Christian Living

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Larry Lilly's Letter Wednesday February 16, 2011

As I browsed a long forgotten book, (by me) I revisited today's thought from the sports arena of long ago. The principles lauded in the arena's of the long ago are basically the same as today's and then as now the rules of the game were to be scrupulously followed, else any trophies were forfeited.

My hope is that you will be able to condense the wisdom on today’s offering into one word and then put that one simple word into practice in every area of your life. It will seem a snap at first glance, but who can count the tears as we all discover that the one word is easy to say and so very tough to carry out in life. Here's the deal:

"Life resembles the Olympic Games: A few men strain their muscles to carry off a prize; others bring trinkets to sell to the crowd for gain; and some there are, and not for the worst, who seek no other profit than to look at the show and see how and why everything is done; spectators of the life of other men in order to judge and regulate their own." Pythagoras

Notice that this old Greek understood and taught that merely watching the Olympics had value in that you could learn life enhancing principles that would help you to be a winner instead of a whiner in the game of life. Tragically in our time, even the participants in athletic contests are seemingly unaware of the one word which benefits participants and spectators alike. Notice this verse from 1 Peter 3:10:

For he that will love life, and see good days, let him refrain his tongue from evil, and his lips that they speak no guile:

At first glance it appears that to avoid using our tongue for evil is a key to a good life that is legitimately loved. A Second glance suggests that an even better life will be lived if we avoid any kind of deceit when speaking, which when followed is a good thing. It seems that if I do not use foul language or lie, voila, I have hit the jack-pot of the good life. Wrong. Preachers would apply this to stop gossiping, especially about the preacher! Stay with me, I am on the road to one powerful word that will help you in your desire to live a life worth loving.

Notice what Jesus said in Mt 12:34:

O generation of vipers, how can ye, being evil, speak good things? for out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaketh.

Now notice our Lord's brother on this truth in Jas 3:2:

For in many things we offend all. If any man offend not in word, the same is a perfect man, and able also to bridle the whole body.

In the entire passage in James, we learn a horse is controlled via a bridle controlled by someone other than the horse. A ship is controlled by an added part, a rudder. So the sign of a life truly worth loving is a life controlled by a power greater than the tongue, as Jesus said the heart, and we know only a heart controlled by Jesus will produce the correct speech, this speech being evidence of a greater power in control.

Through perfect practice as Lombardi said, and I heard my coach, Mel Masonheimer, over and again drill the same truth into our team long before we heard of Lombardi; practice develops a controlled action or reaction to a point near instinctual. To say our people as a whole are running out of control is but to state the obvious. May your heart be filled with The Word.

Larry Lilly Copyright © 2011 Use with credit.

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