It is no accident that the words "disciple" and "discipline" come from the same root: Latin disciplina, meaning "teaching." As disciples of the Lord, we are taught through discipline. We need that discipline when we are tempted to compromise our ethics or ignore our conscience and do something we shouldn't or fail to do something we should. Hebrews reminds us today that God's discipline is given out of love, to keep our conscience strong and our feet on the narrow path. May we keep to the discipline of being a true disciple and resolve to learn from our missteps. It is revealing that the same Jesus who warned us about the narrow gate opened his arms wide on the cross to redeem the world. It is the wideness of God's mercy, not our ability to stick it the straight and narrow, that determines whether we end up reclining at table in God's kingdom. By all means, we should strive to be a disciple, to aim for that narrow gate. We are called to focus our attention, our discipleship, on what is truly important, discarding whatever distracts us from that focus, that prevents us from concentrating on striving toward the kingdom. But we must always recognize that we are the ones in charge.