I am also a University of Kentucky alum and fan. I have been troubled by a couple of things I have seen in college basketball as of late. One is the lack of attention given to shooting mechanics. I can’t believe that some of these kids get D-I scholarships and yet can’t shoot 80% from the free-throw line or hit a 15 foot jump-shot. I have grown weary of Calipari’s poor free-throw shooting teams. Maybe he’ll even read this if I tag him in it.

So, in an effort of showing that it is possible to become a good foul shooter I have devoted 30 minutes a day to shooting 100 free-throws. I actually make it out about four days a week. If I miss less than 30 and hit number 100 then I keep shooting until I miss. At first I realized I was not nearly as good as I remembered. I shot less than 60% the first day. As the days have worn on I have also made some changes and tried to put those into my routine and now I am better than 70%.

Seven things I have learned include:

1. Taking a deep breath and blowing it out before taking the shot helps focus and relax and leads to greater success.

2. Focusing on the rim takes practice.

3. Hand placement and arm position are the two biggest reasons I miss. If they are wrong I tend to assist with my left, non-shooting, hand. That elbow needs to be tucked under the ball.

4. Maybe it’s because I am getting older, but I cannot stay crouched. I need to go down into my stance while I take a deep breath and blow it out, and then shoot. Otherwise I either lose focus or short arm the shot.

5. Arc and rotation really are important if you aren’t dead center every time. Both lead to a soft landing shot that has the chance to go in on the bounce.

6. My free-throw success translates into jump-shot success, but I’m convinced the reverse isn’t true from a mechanics perspective. Working on catching and shooting and dribbling into a jump shot need to be practiced in order to get feet placement and ball placement right, but mechanically I think the free-throw work is where kids need to do the work.

7. Routine is key. Doing the same thing every time creates muscle memory and psychological focus so that when the crowd is going nuts our God-designed and humanly trained biology does the right thing.

“17 When Pharaoh released the people, God did not lead them by the way to the land of the Philistines, although that was nearby, for God said, “Lest the people change their minds and return to Egypt when they experience war.” 18 So God brought the people around by the way of the desert to the Red Sea, and the Israelites went up from the land of Egypt prepared for battle.” Exodus 13:17-18

Often in this life, and maybe often isn’t the reality but always, we get frustrated by the way…by the journey we are on in this life. God has called us to something great and we know that it is true, but the realization of the promise of God may take a lifetime. Like Simeon and Anna the day Jesus was presented in the Temple as a babe they had waited a lifetime to see the promised Messiah, and so we too must be reminded that God’s ways and God’s days are not like ours.

The shortest distance between two points is a straight line. So, while it may have been more efficient to go to the Promised Land by heading due East it was not the best route to take. God knew that this fledgling nation needed to gain some confidence in God and their leadership before going into battle, and so they took a longer and more physically and emotionally demanding route. In the end we get the story of the parting of the Red Sea and the destruction of Pharaoh once and for all because of this detour. With this in perspective you can imagine why the Israelites were frustrated with the fact that God was leading them to certain death. Here they were pinned against the Red Sea by the Egyptian army when they could have taken the shorter route through the land of the Philistines and been almost home by now. But God’s ways and God’s days are not like ours and in the end from our perspective we see what God saw.

Now if we can just take time to remind ourselves of this truth when we are in the midst of our frustrating journey to our Promised Lands. God fulfills His promises at the right time and in the right way. So, our prayers might need to be more “God prepare me for the journey, ” instead of “God, can you hurry this up?”

Often people mistakenly think that ministers, elders, and the spiritually elite are somehow immune to the issues of “little faith.” Often ministers make that mistake  in evaluating themselves too. Ministers should be ministers not because of their faith, but because they are obedient to a calling. Which means the only reason I am in ministry is because God chose me and I’m being obedient to that. We may be able to cover our tracks pretty well because we seem to have it together when others are suffering. However, when the suffering becomes our own we stand in just as much need or greater need of increased faith.

Recently, I got to be one of those people I have visited in a hospital waiting room. At first I was ok, but as the hours slipped by I fell deeper and deeper into a state of anxiety almost to the point of tears as I began to anticipate what may become of someone I loved and who I can least afford to lose if I am to survive this life. No amount of prayer or scripture seemed to stem the tide of my unraveling. Outside I think I was holding it together, but inside I was not a picture of faith, trust, or did I look like someone who was fully devoted to Jesus. It was a humbling experience and one that identified once again that I’m just like those guys in the boat.

But here is the good news. I am more like the man in Mark 9:24 than I like to admit, but it is my admission that hopefully leads to Christ’s action on both my part and the part of the one I love. O Ye of Little Faith may be more of a badge of honor in that case than a scarlet letter.

But by far the most I have hit my knees in prayer, the most I have felt out of control, the most I have been afraid and unsure is in the parenting of a teenager in this culture.

This is also compounded by several factors. Some take risks in order to acquire more comfort. Some refuse risk in order to maintain or even protect comfort. Some take risk without regard to comfort. Some are motivated by greed. Some are motivated by pride. Some are motivated by God. Some are motivated by guilt and shame. Some are motivated by a moral desire to just do the right thing.

So, the questions with which we are left are:
Is it the right time?
What is my motivation for seeking comfort or for taking risk?
What fears are involved?
When I fail is there room for redemption?

What I have recognized is that I am standing at a threshold. Inside the doorway is a warm fire, a leather recliner, the smell of hot coffee and cinnamon is in the air, Barber’s Adagio for strings playing softly in the background and is slightly louder than the murmur of the company of people you love. I’m familiar with all of these and am drawn to these things. I may even long for them at the end of a long day.

On the other side of the doorway is also something I am drawn to and may even long for after a long day, but I am unfamiliar with it because it is only an idea and not a reality. It excites me, motivates me, ignites me to move and will move me…change me…drastically impact the reality I know. All of that is good but I an hindered from stepping across the threshold by the comfort of what I know and by the work that is going to be required if I do.

Work without a guarantee of success. Work that will result in blood, sweat and tears being shed. Work that will be painful emotionally and physically. Work that could destroy the opportunity to experience the comfort of what is inside the threshold.

What I have been trying to do is be a comfort seeking risk taker. What I have now understood is that those two things cannot coexist.

It’s easy to think that we don’t suffer from bouts of pride, self righteousness, self importance, victimization mentalities, and depression.

It’s easy to convince ourselves that we somehow worked hard enough on our spirituality to achieve such high positions within the Church…

and to ignore the fact that there isn’t much difference between me and the homeless ex-con who was forced into foster care as a boy because his parents would rather beat him then tell him they love him.

In fact, it is shamefully easy to ignore the reality that grace has far more to do with why I am the counselor and not the patient.

The reality is that there is no Us unless it means all of Us,

and there is no Them unless Them means Us.

Jesus said, “Why worry about the speck in your friend’s eye when you have a log in your own?” and he was speaking to the ones in ministry.

Early on in my attempts to fast I would plan a huge Break-fast event and found that in reality I couldn’t eat that much. As my fasting matured I became more sensitive to the abundance and necessity of food.

I’ve been away from my wife before, and she’s even been away from me for four or five days. This; however, is the first time I’ve had to get kids to games, practices, and church. The first time to manage the chaos of after school homework. The first time to pack lunch, do hair, pick out clothes, bathe kids, and fix breakfast all at the same time. The first time to make sure that the food would be there for those activities. The first time to do mountains of laundry and to make sure chores are done.

I used to think fasting was about not doing, but in reality I have learned this week that it is about doing without.

My admiration, appreciation, and commitment to my wife and kids has grown tremendously. My sensitivity to the single parent scenario has reached a peak. My aversion to divorce has only grown stronger.

A week without…you should try it.

For those of you that know my wife, Kristi, you know she squeezes every second out of every minute out of every hour out of every day. So, we were at the parks from open to close for six days. I wish I had monitored how much I walked in those six days.

So, day six comes around and we are meeting my brother, Paul, and his family at the Magic Kingdom. We woke up early so we could pack the car and get to the park when it opened. Kristi and the kids rode the tram and I took the car, but I wanted to get my last cup of coffee for the week before racing to meet the family.

I drove quickly, but in my mind safely and found a handicapped spot that I would only occupy for two or three minutes at the most as I entered the hotel cafeteria to get that precious cup of Joe. As I exited the vehicle a resort employee called to me from behind. I thought I was going to get checked for a handicapped tag. Instead the encounter went something like this…

Disney employee: “Sir, do you have a moment?”

Me: “Sure.”

Disney Employee: “I watched as you sped across three lanes of parking, and I just wanted to ask you to slow down in the parking lots because we do have a lot of children at the resort.”

Me: “You’re right.”

Thankfully, my ears were open and my response was appropriate. I was caught and there was no reason to defend. So, not only did I slow down, but as soon as the encounter was over I moved the car into an appropriate spot in a slow and deliberate manner and then I went in to get my coffee.

I wish I had gotten the guys name, because the way I was gently corrected left little room for me to be confrontational or belligerent. In that moment, I humbly had to confess that I was caught up in what I wanted to happen that day. While I felt like I was being careful what would have happened if a kid sped into my way? I could do nothing but thank the Lord for the reminder. Needless to say the rest of the day was lived in thankfulness and with a servant-like attitude toward my family and others.

As I have reflected upon that moment I have come to grips with how often and how easy it is for the circumstances of life to turn my gaze from Christ. I have to confess that I like to win arguments, I like to be right, I don’t like it when my integrity and authority are questioned, and I become angry pretty quickly when I make plans and there is an interference.

That one encounter with a gentle correction not only changed how I lived the day, but has carried over into how I am living this week as a single father of five. It also has given me new confidence in the Word of God.

So, be on guard my friends. Even when you have what may seem to be legitimate and pure motives your hearts may have selfish ones, and when that is the case ask the Lord to bring you a gentle rebuke.

“Gentle words are a tree of life; a deceitful tongue crushes the spirit. A soothing tongue is a tree of life, But perversion in it crushes the spirit.” Proverbs 15:4

Lon Solomon is a Jew, a Messianic Jew, who believes that Jesus is the Messiah and his message points to it so clearly in this link.

If you are a Jew. I promise it will be the best time you spend all day long. If you aren’t a Jew, it’s still going to be eye-opening.

This is a TREMENDOUS TEACHING on the connection between the Messiah, Jesus Christ, and the most holy day in all of Judaism.

ENJOY!