"Practicing the Basics"

“Practicing the Basics”

 

Retired Boston Celtics’ star Larry Bird once scored 47 points in a triple-overtime victory, including the winning basket on an acrobatic shot with seconds remaining. In a post-game interview Bird was asked why he seemed to be able to make the “big play” so often. He answered, “Every day I practice the basics.” Can you picture the man who was arguably the most complete basketball player of his era going over the most fundamental parts of the game daily? He could easily have claimed to have moved beyond such trivial matters, but it was his attention to the cardinal points that kept him sharp and able to succeed under pressure.

We can apply Bird’s comment to our walk with Christ as His people. If we’re to make a significant impact for Him we must be practicing the basics daily. What are they? Prayer (“Morning by morning, O Lord, you hear my voice….”—Psalm 5:3), Bible study (“…The Bereans…examined the Scriptures every day….”—Acts 17:11), reflection on God (“I will meditate on all your works and consider all your mighty deeds.”—Psalm 77:12), and fellowship (“Every day they continued to meet together….”—Acts 2:46) to name a few. Further, we cannot have the attitude that we’ve advanced to such a point in our relationship with God that we no longer need to emphasize the foundational principles. Then, too, we must realize that it’s the basics which keep us from cracking when the pressures of life threaten us.

If we’re to succeed where others fail in our Christian walk we cannot afford to abandon the basics which got us where we are. We need to speak with God in prayer, let Him speak to us through His Word, dwell on the wonder of who He is, and learn from our brothers and sisters in Christ. Without the basics we’ll fail when the time comes for the “big play”—with then our lives will count for Him.

Blessings!

Jim McMillan