Keep Shooting

So a couple of weeks ago, I was playing basketball with a group of guys and before I tell on anybody else, I have to tell on myself first, I missed some very makeable shots early on.  A buddy/co-worker of mine came to me and said "don't worry about it, just keep shooting."  As a good leader, he saw that I could have let those missed points bring down my confidence and taken me out of the game.  Knowing that I had his confidence to make those shots even when, honestly, I had some doubt, gave me some confidence to just play harder.  I kept working to get open and he gave me the opportunity to shoot and low and behold, I'm making the shots. 

Since the games were only going to 10, each shot should be a good look at the very least so whenever I would miss he would still say, "Keep shooting."  He trusted in (1) that I was listening and (2) that I could make those shots.  After the winning the first game, my friend gave me a vote of confidence with the game on the line to make the winning basket of the second game and kapow, I hit the game winner!  I was able to make that shot even when earlier, I thought I shouldn't be shooting anything because my friend told me it could be done.

If I can go to the Bible on this, Jesus told the disciples to keep fishing even though they had been fishing all night long and caught nothing and fishing while the sun was out did not make much since but they believed in what He said and ending up catching more fish than they ever caught before (Luke 5:4-7).  Now think if they would have told Jesus that He was crazy for even saying to fish in the middle of the day when all the fish can see the nets-they probably would never have become the fishers of men (Luke 5: 10).

So here is the point I want to make:  we should not get weary in well doing.  In this day and age of instant gratification and having things at the tips of our fingers, it can be so easy to give up on things when it gets difficult.  And what I want to drive home is not just giving up on a dream or a career or even a personal relationship but in a bigger picture, we should not give up in doing good to people at every turn.  We should look to be there in a time of need for a friend, for a co-worker, for a stranger, for a fellow laborer of Christ  (Galatians 6: 9-10).  If we keep in mind that we should spread love to all men and women then we can really make a difference in so many people's lives.  So lets keep fishing for those who need help and who need love and encouragement because they made end up winning the game for us.  We need to keep shooting.

Willing To Wait

Recently, I mean very recently in December 2012, I saw a line begin to form one evening in front of a shoe store on Candler Rd in my hometown of Decatur, GA and the next early morning, the line got even bigger.  One can assume it was for the Jordan 4 or the D Rose 3 shoe; in any event, it was cold and the store was not going to do a midnight sale so those people had to wait.  It made me think, people can discipline themselves to wait for anything and go to any lengths if they think it is worth it.  We can hardly wait for the dinner to get done or for microwave popcorn to finish or even for a friend to hurry up so that we can get to where we are going; we have to build up patience for those things because in reality, those things are not of great value to us.  But things we really value and want to happen, we become very patient for it.  So I think that is an approach we should to take to our dreams and goals as well.  In Luke 2, Simeon was promised to see Christ before it was over and so he waited.  Abraham, in Genesis 12 and 13 was promised to have essentially, a nation of children but he had to wait on his first child with his wife, Sarah.  And there are so many other examples I could give.  The point is, we must have patience for things to happen because, like those customers that waited for about 15 hours in the cold, anything of value is not going to be given over night.  In the book, Outlier by Malcolm Gladwell, he gives us the "10, 000-Hour Rule," which is to work on your purpose, your dream, your goal, for a long period of time, working out the kinks and the wrinkles so that it and you are perfected.  It takes time + dedication (patience in other words) = to get perfection but you have to be willing to go through whatever it takes, good and bad, cold and hot, sun and rain, days and weeks, months and years.  In this smart phone and facebook/twitter/instagram society we tend to think that things should be done in a blink of an eye and that our dreams and goals should get presidential treatment (never having to wait on anything); but if you look at what it took for the person to become president, all the years of hard work plus the amount of the babies kissed, its no wonder he or eventually she, does not have to wait for an elevator or an airplane or limo.  So remember to go for your dreams and purposes but remember that it takes patience to keep going after them, and if you read Hebrews 11, you may not see the full completion of it in your lifetime but that does not mean you give it up.  Run with patience until your task is complete.

YOLO!

YOLO! YOLO! YOLO! YOLO! Its a growing catch phrase since the song The Motto right? (Thanks Drake) But maybe its a wake up call for all of us too. You Only Live Once! Take a moment and think about it (I'll wait).  As MC Jin says (before he recorded YOGO), you only live once so never think twice, unless its to consider if its really worth the price.  So many times, we waste our time on things that really do nothing for ourselves or others. For some reason we either think we have all the time in the world or we have not counted the cost of what we put our time and effort into. It is funny how God gives us little to make much out of it and the number of days we live is no exception (Psalms 90). Here in America, its been put in our minds that our life is go to school, go to church, get a job, get married, get a house, get kids, retire as grandparents, maybe become great-grandparents, then die. Sounds ideal, but can we honestly say that we have seen and heard so many people that have regrets over the life choices they have made. How many marriages that have lasted 30 or 40 years end terribly or people become lost because of retirement or because of a lay off. Life is really an opportunity and life as a whole should not be wasted. If you love someone, family, friends, spouse, coworkers, tell them. If you are in position to help someone, help them. If there is a gift or talent that you have, use it, and use it for a purpose. If you think you do not have a special gift, help someone develop theirs. The one thing that can still sting you other than a heart break is a regret but, unlike a heart break, a regret is something you never even tried to do. You can correct choosing the wrong answer on a test but you can never correct a no answer. God has always called for us not to waste time because we only have so much of it to use and when its gone, its gone. Ask any professional athlete about time and chance; they can tell us all about it being now or never and that we should leave it all on the field, because in truth, there is only one chance, one shot, one opportunity, to fulfill your purpose.  And since all of us only lives once, we might as well give what we got and make this one shot we call life, a bulls-eye! Go for it because the kingdom of God is in you.

http://www.4regeneration.com/yolo/