In a world that normalizes instant gratification, sexual discipline can feel impossible or outdated. This workshop will highlight why it’s worth pursuing and share practical steps for learning how to manage sexual energy in a way that leads to a healthier, more fulfilling future.

Hartland Fall Convocation 2025: Engage Clarity Mode

<p>In a world that normalizes instant gratification, sexual discipline can feel impossible or outdated. This workshop will highlight why it’s worth pursuing and share practical steps for learning how to manage sexual energy in a way that leads to a healthier, more fulfilling future.</p>

<p>Free sharing permitted under the Creative Commons <a rel="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/3.0/us/">BY-NC-ND 3.0 (US)</a> license.</p>

Hartland Institute of Health and Education

Michael Carducci

Why Sexual Discipline Builds the Life You Actually Want

Dear Heavenly Father, I thank you for bringing us here to spend this time to talk.

And Lord, I pray that you will bless us, bless our conversation, and help it to draw us closer to you, help us to understand you better.

So, Vernal, I want to give a little bit of some of the history because I remember that summer that I was with your group in Massachusetts, my goal was to kind of energize and motivate the group.

And I remember that there were some programs that I put together that I'm still using today from from that group that were really powerful you know information that I was gleaning and I had a great experience with your group Do you remember the 1 activity that we did on the last day on Sabbath afternoon?

I'm a real stickler for a first-person and Poor Vernal I've already put him through that But if somebody's ambiguous and they start talking about us and we, I'll always ask them, can you make that first person?

And talking about the discipline, because that's what we're gonna be talking about today, it's why sexual discipline builds the life that you actually want.

So we're gonna really be talking about discipline in a broad way and also in its application to sexuality.

For me personally, I was the type of person that, for me, discipline wasn't something that I really craved.

You know, I like to fly by the sea in my pants.

If something is really too planned out, it kind of loses its interest with me.

You know, like the planning never seems to build up for the actual funds.

So to me it's like, oh, why do we have to plan?

So I see the difference now as a Christian for 25 years, especially for somebody that had very little discipline.

But I do this thing because, I do this thing where I like to take scriptures and spirit of prophecy quotes and I like to make them first person because I was from the addiction part because number 1, I didn't want that promise to be for me so I thought that that promise was for you and everybody else.

But the other side of it was, when I would read those promises, I thought that I was such a loathsome sinner that there's no way that that promise could be for me, and so that must be for other people.

So in that process, I started to learn that when I made spirit of prophecy or scripture quotes in first person, there's no denying that that is for me, I am worthy of it.

But then also number 2, I'm accountable to it.

Like that is for me and not for somebody else.

I can relate and also now my memory is refreshed.

So we went out, he asked us, if I remember correctly, he asked us to get scriptures.

I don't know if it was more than 1, and you told us to write it again, but write it with I instead of whatever they wrote.

So like, for instance, for God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten son that whosoever believes, that if Verno believed, no, that, how do I put it?

If, for God so loved the world, for God so loved Vernal, that he gave his only begotten son for Vernal that if Vernal believes, he will have everlasting life.

So we had to change the words for it to mean, for it to apply to you personally, yes I remember now.

That's awesome, and it was on a beautiful, I think we were on like a sloping hill where we were overlooking this kind of ravine area.

I remember that too, I drew that actually, but yes.

Oh wow, so what was really cool is that we spent the afternoon and it seemed to really be valuable and beneficial for everybody else as well as it was for me.

It was, using that word, but anyway, it was a time, you know, call Porter We were called portering and you know call portering it could be challenging character building And so we were going through a character building experience and That was a good pick-me-up at the time, so I did appreciate that.

All right, so let's just start by definition, if we can, and we just wanna talk about discipline in general.

So discipline for me, you know, not dictionary definition, discipline for me is when you have a structure, a structured plan or a structure, it's a certain type of structure that you keep going, that helps you to keep going, keep continuing a program or something like that.

All right, so discipline for me also means it's a certain level of planning ahead.

I never decided what I wanted for breakfast until I was at the McDonald's or whatever.

So for me, discipline was like, do what you want, do your own thing.

As a hairdresser though, my life changed.

Because when I became a hairdresser, I found that if I knew where my combs were and if my brushes were clean, then I had a much better day.

And I wasn't double-guessing, trying to find something to use.

And that really helped to free me up to be more creative behind the chair being a hairdresser.

So I became really rigid as a hairdresser, making sure that all of my implements were right where they needed to be and that kind of thing.

But it started to bleed into my personal life as well.

So what I'm hearing from you is really it was when you received responsibility that it kind of, you know, it's kind of like it necessitates, it makes it necessary for you to have discipline.

You know, it's interesting because Jesus was very disciplined, wouldn't you agree?

So do you remember the story in desire of ages where Jesus actually folded his bedclothes?

Yes, and that was like amazing to me I'm like what like you're ready to go to heaven and to be Celebrated for everything that you did on this earth and it's like I mean I would forgive him if he just threw his, you know, robe there across that bed, but no, that's how important the discipline was that he took the time to fold those clothes.

And that's an example, not only to me, but also to, I'm sure, the Roman guards that saw the tomb and everybody else that came by.

So you said, so in your journey now, you decided that discipline was necessary for you, right?

At that time, Is that what you're saying?

I think it hit me probably about an hour ago when we were talking, but just being honest, I'm just being honest because for me, it wasn't like a dawning.

It was as I started to implement some of those principles, and I praise God for Ellen White.

Because a lot of Adventists really give her a bad rap.

But if it wasn't for that little old lady, I don't know that I'd be here.

Because somebody handed me a desire of ages, believe it or not, wrapped in Santa Claus paper at the Adventist church where I got baptized.

And I was offended, even as a non-Christian, even as a heathen, I did not like that whole Santa, remember that story I told last night that I asked my parents, was Santa Claus real?

So ever since then it's like, you know, Santa Claus just doesn't cut it for me.

So when they handed me that book, you know, I ripped away the Santa Claus paper, but it's talking about discipline.

And then being a hairdresser, I was very visual.

And if I read a book, they were probably maybe 3 or 4 books like the, the autobiography of Elizabeth Taylor or of some movie star or something like that.

So I never read a book completely through and somebody hands me this book.

But because of my sexual addiction and because of my history, I remember thinking to myself, what am I gonna do with this book?

Why Sexual Discipline Builds the Life You Actually Want

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