"Consistency is the Key"                                                 Week of September 25^{th 2006}

I was in a doctor’s office last week and while in the waiting room and picked up a golf magazine. In this issue there was an article which really hit home with me; the author, who is a well-known sports psychologist, (that sounds like an oxymoron to me) wrote an article on the mental side of golf. Yeah, I know some of you guys think anyone who plays golf is mental. Anyway, as I read the article, I was struck how much of what he was saying about the mental side of golf, applied to us men seeking to initiate or maintain a vibrant walk with Christ.

Anyone who is in sports, on stage or an overachiever in the business world is constantly seeking to improve on their performance. Each and every day, they seek to find ways to better themselves either through knowledge or experience, in order to give their best performance. Ultimately, they know that by doing this day after day they will as the author states; “win the ultimate prize”. Boy, doesn’t that sound familiar. The Apostle Paul tells us in 1Corinthians 9:24b “run in such a way as to win the prize”. We are called like these athletes to be focused on the "ultimate prize". We are to be focused, persistent and determined.

Any successful athlete will tell you that failure for them is not an option, or even in their vocabulary. Neither should it be in ours. Yet, sadly we all fail and we fail a lot (at least I do). When I do fail, I take the time to look and learn from the situation, so that in the long run, I will use it to make me a better person. I am reminded of a great book I read a few years back by John Maxwell entitled “Failing Forward”. His whole premise is that you seek to intentionally “fail forward,” in order to ultimately reach your success point.  Likewise, the author of the article says much the same thing. He says if we are not failing, then we are not putting ourselves into situations, which allow us to learn to win or learn something new.

The article’s author goes on further to say this about Tiger Woods, the preeminent golfer of the world today, “ Tiger always focuses on the positives and speaks of a determined effort to create good things about his game”. I think we can relate to that, well at least in theory as many of you can attest after playing golf with me today. Yet, there was a time in my life when I was younger, where golf was an all-consuming passion for me. As a result, my game was in the words of a famous sportscaster “stout”. That’s right. I was a pretty good golfer with a handicap that hovered consistently in the single digits. Today, I probably couldn’t “hit the broad side of a barn”. There were a number of reasons why I was able to keep my game at a reasonably high level, but for the sake of time, I am going to boil it down to just a manageable few.

First of all, I gave every shot, 100% of my attention and effort, no matter if it landed six feet from the cup or dribbled into a sand trap. Secondly, after every shot, whether it was driven 275 plus yards straight down the middle of the fairway or clipped a tree limb and dropped straight down making it virtually impossible to have a clear shot or view of the green, I sought to find something positive about the shot, good or bad. Third, when speaking about the round of golf I just played, or anything you to seek to attempt, always think in a positive manner.

Are you going to make mistakes, hit bad shots, of course you are for that is the game of golf in it’s purest form. Negative statements are not a positive boost to your self-image. If anything, they are a negative reinforcement and will keep you subsequently from playing at your optimum best.

Lastly, if you are to critique, then go over the game you just played, making notes, either mental or on paper to correct the mistakes and celebrate the positives and most importantly, not beat yourself up.

Doesn’t this sound like what we, as growing Christian men, are seeking to accomplish on a daily basis. The word that keeps ringing in my ear is “consistency,” because consistency should be the key to everything we hope to accomplish on a daily basis. We are to be consistent in our walk and in our faith, so that others we come in contact with will see that there is something about us that is different and it isn’t just by happenstance, fate or luck. It is a daily conscious decision which a Christian makes, much like the successful golfer or the athlete who needs to give 100% effort, which ultimately makes all the difference.  

To wrap this up, let’s go back over the daily game plan we should set for ourselves. First, commit daily to give a 100% effort to God and ourselves, in everything we seek to accomplish for that day. Whether it is at work, at home or simply having your daily time with God, make it your aim to give no less than 100%.

Second, seek each day to find positives in yourself and be sure to store them in your “emotions” bank to be recalled for use at a later time. Nothing breeds more discontent than negativity.

Third, we are exhorted by the Apostle Paul, no less to be focused, persistent and determined in seeking to live daily for God and His kingdom. This also means living a life worth viewing. We are to live a life, which encourages another to want to learn more of what Christianity is all about.

Fourth, when you fail, realize it’s not the end of the world. Even the best of us, fail at one time or another as not one of us, is perfect. Remember, (as the author of the article states) "if we are not failing, then we are not stepping up to the plate enough to put ourselves in a position to learn to win or learn something new". With failure, comes new opportunity, if you allow it. So don’t beat yourself up. Don’t allow Satan to gain a stronghold over you. God knows you will fail from time to time. It is written in the “contract” of being a Christian. If you don’t believe me, read the “fine print”. That is why He, in His infinite wisdom and grace gives us each a new day, a new moment or a new hour. Just look at it as, to coin a golfing term “a mulligan” or in today’s language a “do-over”.

Finally, God called each of us to be a light into the darkness. But none of us can be effective if our “light” is not turned on.

So what’s it going to be? Do you want to live your life only as an existence, or are you ready to make a difference and live your life with significance and purpose. I hope you are. But in order to live your life in this manner, you need to commit to consistency. For in actuality, it is consistency in the daily living of your life, which glorifies God.  Until next week, remember I am right there with you.

I am as always, your brother in Christ,

David