get low, low, low, low

James 1:22-25

But be doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves. 23 For if anyone is a hearer of the word and not a doer, he is like a man who looks intently at his natural face in a mirror. 24 For he looks at himself and goes away and at once forgets what he was like. 25 But the one who looks into the perfect law, the law of liberty, and perseveres, being no hearer who forgets but a doer who acts, he will be blessed in his doing.

 I played a couple years of football in high school. I wasn't good at all but luckily enough for me the entire team was terrible so I was able to get into a few games and play JV. I got called up to dress for a Thanksgiving day Varsity game. There was pretty much no change I was getting into this game but it was nice that I got to dress for the game. However, the circumstances happened that I got the nod and I actually got into the game. Not only would I now have the chance to tackle someone and show the Varsity coach that I could play, but this was against H-a-d-d-o-n-f-i-e-l-d (I stretched it out so you would read the name with a voice of disdain…  remember how your mom taught you not to hate people and stuff like that…  well your mom didn’t grow up next to Haddonfield.

Perfect combination…  Thanksgiving day game…  one of the biggest rivalry games in the state, everyone is watching… the down and yardage makes us know that it’s be a run up the middle and its either gonna come to my side or the other guy next to me, but the chances are one of us will get to make this tackle.  Haddonfield was known for speedy little guards…  so this play would probably be a “counter”, which means the gap I was supposed to fill would seem empty so I’d step in just in time to get killed by a “pulling” guard from the other side… then the full back would come through that gap. If by chance I got past the guard then this fullback was tough and mean, and he could get really low…  all I had to do was get lower then him and get my shoulderpad down below his shoulderpads…  then even if I couldn't bring him down by myself the linebackers were gonna be there in a second to help me out… I could do this, I got this… 

HIKE!!! (actually it was Haddonfield I think they snapped the ball by saying “We are better then you”) … the play starts… the tackle in front of me gets low and goes the other way… I know its a run and I know its coming my way and I know there is a guard about to kill me..  I see him coming, I did a “swim technique" to get past him, I am face to face with this full back…  he is dipping down and I am standing up… standing up - whyyyyyyyyy????   yeah, he hit me so hard, the impact lifted me a little and knocked me right on my back… the full back stepped forward right onto my chest, planted his stupid Haddonfield foot and made a cut past the guy trying to tackle him (from my chest!) and he got the first down.  I didn’t play another play.

Coach knew that would happen… that’s why he told us about getting low.. I heard him too, I knew all about the right thing to do… but I was a “hearer of his words” and not “a doer of his words”. I heard him, but I didn’t do what he said.

So many people will hear about Jesus but not do what he said… and it will work out for them about as well as my football career worked out for me.

 Answer This:

1. When have you been a hearer and not a doer of something that someone said?

2. When have you been a hearer and not a does of something God said?  How did that work out for you?

3. “But be doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves”

Take a minute and journal about this.