maturity

Pickleball Drills

~ mercyfortheday ~ Leave a comment

I signed up to take another pickleball class. Call me crazy. This class was for intermediate players. Some people in the class had taken it multiple times, which tells me that they’re serious about their pickleball. I enjoy playing as a hobby, but I don’t see it overtaking my life. It’s a fun way to stay active. But some people I’ve met take this game way too seriously. And now I’m in a class with them. Talk about intimidating. Fortunately, the instructor assigns a group of four or five people to each court. Then we stay with our same group that day. So I haven’t had to play against the “good” players. Oh. Some of the ones I played against were good and had a bent toward being serious about their game. Then there were people like me. We’re just there to learn more, improve our game and have fun.

There are six indoor courts with a different drill set up on each court. The participants are assigned a specific court to start on and then rotate to the next court and so on every fifteen minutes. After the sixth drill, each group plays a short game. It’s a good set up. The time goes quickly, and some drills are more complicated than others. Everyone has an opportunity to practice each drill multiple times in their allotted fifteen minutes. Each instructor gives individual feedback along the way, as needed. It’s still intimidating, but it’s good to gain more in depth knowledge of the game.

As I’ve regularly played pickleball and taken classes throughout the past few months, I can say I’ve seen a bit of improvement in my playing. I’m still not great. I even hesitate to say I’m at an intermediate level, but who’s asking. I enjoy playing and getting some exercise. I need to stay active as I progress through these older years of life.

Here’s what I’ve noticed about other players. They come in all ages and sizes. Some choose to play every day. Others take one class and then don’t play very often. There’s an old saying that goes something like this. You get out of something what you put into it. And it’s true. I talked to one player last week who said she was embarrassed to say that she learned to play well over a year ago. But she hasn’t played regularly after that initial class. I could tell that her playing skill was similar to mine, whereas the woman who has been playing regularly for two years and has taken multiple classes plays at a much more advanced level.

During these classes, I’ve realized I had developed some bad habits in my game. The drills I was practicing were an attempt to break me of those poor moves I had adopted. It was painful to have to relearn new methods of play and to unlearn the old, easy and incorrect moves. It would have been much easier to continue to play poorly and complain about my bad pickleball moves than to unlearn them and relearn the correct moves. But I’m persevering and seeing improvement.

But grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. To him be the glory both now and to the day of eternity. 2 Peter 3:18

I’ve noticed that just as in the effort someone puts into their pickleball skills, the same type of growth spurts and struggles also appear in a person’s spiritual life. Once a person becomes a Christian, they need to take steps to grow their faith and their relationship with God. We can’t just confess our sins and then do nothing else with our faith for the remainder of our days. We’ve just started the most important relationship of our lives, and there is work to do. Oh. Works won’t get us into heaven. I’m not saying that. I’m saying that we need to spend time getting to know God, and there are actions we need to take to do that.

The same steps that go into building a relationship with someone else applies to deepening our walk with God. These steps are rather simple, but we seem to avoid or ignore them. They may take a little bit of our time, which we deem so important. And time is valuable. But so are our souls. Some say marriage seems like an eternity, with all the ups and downs of a marital relationship. But true eternity is forever. And once we cross over the divide between our earthly life and death, we’re in eternity forever. So, we must choose today to strengthen our relationship with God to the best of our ability so we can have an amazing eternity with him.

Here are some simple steps to drawing closer to God. Read and study the Bible. Pray. Attend church. Build friendships with godly people. Memorize Bible verses. Join a small group to study the Bible, pray and fellowship together. Find a mentor who has walked their faith journey for years. And we should also share our faith with others.

The thing is. The pickleball instructors were once beginner players, just as I am. Along the way, they committed themselves to practice and drills over and over again. They played the game on a regular basis and didn’t quit when things got tough. And now they’re seasoned players and are coaching newbies like me.

The same goes for my spiritual life. I need to see improvement in my words and actions and thoughts. I need to see a renewing in the way I view the world. I must align all of my beliefs with biblical standards. If I’m going to say that God is the ultimate authority in my life, then I must bow my will to him and submit my all ways to him. I must run my desires through a biblical sieve. Do they pass the test of holy living or not? Oh. It won’t be easy, and I must be willing to bend and break. My will must not be above God’s will in anything I do or say. It’s all about submission to my heavenly Father.

Get rid of all bitterness, rage, anger, harsh words, and slander, as well as all types of evil behavior. Instead, be kind to each other, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, just as God through Christ has forgiven you. Ephesians 4:31-32

Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect. Romans 12:2

And then, once we’ve walked the baby steps and our faith has matured, it’s time for us to share the wealth. We can mentor and disciple other believers in their own faith journey. We can walk with other believers in their path of growth in Jesus Christ. We don’t need to walk this walk of faith alone. We need to come alongside others, just as our mentors walked with us through our journey. We must do the journey of faith with fellow believers. We’re not in this alone.

Therefore, as you received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk in him, rooted and built up in him and established in the faith, just as you were taught, abounding in thanksgiving. Colossians 2:6-7

Beauty Awaits

~ mercyfortheday ~ Leave a comment

It was Memorial Day. I was weeding the flower bed on the south side of the house.  I’ve decided that this is the year I am going to keep my flowerbeds clean and clear of weeds.  I looked over at my neighbor’s flowerbed. It hasn’t been touched yet this spring.  Not because of a busy schedule.  The pandemic has hit and the neighbors haven’t left their house much.

My neighbor and I have an agreement. Our flowerbeds are not in competition with each other. We don’t try to outdo one another. We admire from afar when the beds are well kept.  We keep our thoughts to ourselves when they aren’t. And that is that.

But so far this year, I’m winning. But as I said, this isn’t a competition. Oh. My flowerbed still has weeds. They’re never ending. But at least, there’s space between the plants. It’s clear where the peonies end and the irises begin. And the strawberries are separate from the zinnias that have begun to pop up. But still. There is much work to do in this flowerbed.

I fear that the deer will soon devour all the strawberries that are blooming. It would be nice, for once, to be able to eat those strawberries ourselves. We aren’t growing them to feed the deer. But then. There are also the hostas and day lilies that seem to get devoured by the deer. Those I’m not so worried about.

There are some very shady spots in my backyard that need attention. With all the rain that we’ve had, the weeds just pop up overnight. It’s hard to keep them under control. Perhaps a good layer of mulch would help manage that problem. But who has the time? Work keeps calling my name. 8 hours a day. 5 days a week. By the time the day is over, who wants to pull weeds? But I realize that’s the sacrifice that must be made in order to keep the flowerbeds looking their best.

I have lofty goals for this garden. Oh. It’s not big. It’s not majestic. It will never win awards. But I want to keep it weed free and thriving. I want to plant a variety of flowers and shade loving, deer resistant perennials. My goal is to see a beautiful garden in the midst of my normal life. But it will take work. Back breaking, sweaty work. Am I up for the challenge?

So let us stop going over the basic teachings about Christ again and again. Let us go on instead and become mature in our understanding. Hebrews 6:1

I find the same amount of work must go into my Christian life. If I want to see beauty and growth in my relationship with God, I must take the time to pull the weeds of sin out of my life. Those weeds can choke out the peace that God provides.

Keeping my relationship with God growing is hard work. It takes time. It takes effort. It takes sacrifice and commitment. It isn’t always easy to make reading my Bible a priority, but it is necessary in order to know who God is. I must choose to spend time in prayer. Spending time with my Maker and Provider is a daily must. There is no wiggle room in that.

As I was weeding the flowerbeds this morning, I realized I couldn’t distinguish some annuals I had planted from the weeds. Until the annuals bloom, I won’t know if they are weeds or flowers. It’s because I don’t recognize the leaf patterns without the fruit. I realized this is similar to my spiritual growth. It isn’t always easy to distinguish between right and wrong. Sin and obedience. In those times, I must lean in to feel the prick of my conscience or the nudge of the Holy Spirit to help me in my weakness and uncertainty.

I have lofty goals for my soul. Oh. I doubt that I’ll be in the same group as Moses or David or Paul or Abraham. But I want to want to spend eternity in heaven. I want to spend an eternity with my heavenly Father. My goal is to walk the streets of gold. But it will take work while I’m still on this earth. Back breaking, sweaty work. Am I up for the challenge?

Mature Trees

~ mercyfortheday ~ Leave a comment

I remember the trees from 30 years ago. They were always beautiful in the spring. White blooms. Unpleasant scent. Bradford pear. That’s what they’re called. Beautiful but smelly.

I’ve begun driving by those trees again. I park near them at work. But 30 years have gone by. The trees still stand. Taller. Fuller. They produce much more shade. They have matured. They’ve reached their full potential.

I think of all the years these trees have stood lining the street. They’ve seen people come and go. They’ve weathered many a storm. Their branches have been blown by heavy gusts of wind. Their flowers have bloomed every spring and their leaves have fallen every autumn. During the summer, the leaves of those trees have provided shade for anyone walking or parking nearby. In the winter, the bare branches have cast eerie shadows in early nightfall.

They have survived the many unknowns of the past three decades. And still they stand tall and proud. Still they thrive. They’re doing their job. Stand tall. Throw shade. Beautiful blooms. Year after year. Nothing changes for them. Yet everything changes. And still they stand.

Oh. They aren’t invincible. They can be beaten. They can succumb to an invasion of an incurable disease. They can be struck by lightening without notice. They can come down. You see. Bradford Pear trees are perfectly symmetrical and grow in a beautiful shape, yet they are structurally weak. Apparently, these trees are a threat. But who knew?

Yeah. Mature trees are vulnerable. There could be an internal weakness that is unseen by the human eye. A slight crack down the long trunk. Perhaps they are dying of thirst and no one knows. An act of God can take them down without warning. There could be unknown root damage discovered when hope is long gone. Or possibly the damage is due to manmade machines. One never knows what lies beneath the surface of outward beauty.

The righteous will flourish like a palm tree, they will grow like a cedar of Lebanon; planted in the house of the Lord , they will flourish in the courts of our God. They will still bear fruit in old age, they will stay fresh and green. Psalm 92:12-14

The beauty seen on the outside can cover a multitude of sins. Many weaknesses. Many faults. Many fears and uncertainties. Many secrets. But once the outer shell is cracked wide open, the unknown comes spilling out. The truth comes out. It isn’t always pretty. It isn’t always redeemable. Or is it?

Maturity takes hard work and years of determination. Perseverance. Discipline. Cutting off branches that don’t produce fruit. Pruning fruitful branches for even more fruit.

Suckers can drain the life from the tree. They zap water and nutrients from the main tree. They’re unhealthy for the tree. And they’re just plain ugly.

Christian faith is similar to trees. True maturity takes hard work. Cutting out the branches of our lives that aren’t fruitful. Pruning the fruitful talents and skills given by God. And suckers can drain the life out of people. Poor habits. Abusive relationships. Deadly addictions. They’re unhealthy and they’re plain ugly. Age isn’t necessarily a sign of maturity. Do the hard work and put in the time to study and show yourself approved.

For someone who lives on milk is still an infant and doesn’t know how to do what is right. Solid food is for those who are mature, who through training have the skill to recognize the difference between right and wrong. Hebrews 5:13-14