There is an old saying that has been attributed to any number of coaches and athletes, and quite frankly I'm not sure who said it first.
It goes, "Practice doesn't make perfect; perfect practice makes perfect."
The internet credits former NFL coach Vince Lombardi with that statement, which could be correct. Because what good is practice if you aren't practicing the right things? What good is learning to defend an option team if the team you're facing is a four wide-receiver, empty backfield passing team? What good is it to practice to beat a zone defense if all you're going to face is man-to-man?
What good is it to practice the piano if you're getting ready to be tested on car repair? Or to become perfect at changing light bulbs when its' the toilet that needs fixing?
In other words, Practice makes perfect - but what you practice needs to be perfect as well, because we're very good at practicing things that ultimately don't matter, since practicing the things that make us better is usually more difficult.
Then there is the rejoinder that goes, "Practice makes perfect. Nobody is perfect. So why practice?" I'm not sure who said that, but it could have been the legendary NBA star Allen Iverson, in an epic rant that went like this:
"Now I know that I'm supposed to lead by example and all that but I'm not shoving that aside like it don't mean anything. I know it's important, I honestly do but we're talking about practice. We're talking about practice man. We're talking about practice. We're talking about practice. We're not talking about the game. We're talking about practice. When you come to the arena, and you see me play - you've seen me play right, you've seen me give everything I've got? - but we're talking about practice right now. ... Hey I hear you, it's funny to me too, hey it's strange to me too but we're talking about practice man, we're not even talking about the game, when it actually matters, we're talking about practice ... How the hell can I make my teammates better by practicing?"
Iverson has nothing to do with the topic I want to address. But sometimes I get caught up in stream of consciousness.
The point is, you've heard all those phrases: practice makes perfect. It's the little things that matter most. It's what you do when no one is looking that defines who you really are.
Sure, it's what I like to refer to as "wall poster philosophy,'' but that doesn't mean it isn't true.
As a kid, I had one of those old "Bible Story Books,'' that I used to read religiously ("religiously" - get it?). There were several stories that I loved more than the others: Samson, David, Solomon, and the one about Elijah backing down the prophets of Baal on Mt. Carmel.
And if you were looking for a sports blog, I'm going to disappoint you.
The part about Solomon I was fascinated by was when God offered Solomon anything in the world, and Solomon asked for wisdom. That really stuck with me over the years, and I have regularly prayed for wisdom - for me, for my wife, for my children. I'm not saying I'm particularly wise, but I hate to think how much more stupid I might be if I hadn't prayed for wisdom all those years.
But there are two aspects of the stories of both Solomon and Samson that apply to the "practice makes perfect" or "it's the little things that matter most" quotes.
Both were given three very specific guidelines to follow, in return for which God promised favor.
Both violated all three, at different times, and found their lives taking a very disappointing turn.
For Solomon, it was what I call "big picture" stuff. He was told, quite simply, that as king he "must not acquire great numbers of horses for himself or make the people return to Egypt to get more of them, for the LORD has told you, "You are not to go back that way again." He must not take many wives, or his heart will be led astray. He must not accumulate large amounts of silver and gold.(Dueteronomy 17:16,17). You've probably heard sermons on this, how horses, wives, and wealth equate to the three "P's": power, pleasure, and possessions.
And we know what Solomon, credited with being the wisest man who ever lived, did.
He collected horses: "Solomon accumulated chariots and horses; he had fourteen hundred chariots and twelve thousand horses, which he kept in the chariot cities and also with him in Jerusalem." 2 Chronicles 1:14 - and other references).
He collected wives: "And he (Solomon) had seven hundred wives, princesses, and three hundred concubines: and his wives turned away his heart." 1 Kings 11:3
He collected possessions: "Each year Solomon received about 25 tons of gold." 2 Chronicles 9:13.
And the end result, as it says in I Kings, "his wives turned away his heart." I don't blame it all on his wives; his power and possessions had something to do with Solomon ending his life sounding bitter and disappointed.
"Vanity of vanities, saith the Preacher, vanity of vanities; all is vanity." Ecclesiastes 1:2 ... "Therefore I hated life; because the work that is wrought under the sun is grievous unto me: for all is vanity and vexation of spirit." Ecclesiastes 2:17
Samson's life is far simpler. He was, after all, more muscle than brain. He wasn't a leader, he was a fighter. He was apparently the only child of doting parents who were older and saw Samson as an answer to prayer; Judges 13 says a messenger from God visited Samson's parents and said, "You will become pregnant and have a son whose head is never to be touched by a razor because the boy is to be a Nazirite, dedicated to God from the womb. He will take the lead in delivering Israel from the hands of the Philistines.”
What did it mean to be a Nazirite? According to Numbers 6: "They must abstain from wine and other fermented drink and must not drink vinegar made from wine or other fermented drink. They must not drink grape juice or eat grapes or raisins. 4 As long as they remain under their Nazirite vow, they must not eat anything that comes from the grapevine, not even the seeds or skins. During the entire period of their Nazirite vow, no razor may be used on their head. They must be holy until the period of their dedication to the Lord is over; they must let their hair grow long. Throughout the period of their dedication to the Lord, the Nazirite must not go near a dead body. ..."
But before you know it, young Samson gets smitten by a woman who is not of his faith and insists his parents arrange his marriage. On his way to see her, Samson takes a shortcut through a vineyard (which is where wine and vinegar comes from; some traditions say a Nazirite was not to even touch grapes or raisins). He is attacked by a lion, which he kills, and on his return trip through the same vineyard he goes to mess with the dead body of the lion, reaches inside to get some honey and eats - apparently taking very lightly the command not to go near a dead body and certainly eats something that would be considered unclean. So is it any wonder that, eventually, he gives up the secret of his hair and allows Delilah to cut it all off, completing his disregard for his vows?
Little things. A short cut through a vineyard; eating honey that happens to be caught in the carcass of a dead animal; revealing the secret of his strength to a woman who has already tried to trap him before. A king who accumulates horses, possibly even horses that were gifts; a king who accumulates wives, possibly even when those wives were just about political alliances and a way to show respect for his peers; a king who accumulates wealth, even when he may not have asked for that wealth but it was offered as tribute, recognition for his great wisdom and power.
I can make excuses for all of both Samson and Solomon's errors in judgment.
But how much better would it have been for both men if, when faced with their biggest challenges, they'd laid the foundation of practicing the little things all along? Would it have been that much further for Samson to go around the vineyard (and avoid the attack by the lion)? For Solomon to say, "Thank you for your offer of a horse, woman, or gold, but I have all I need?"
I can look at my own life and see all kinds of compromises I have made, excuses for actions that I knew weren't exactly right, but not really wrong. And yet because I was willing to compromise in the so-called little things, it made it that much easier for the compromises to get bigger and bigger as time - and life - went on.
Of course, the world would have us believe it's no big deal. The world would have us believe sometimes its OK to lie - until, as a recent scandal proved, a whole bunch of men get exposed for joining a website that suggested it was OK to have an affair.
Isaiah 30 says, "this is a rebel generation, a people who lie, a people unwilling to listen to anything God tells them. They tell their spiritual leaders, “Don’t bother us with irrelevancies.” They tell their preachers, “Don’t waste our time on impracticalities. Tell us what makes us feel better. Don’t bore us with obsolete religion. That stuff means nothing to us ..." (from The Message).
The end of Romans 1 warns, "Although they know God’s righteous decree that those who do such things deserve death, they not only continue to do these very things but also approve of those who practice them. (italics added by me).
Too many people don't want to hear the truth. Many of them not only don't want to hear the truth, they want to celebrate and approve those who tell the best lies, who live without an restraint.
But I think most of us, deep down, know there is truth, and that continually seeking out our own pleasure leads to an inability to find happiness, because it takes more and more to achieve that increasingly fleeting sense of satisfaction.
It's almost a cliche, but so many people end up like Solomon, who at the end of his life wrote, "Let us hear the conclusion of the whole matter: Fear God, and keep His commandments: for this is the whole duty of man. For God shall bring every work into judgment, with every secret thing, whether it be good, or whether it be evil." Ecclesiastes 12:13-14
So let's try to "keep a firm grip on the promises that keep us going. He always keeps His word. Let’s see how inventive we can be in encouraging love and helping out, not avoiding worshiping together as some do but spurring each other on, especially as we see the big Day approaching." (Hebrews 10:24-25).
It may seem like a little thing, in the big scheme of life.
But sometimes the little things are the hardest to do consistently, because its so easy to start taking them for granted. "Of course I won't do that,'' we say. "I've got that one; I'm going to go work on the big things."
Oswald Chambers said, "An unguarded strength is a double weakness."
Never take a strength for granted. Never fail to work on the little things.
It just might keep you from a big fail.
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