds at work, at home, and even while we sleep?

As we have already contemplated, 2020 and the beginning of 2021 have given us ample opportunity to be consumed by such thoughts and emotions - even as many find themselves less "busy" in terms of physical activity. As a result, we cannot find peace, calm - serenity.

There is a difference between appropriate concern for the things for which we are responsible and worry. The latter not only can become a time thief by consuming our thoughts, but for Christians can be seen as a lack of faith in God who has promised to provide: "So do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own." (Matthew 6:31-34)

And anxiety and worry are only the beginning. Other passions can consume us, especially in our current, social media-driven culture. As Paul instructs the church as Colossae: "But now you must also rid yourselves of all such things as these: anger, rage, malice, slander, and filthy language from your lips." (Colossians 3:8)

So then, what should consume our thoughts?  "Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things." (Colossians 3:2) Further: "Therefore, as God’s chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience. Bear with each other and forgive one another if any of you has a grievance against someone. Forgive as the Lord forgave you. And over all these virtues put on love, which binds them all together in perfect unity. Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, since as members of one body you were called to peace. And be thankful." (Colossians 3:12-15)

As Paul encourages the church at Philippi: "Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things." (Philippians 4:8)

Peace of mind and an attitude of gratitude, then, are a conscious choice - a choice that is entirely under our own control, a choice that frees us from thoughts and emotions that would consume our finite time, and a choice that helps us truly live the life we are intended.