Patient, not Passive

I heard the following piece of advice while watching one of my daughter's tennis lessons.  The coach told her that being patient on the court is not the same thing as being passive about her gameplay.  In other words, trying to "kill" the ball when returning a hit so that you can grab a point as quickly as possible isn't always the best strategy.  There are other ways to go about winning the game.  He recommended that she continue to employ patience, and wait for the right shot at the right time.  This will win the day in the long run over time.  

This isn't always the easy thing to do mind you.  A player can feel any number of emotions once the match or tournament begins.  In fact, this piece of advice works for just about any sport I can think of.  In baseball for example, we wait for the perfect pitch to cross the plate in the strike zone.  In football, the quarterback waits for an open receiver.  You get the idea.  We take a moment to focus our mind and body, wait for the opportunity, and only then make a  move.

Ecclesiastes 7:8-9 says, "The end of a matter is better than its beginning, and patience is better than pride.  Do not be quickly provoked in your spirit, for anger resides in the lap of fools."   

We see the opposite strategy being employed all around us - there are many who end up in the lap of fools.  The squeaky wheel gets a cleaning, right?  The idea here is that you must speak up and complain in order to be heard.  Talk loud, move fast, and then get what you want.  But what if we actually stepped back long enough to apply some oil and fix the squeak itself?  

If you pay close attention to a good tennis match, most of the time you can see that the instant a player becomes angry or frustrated (becoming provoked in their spirit), they often start losing.  If a positive end result is ninety percent a mental state of being, then Scripture is correct in cautioning us to keep a cool head.  Look toward the end of the game, don't just focus on hitting the ball as hard as you can.

I will never forget a particular transition of power that took place years ago at one of my churches.  We had a brand new pastor, and the entire congregation was excited.  It isn't difficult to embrace something new and interesting generally speaking, and the same thing happens in churches.  New management always carries with it the potential for new hope.  

As luck would have it though, this particular person began making sweeping changes almost immediately.  He was trying to swing away with the racket and kill the ball the moment the match began.  He advocated switching meeting venues, cancelling certain ministries, and even changing the church name.  Decisive change isn't always a bad thing, but there was one particular ministry he shut down that will always haunt me.  It was a healing ministry designed for women, and it had been running for almost ten years.  In addition, the person leading the ministry was just recently widowed.  That ministry had become a way for her to cling to something familiar in a time of great struggle.  She was able to connect with the familiar. 

How different that would have gone I think, had the new pastor stepped back a bit and surveyed the entire playing field before making a move.  How different things would have been had he waited for the right time, and the right shot.  Easy for me to judge in hindsight I know - ministry is a hard job.  But I will forever hold this event as an example of zeal not according to wisdom.  If I remember correctly, the leader and everyone else in that group left the church shortly thereafter.  

I think that the lesson we can take from Ecclesiastes 7 is that we can wait on God.  Wait for what He might be trying to tell or teach us, both through the Scriptures and in the Spirit.  It isn't passivity to step back a bit and prayerfully wait sometimes.  

1 Chronicles 16:11 further says, "Look to the Lord and his strength; seek his face always."  When we are looking for God's hand, it means we want something specifically from Him.  We are asking Him to do something for us.  But when we seek His face, it is a completely different experience.  This means we just want to be known to Him, and for Him to know us.  To have a connection such that we might understand what He wants from us.  It is this second meaning that applies here I think.  1 Chronicles 16 in this regard, is talking about giving God an audience first - before we seek counsel from other people.  This isn't being passive either; it is simply being wise.  

It isn't difficult to recognize the 'squeaky wheel' concept in our culture today.  Simply turn on the television or go on your computer.  You will hear opinions that may feed the need for immediate gratification or political correctness.  And incidentally, much of it runs contrary to the Bible as well (especially when it comes to hot button political issues).  So step back, just wait for the right shot to come into view.  There is no need to run all over the court trying to kill the ball.

I think that we end up with the following process: listen for God first, discern what He is telling you by reading Scripture and seeking Godly counsel, then finally ... obey His commands.  Rushing in full of pride or anger rarely succeeds in the long run.  This behavior does make an impact on those around you, but usually not a good one.  Instead be patient with God, and He will do the same with you.

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