State.In our last blog I wrote the devotional I shared with the team yesterday - goals and slogans for the New Year. Please indulge me by letting you in on part 2 that I'll share with the team today. (I'm having a blast being team chaplain.)
It’s natural to want what is right and productive but it is also natural to not commit to the kind of life that will produce the action required to achieve the personal doing and being goals. The natural result is the road to hell is paved with good intentions. Like wanting to be fianancially solvent but maxing out the credit cards.
Same with basketball. How much time do you spend in extra personal workout? And what is the structure? DO you just go out on the court and start shooting? My bias as a coach and player was to get on the court and don’t’ even touch a ball. Warm up. Then do defensive slide drills up and down the court. Then get a ball – not to shoot but to work on dribbing and ball handling drills. Everyone wants to get on the court and start shooting but this suggeted workout before shooting prepares you mentally for the complete game. Gets you somewhat fatigued to replicate more of game conditions. Then shoot – starting in close building up a mindset of that ball is going in and gradually moving further from the basket knowing that the ball is going through the hoop. So much of shooting is psych.
Just as you’ve worked on developing your BB skills to even more enjoy the fruit of competition; so also the person walking with God. To enjoy the greater fruit of godly living requires training.
Ingredients in our spiritual workout are:
1. Solitude. Silence to expose ourselves to ourselves and to provide an environment in which we can listen to God’s whisper to us.
2. Mediation upon God’s word – not just read it or listen to someone else preach, though both are valuable. But digging into the Word and allowing it to to speak to you.
3. Journaling thoughts, feelings and insights more indelibley imprints our minds and spirits.
4. Memorize scripture, in so doing you’re bathing your mind with principles for successful living and dying.
5. Prayer, talking to and listening with God. Prayer invcludes confession.
6. Worship, corporately where we join others in the celebration of the Christ life.
All this not as a legalistic trip for God’s approval or to be more spiritual, but it is our part in allowing God to work deeply in our lives, transforming us into stronger, wiser, more loving Godly people.
Men, life is painful. You’ll either experience the pain of self discipline or the pain of regret – both in basketball and in life in general. Regret from not accomplishing what you know you are capable of achieving.
Pain of disciple or the pain of reget. Have a goal. Develop a strategy for accomplishing the goal. Pay the price in action to enjoy the fruit of reaching that goal. Enjoy life more fully.
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