Slow Leaks

So many of the sports we play today involve little round objects which we hit, kick, drive or dribble toward a goal. We have basketballs, golf balls, tennis balls, and soccer balls, just to name a few.

Many men my age prefer golf. With golf, the objective is to a hit a little ball into a little hole from half-way around the world. Personally I find golf more an exercize in frustration rather than enjoyable recreation.

I have a preference for basketball. With basketball you can take a much bigger ball, get as close as you want to the hole, and jam it down the hole if you have the vertical leap to do so.

While golf requires expensive club memberships, green fees and a heavy collection of golfclubs, all I need is a basketball and a short trip to the nearest basketball court - which happens to be free.

Unfortunately my basketball has developed a little bit of a problem. It doesn't quite bounce like it once did. Instead of bouncing into action as it once did, it generally hits the ground with a dull thud. Without a forceful push from an outside force, it is perfectly content to just sit there. And even when pushed pushed, It seems tends to roll off the court and spend the day simply lying around.

You can't tell by looking at it, but over time my basketball has gone flat. I can't point to a specific point in time when it lost its bounce. I can't find any teethmarks from the neighborhood dog or punctures from angry players. The real problem is that the basketball leaks!

Yet now that I have discovered the problem, the solution is quite simple. I take out my trusty air pump and give it a periodic refill.

Yet what is true of my basketball is also true of us as Christians. There was a time when we all had a spring in our step and bounced into action when a spiritual goal was placed before us. But something has changed. We probably can't point to a specific event that took the air out of our Christianity, but our spiritual life is now flat. We have the same problem as my basketball-- we leak! Mediocrity is rarely the result of a blowout, but more often the result of a slow leak.

So how do we get that bounce back in our step? How do we change that dull thud into high flying goals? Instead of rolling away from His heavenly court and sitting in spiritual stagnation, we draw near to God and let him fill us with his presence. "Be ye continually being filled." (Eph 5:18b)