Turn off the Noise!
Have you ever been in or at a game where the screaming crowd and their noise makers were so deafening that the ground under your feet was shaking? This has become my desired comfort zone. A championship game, or even better, the final minutes of a championship game is such a rush that it hooks you and causes you to desire daily to get back to that moment in time. To me, it is similar to when you hook a big fish, even if you lose the fish and he breaks your line, you are still hooked with the hope of catching another big fish. The same is for golfing, once you hit one good shot, it births a desire in you to return to the course in hope of experiencing that feeling again and again.
I work hard daily attempting to take my players to that place in time where the noise is deafening. Hoping that someday soon, they can experience the complete exhilaration of that moment as well. Once that moment arrives, you must be ready, because it comes and goes so quickly. Is it worth all the sacrifice, pain, and time spent to reach that moment in time? Only if you do two things:
1 – Enjoy the journey along the way.
2 – Grab the knob and turn off the noise.
In the movie FOR THE LOVE OF THE GAME, Kevin Costner has found a way to dominate in that exact moment as he is able to ignite a mechanism inside himself where everything disappears. He enters something similar to the matrix. He ignites it by saying three words “Clear the Mechanism”.
In that moment the crazies with their shirts off in the crowd, who are doing all they can to get in his head, simply disappear. Peace that only comes from above enters the game. Things seem to slow down and speed up all at the same time. Decisions are magnified! You can see instantly see who the weak and the strong are. It is in that moment that the true warriors arrive!
It is in that moment that you listen very closely, until you hear that voice you recognize. Your Father’s voice. The mentor who has prepared you for this moment your entire life. A voice inside you that guides you through second-by-second decisions that sway the crowd one way or another. None of that noise actually bothers you though, because you have disciplined yourself to focus on His voice. You turn over everything to your Guide. Following His every direction as He helps you, strengthens you, and causes you to react supernaturally in a way that causes the crowd to be utter amazed.
Once that moment has come and gone, no matter the outcome, you are given an amazing opportunity. What is that opportunity? The opportunity to give Glory to your Father. The gift you give back by sharing about His Son, your Savior, your Helper, your Guide.
Turn off the things that don’t matter. What if you don’t’? The enemy knows that if he says something enough times, then you will start to believe his lies. Satan has been doing this forever, there are no knew things under the sun. The only thing new is how he packages his lies.
What you allow yourself to hear, will greatly impact your future. Turn off the noise, listen closely to the whisper of God and it will soon become something you are shouting from the rooftops. If you hit the mark with that praise, then you will change the game. You will never hit the mark unless you can neutralize the noise. I have grown to love the noise, yet I don’t let myself talk to it. A wise man once told me, don’t argue with an idiot, he will bring you to his level and beat you with experience every time.
If you, through obedience and prayer, give God everything, through His Victory at the cross, He will completely change the game. It will remove the voice of the enemy! Mission accomplished, Game Over! GOD WINS AGAIN
Photo by leah hetteberg on Unsplash