“Hold the Ball…” (by Mel McGuire)

 

I was watching my daughter’s high school basketball team go through defensive drills in practice. Teams that play great defense talk a lot while they are doing it, and this team made its mark by playing great defense last year. “Hold the ball”

So imagine if you will the sounds of intense defensive activity: “I GOT BALL I GOT squeak BALL, DENY DENY squeak DENY HELP squeak I GOT HELP squeak SCREEN RIGHT squeak SWITCH Hold the ball I GOT…squeak. And they would all stop.

Through all of that activity and noise…their coach, sitting and watching, would simply say, “Hold the ball” and they would all stop. He doesn’t yell, or shout, or make a fuss or scene. He simply says, “Hold the ball” and they all stop, and all eyes and ears turn to him.

This was the simplest most beautiful illustration of how we are supposed to live our lives under the guidance of the Holy Spirit!

The coach’s voice, like the referee’s whistle, caused them to cease all of their activity. But unlike the shrill whistle of a referee, designed to overpower the attendant noises in a gym, the coach’s voice, was still, it was small…” Hold the ball”.

As the players moved and talked, dribbled, set screens…as they played the game…they were always attuned to the voice of their coach. Once he said, “Hold the ball”, and the activity stopped…he would then point out what they, either individually or collectively, were doing that needed correction or improvement.

During that moment, he would also point out how their actions were affecting their teammates.

I was struck at the biblical implications of always being attuned to the still small voice of the Lord as we go about our daily activities. How often have we ignored or just plain never recognized that God was telling us to “HOLD THE BALL”?  

I thought about conversations I continued after I heard the whistle of the conviction of the Holy Spirit. Whether saying too much, or being hurtful, or just piling on…there are times during all the squeaks and sounds of life…God wants us to “hold the ball”.

In those moments, if we allow Him to, we can turn our eyes and ears towards Him, and receive instruction, correction, and understanding…if we would just stop and hold the ball.

God still speaks to His people. He has never really been a shouter, or screamer, or a tantrum thrower on the sidelines of our life. He is our teacher, mentor, our leader…our coach. He said his sheep know his voice…do you know the voice of your shepherd?

“Hold the ball…”

 

“CHALLENGE!…” (by Mel McGuire)

I was moved by my pastor to ponder this question, “Why do I continue to challenge God?” The question was raised in the context of a discussion about disobedience and our justifications for NOT doing what God says for us to do.

In the world of tap dancing, in which I only participate as a spectator, when one person either boasts about their own ability, or questions the originality of another’s move, the dispute is brought to a head when one issues an ultimatum to the other, by yelling indignantly, “CHALLENGE!”

They will then take turns either performing the specific move in question, or demonstrating their “signature move”, going back and forth until one is either declared a fraud, copycat, or thief, or one of them is authenticated as the originator because they perform the move best.

When we disobey or ignore God, it is just like us yelling at Him, “CHALLENGE!”

We are saying, in essence, “I can do this better than you can God, I don’t need you to get this accomplished. I have been practicing and have stolen your moves. I can do them better and thereby claim them as my own. Just watch.”

And so He does, He stands aside and watches. Now our experience with iniquity (because that’s all that is) should have taught us by now, that we cannot do anything good better than God. We cannot love, give, be, or live better without him than we can with Him.

But we haven’t accepted that truth…and so we dance. We issue challenge after challenge, time after time, and each time… He wins. He wins because He is God, and we are not.  I will give a couple of examples for the hold outs who still think this does not apply to them.

God tells you to NOT to begin a relationship. (CHALLENGE!) You try and change the person, you are determined to make them love you, make them realize their potential, make them see what you can see in them and about them. It only gets worse, and you keep dancing.

Do not let the same pride that led you to issue the challenge, keep you from receiving the grace that will lead you out to a safe and better place. God sees that you are tired and you need to rest. Stop dancing and trust Him with person.

God tells you to forgive someone who did you wrong. (CHALLENGE!) You decide that you will hold a grudge, slander their name, expose their folly, and never trust them, or anyone like them, again. You have a right to be angry, and you fully intend to exercise that right, even when anger begins to hold YOU back. Keep dancing if you want to…freedom is in forgiving them.

God is good. He is just. God is right. You cannot win by challenging Him, you never have and you never will. That should take some of the mystery out of life as we wonder which way is the best way. His way is best. Trust Him.

His challenge to us, is to simply trust Him. His track record was established before we were even born. He knows what He is doing, accept the challenge and let Him. Obedience is still better than sacrifice. Stop dancing and let Him have the floor…

“Scrabble…” (by Mel McGuire)

 

I like to play the word game Scrabble. I have played since my youth and still enjoy the challenge of making words from the letters available to me, whether on the board or in my “rack”. The more you play, the better you become, assuming you are playing against the right opponent.

Nowadays, technology has made it so easy to go online and play the game at your own skill level. You can win every time (or most of the time), or you can play at a level higher than your current ability in order to learn, usually by being schooled by the computer.

Scrabble players know scrabble words. We know odd, unusual words that may never come up in casual conversation, but can be very valuable in a game of scrabble. We learn two letter words, words with the letters “Q”, “Z”, and “X”, in order to keep our rack clear and refreshed. The point is not only to use the letters, but to use them in a way that returns the most value… at the same time, blocking or limiting the opponent’s ability to score.

Bible readers know bible things. Principles, truths, laws, and promises are given to us in the Word of God. For those who read the bible regularly, they recognize patterns and practices that always return value. Scriptures that deal with prayer, faith, obedience, and giving, for example. Bible readers, like a good Scrabble player, can see things others can’t, and can make moves to keep their “rack” clear and refreshed.

They understand when certain things can be used, to block the enemy, to restrict his progress or success. They know from experience, and from talking about the word with others who “play the game well”. They may not know how the word works; only that it does. It’s like asking me what “Qi” means. I may not know, but in Scrabble, it’s a valuable word, and helps to use the “Q” without a “U”.

Better Scrabble players understand the strategy of the game, and they play defensively in order to keep their opponent from maximizing double and triple word spaces. Better bible readers do the same. They keep themselves out of harm’s way, adjusting their lifestyles and activities to minimize their opponent’s opportunities to do major damage.

A little sacrifice now can save you a bitter defeat in the end. Learn your bible. Use it to make progress towards victory in the spirit, but also to block the schemes of the enemy. Promises, laws, principles, and truths can be as useful and valuable as “blanks” in a Scrabble game. You need to know the word so you can respond to whatever the enemy plays on you.

Too often novice Scrabble players trade in letters because they don’t know the “word” they could have played, giving their opponent an advantage that can be hard to overcome. So too in the spirit, we give up or pass on responding because we do not know the Word. God has a word for you; it’s in the Bible, play to win!

“Stake…” (by Mel McGuire)

I continue to meditate and marinate on the subject of discipleship. I was introduced to the concept of stakes…you know those supports used on young trees or plants?  My research unveiled some deep spiritual truths and my personal experience confirmed what I got from my “book learnin’”.

The purpose of the stake is to provide support for young trees or plants until they are strong enough to stand or grow on their own. In a garden, some plants bloom rather quickly, and the weight of their flowers can overwhelm their stem, causing them to bend or even break.

Gardeners use sticks or dead branches to “stake” the plant, giving it the strength it needs to “hold its own”. The stake is planted in the same soil as the plant, but it does not draw resources away from the plant. It is connected to the plant, but it is not a permanent bond.

The stake also provides a boundary for the young plant or tree, keeping it from overgrowing too soon and invading the space (and life source) of other plants. The stake is a temporary support system and a wise gardener knows it must be removed at some point or it will stunt the growth and development of the young plant or tree.

As a tree grows, its roots must grow deep and wide in order to find sufficient nutrients to survive. The outwards growth, or spread, is necessary to provide width to the base of the trunk. When a tree is staked too long, the trunk will not grow wide enough and later in life, strong winds can blow the tree over, sometimes even causing the trunk to break.

Discipleship is similar to staking. God will place people around you to help you grow. They should provide boundaries and help you bear the weight of your talents, desires, and calling. They provide strength for a season, but eventually God will pull them away so you can learn to stand in your own space and withstand the storms of life that are ordained for that space.

It is best to have someone who is planted in the same soil as you, without taking resources away from you. That speaks to mature individuals, who have not only been tested, but have passed their tests. These people, your stakes, must also understand that the bond they have with you is not a permanent connection, meaning they must eventually pull back so you can prove that you are strong enough to stand. You will not, you cannot reach your full potential unless they release you.

So be grateful for the people God has surrounded you with. Learn from them, lean on them, but be willing to grow into your full destiny and purpose. Make sure your trunk, your foundation, is both deep and wide so that you will not just survive, but thrive. Then your fruit will remain and become a source of life. Your presence will become a place of refuge and a shade for others.

Don’t hate the stakes, enjoy them while you can, for they are temporary and it is in your best interest that they eventually be pulled back. You cannot be afraid to grow without them, or even outgrow them.

Grow up. Your destiny is at stake.