--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Discipline means to prevent everything in…" description: "\"Discipline means to prevent everything in your life from being filled up. Discipline means that somewhere you're not occupied, and certainly not preocc..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/401/henri-nouwen-600_discipline_discipline-means-to-prevent-everything-i_3009949.png" --- # Discipline means to prevent everything in your life from… ![“Discipline means to prevent everything in your life from being filled up. Discipline means that somewhere you're not occupied, and certainly not preoccupied. In the spiritual life, discipline means to create that space in which something can happen that you hadn't planned or counted on.” quote by Henri Nouwen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/401/henri-nouwen-600_discipline_discipline-means-to-prevent-everything-i_3009949.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/401/henri-nouwen-600_discipline_discipline-means-to-prevent-everything-i_3009949.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/401/henri-nouwen-600_discipline_discipline-means-to-prevent-everything-i_3009949.png) > “Discipline means to prevent everything in your life from being filled up. Discipline means that somewhere you're not occupied, and certainly not preoccupied. In the spiritual life, discipline means to create that space in which something can happen that you hadn't planned or counted on.” [Henri Nouwen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henri-nouwen/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Discipline creates mental and emotional space by limiting unnecessary engagements, allowing unexpected growth and spiritual insight. **In simple terms:** Discipline frees space for new possibilities. Key Takeaway Cultivate intentional limits. Themes self‑growth spirituality focus Mood contemplative intentional Type advice philosophical When to use this quote - personal reflection - spiritual practice - creative work - decision making Key Concepts mindfulness boundary setting creative openness Questions to Reflect On - How can you balance structure with openness? - What activities truly fill your space? A Different Perspective Too much restriction can stifle spontaneity and joy. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Discipline](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/discipline/) [Life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/life/) [Space](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/space/) [Spiritual](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/spiritual/) [Spiritual life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/spiritual-life/) ## Related quotes > [Discipline means protection from one's own wanton interest.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-vaughan/discipline-means-protection-from-one-s-own-wanton-interest/) [Bill Vaughan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-vaughan/) > [Sometimes discipline, which means 'to teach,' is confused with criticism. Children-as well as people of all ages-improve behavior from love and encouragement more than…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-w-tanner/sometimes-discipline-which-means-to-teach-is-confused-with-criticism-2/) [Susan W. Tanner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-w-tanner/) > [“I'm buried beneath an avalanche of papers, I don't understand the language of the country, and what do I do about a kid who…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bel-kaufman/i-m-buried-beneath-an-avalanche-of-papers-i-don-t-understand-the/) [Bel Kaufman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bel-kaufman/) > [The clerical work is par for the course. "Keep on file in numerical order" means throw in wastebasket. You'll soon learn the language. "Let…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bel-kaufman/the-clerical-work-is-par-for-the-course-keep-on-file-in-numerical/) [Bel Kaufman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bel-kaufman/) > [What is discipline? Discipline means creating an order within you. As you are, you are a chaos.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/what-is-discipline-discipline-means-creating-an-order-within-you-as/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“The word discipline has disappeared from our minds, our mouths, our pulpits, and our culture. We hardly know what discipline means in modern American…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-s-whitney/the-word-discipline-has-disappeared-from-our-minds-our-mouths-our/) [Donald S. Whitney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-s-whitney/) > [Discipline means behaving according to what you have decided is best, regardless of how you feel in the moment. The first trait of discipline…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dranil-kr-sinha/discipline-means-behaving-according-to-what-you-have-decided-is-best/) [DrAnil Kr Sinha](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dranil-kr-sinha/) > [“It is our Puritanism, insisting that discipline means repression or punishment, which confuses the subject. To discipline something, in the proper sense of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ursula-k-le-guin/it-is-our-puritanism-insisting-that-discipline-means-repression-or/) [Ursula K. Le Guin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ursula-k-le-guin/) > [Sometimes discipline, which means "to teach," is confused with criticism.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-w-tanner/sometimes-discipline-which-means-to-teach-is-confused-with-criticism/) [Susan W. Tanner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-w-tanner/) > [Discipline means we don't let go of the things we know we should be doing, we do them!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-rohn/discipline-means-we-don-t-let-go-of-the-things-we-know-we-should-be/) [Jim Rohn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-rohn/) > [What is discipline? Discipline means creating an order within you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/what-is-discipline-discipline-means-creating-an-order-within-you/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“True discipline means channeling our best hours into first-order objectives, and that means being a nonconformist in the best sense.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-r-covey/true-discipline-means-channeling-our-best-hours-into-first-order/) [Stephen R. Covey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-r-covey/) > [Discipline means looking beyond the appearance, beyond that which is visible and acknowledging one Infinite Cause.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-johnson/discipline-means-looking-beyond-the-appearance-beyond-that-which-is/) [Tom Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-johnson/) > [“Life has no other discipline to impose, if we would but realize it, than to accept life unquestioningly. Everything we shut our eyes to,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steve-pavlina/life-has-no-other-discipline-to-impose-if-we-would-but-realize-it/) [Steve Pavlina](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steve-pavlina/) > [“Christianity is more than just a belief; it is a life of discipline, a firm determination to live a life of prayer and contemplation,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ramon-m-torres/christianity-is-more-than-just-a-belief-it-is-a-life-of-discipline-a/) Ramon M. Torres ## More by Henri Nouwen > [We are not the healers, we are not the reconcilers, we are not the givers of life. We are sinful, broken, vulnerable people who…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henri-nouwen/we-are-not-the-healers-we-are-not-the-reconcilers-we-are-not-the/) [Henri Nouwen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henri-nouwen/) > [The more we touch the intimate love of God which creates, sustains, and guides us, the more we recognize the multitude of fruits that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henri-nouwen/the-more-we-touch-the-intimate-love-of-god-which-creates-sustains-and/) [Henri Nouwen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henri-nouwen/) > [Feelings of guilt dominate our work as peacemakers we cannot last long. But when we have opened each other's eyes to the great human…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henri-nouwen/feelings-of-guilt-dominate-our-work-as-peacemakers-we-cannot-last/) [Henri Nouwen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henri-nouwen/) > [...we all want to hear stories, from the moment we are born to the moment we die. Stories connect our little lives with the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henri-nouwen/we-all-want-to-hear-stories-from-the-moment-we-are-born-to-the-moment/) [Henri Nouwen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henri-nouwen/) > [I have found it very important...to let go of my wishes and start hoping.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henri-nouwen/i-have-found-it-very-important-to-let-go-of-my-wishes-and-start-hoping/) [Henri Nouwen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henri-nouwen/) > [Simply being with someone is difficult because it asks of us that we share in the other's vulnerability, enter with him or her into…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henri-nouwen/simply-being-with-someone-is-difficult-because-it-asks-of-us-that-we/) [Henri Nouwen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henri-nouwen/) > [Somewhere we know that without silence, words lose their meaning.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henri-nouwen/somewhere-we-know-that-without-silence-words-lose-their-meaning/) [Henri Nouwen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henri-nouwen/) > [Jesus says, "Keep your heart on the kingdom first. Keep your heart on God's love. Keep focused on the fact that you are God's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henri-nouwen/jesus-says-keep-your-heart-on-the-kingdom-first-keep-your-heart-on/) [Henri Nouwen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henri-nouwen/) > [This sounds very simple and maybe even trite, but very few people know that they are loved without condition or limits.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henri-nouwen/this-sounds-very-simple-and-maybe-even-trite-but-very-few-people-know/) [Henri Nouwen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henri-nouwen/) > [“The more preoccupied we are with security the more visible the force of death becomes, whether in the form of a pistol beside our…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henri-nouwen/the-more-preoccupied-we-are-with-security-the-more-visible-the-force/) [Henri Nouwen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henri-nouwen/) > [If you feel a great loneliness and a deep longing for human contact, you have to be extremely discerning...and ask yourself whether this situation…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henri-nouwen/if-you-feel-a-great-loneliness-and-a-deep-longing-for-human-contact/) [Henri Nouwen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henri-nouwen/) > [I choose L'Arche; L'Arche chooses me. I would be dead if I weren't here. I need people to love me and care for me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henri-nouwen/i-choose-l-arche-l-arche-chooses-me-i-would-be-dead-if-i-weren-t-here/) [Henri Nouwen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henri-nouwen/) > [The truth, even though I cannot feel it right now, is that I am the chosen child of God, precious in God's eyes, called…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henri-nouwen/the-truth-even-though-i-cannot-feel-it-right-now-is-that-i-am-the/) [Henri Nouwen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henri-nouwen/) > [In a world so torn apart by rivalry, anger, and hatred, we have the privileged vocation to be living signs of a love that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henri-nouwen/in-a-world-so-torn-apart-by-rivalry-anger-and-hatred-we-have-the/) [Henri Nouwen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henri-nouwen/) > [Where true inner freedom is, there is God. And where God is, there we want to be.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henri-nouwen/where-true-inner-freedom-is-there-is-god-and-where-god-is-there-we/) [Henri Nouwen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henri-nouwen/) [Explore all 452 Henri Nouwen quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henri-nouwen/) ## More Discipline quotes > [Christianity was never meant to be defined by its disciplines, but by its passions.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-johnson/christianity-was-never-meant-to-be-defined-by-its-disciplines-but-by/) [Bill Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-johnson/) > [Grit and self-control are related, but they're not the same thing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/angela-duckworth/grit-and-self-control-are-related-but-they-re-not-the-same-thing/) [Angela Duckworth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/angela-duckworth/) > [“Peace requires a discipline more iron than war. - Easter, 1939 ”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/w-j-turner/peace-requires-a-discipline-more-iron-than-war-easter-1939/) W.J. Turner > [You can't have the fruits without the roots. It's the principle of sequencing: Private Victories proceed Public Victories. Self-mastery and self-discipline are the foundation…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-covey/you-can-t-have-the-fruits-without-the-roots-it-s-the-principle-of/) [Stephen Covey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-covey/) > [Like a child exploring the attic of an old house on a rainy day, discovering a trunk full of treasure and then calling all…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eugene-h-peterson/like-a-child-exploring-the-attic-of-an-old-house-on-a-rainy-day/) [Eugene H. Peterson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eugene-h-peterson/) > [Exercise teaches you the pleasure of discipline.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-fonda/exercise-teaches-you-the-pleasure-of-discipline/) [Jane Fonda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-fonda/) > [I'm always writing. I'm an obsessive. It's not because I'm a disciplined person. It's because I'm crazy about it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hanif-kureishi/i-m-always-writing-i-m-an-obsessive-it-s-not-because-i-m-a/) [Hanif Kureishi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hanif-kureishi/) > [“I felt like praying or something, when I was in bed, but I couldn't do it. I can't always pray when I feel like…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-d-salinger/i-felt-like-praying-or-something-when-i-was-in-bed-but-i-couldn-t-do/) [J.D. Salinger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-d-salinger/) > [The undisciplined child enters into discipline by working in the company of others; not being told he is naughty.” “Discipline is, therefore, primarily a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maria-montessori/the-undisciplined-child-enters-into-discipline-by-working-in-the/) [Maria Montessori](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maria-montessori/) > [“Proverbs from the East: The wind howls, but the mountain remains still. Even though I make no special attempt to observe the discipline of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-cain/proverbs-from-the-east-the-wind-howls-but-the-mountain-remains-still/) [Susan Cain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-cain/) > [To behave creatively in art means behavior with skill; and skill comes from discipline, not derangement. The artist who knows the rules -and proportion…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/burne-hogarth/to-behave-creatively-in-art-means-behavior-with-skill-and-skill-comes/) Burne Hogarth > [Self-discipline is an act of cultivation. It require you to connect today's actions to tomorrow's results. There's a season for sowing a season for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gary-ryan-blair/self-discipline-is-an-act-of-cultivation-it-require-you-to-connect/) [Gary Ryan Blair](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gary-ryan-blair/) > [The individual, by means of the discipline imposed on him by sport, not only plays and finds relaxation from the various compulsions to which…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jacques-ellul/the-individual-by-means-of-the-discipline-imposed-on-him-by-sport-not/) [Jacques Ellul](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jacques-ellul/) > [Cheerfulness in most cheerful people is the rich and satisfying result of strenuous discipline.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edwin-percy-whipple/cheerfulness-in-most-cheerful-people-is-the-rich-and-satisfying/) [Edwin Percy Whipple](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edwin-percy-whipple/) > [Stay in your seat come times of trouble. Its only people who jump off the roller coaster who get hurt.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-harvey/stay-in-your-seat-come-times-of-trouble-its-only-people-who-jump-off/) [Paul Harvey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-harvey/) [Browse all 5,597 Discipline quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/discipline/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Discipline means to prevent everything in your life from being filled up. Discipline means that somewhere you're not occupied, and certainly not preoccupied. 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