I don’t know about you but when I feel like everything has slipped a bit out of control and it’s a downward spiral, a ‘to do’ list helps regain a grip on reality. I can’t help but feel a sense of deep satisfaction at working my way through a list and being able to regain control of a situation again!
In more recent years the Lucas family have progressed to a special version of the traditional ‘To do’ list in order to manage family life more efficiently. We have to a ‘To Do diary’ and I write things on a list for the day on which we might have a hope of completing things!
However having done a bit of research on the ‘to do list’, I found I’d already broken the first rule by having an entire diary of ‘To Do’s’ rather than an amalgamated list…Oh well…at least I try… Sometimes I glide like a swan and no-one’s any the wiser:) But the reality is that I often fall short!
Well, I have penned a story about ‘Beaux the bow’, who might be able to help us understand how to deal with trying to hit targets in life…
Beaux was a bow, who was always willing to try new things and embrace adventure. Her most valuable prized possessions were her arrows and everyone around her knew that she was an experienced ‘professional’ at archery. She was well trained in performing and had great poise, dignity and confidence oozing out from all over. She had a great self belief and full of self confidence. Believing that if she thought she could … then indeed she would!
Regular exercise and training helped her to keep up standards and keep a good record of ‘hitting the target’. In fact she was a record breaker, a champion of champions and even though she was modest in her own achievements others were keen to praise her efforts. She was careful not to become too big headed but couldn’t resist smiling when that small glow of pride began to blossom inside.
She was particularly good at helping others…like the arrows…glide through the air and enjoyed the feeling of helping others feel the wind in their face …What’s more she was always confident that with her help they would never miss the target.
Beaux was particularly good at hitting the target when the summer was here and the world was sunny. But she had seen how others struggled to always hit the target in horrible kinds of weathers and seasons. Beaux liked to think that she would be able to manage no matter what the weather threw at her. She liked to think herself as resilient and couldn’t bear to think of failure; for if she missed a target she would not only be disappointed in others, she would be even more disappointed in herself.
She could just imagine being sad about falling short and sad that she wasn’t able to make up the gap all by herself. Yet she pushed all these things from her mind, for one had to keep a clear head if one was going to be a winner!
To Beaux, using the right technique was the most important thing you could do. She knew that there were a few key steps to take in order to hit the target.
For Beaux the greater the effort, the greater accuracy! Or at least that’s what she thought! Having a formula for success meant that she had something to hang onto that would help her to try and get it right.
When Beaux met a new arrow she would happily explain the few simple steps to making sure you made a good shot, but she was also clear that messing up one of these simple things could have you missing by inches…and if you miss an inch you might as well miss by a mile.
However she encouraged every arrow she met to aim as straight as possible and was always excited when yet another arrow hit the target spot on. While taking the aim and shooting all sounded fairly easy in principle, in practice it meant remembering a few steps:
Number one
Was to remember to keep your anchor! A solid and consistent anchor was the key to a well-placed shot in the bulls eye. Without an anchor, shots could become unsteady and inconsistent in other words ‘they miss’. She would explain how an anchor keeps the archer solid and sure. Without one the arrows would go flying in different directions each time they shot. An archer had to chose a solid point to build their anchor on like a jawbone or cheek. Beaux had seen many a time when an archer was indecisive and then be off balance and the arrow would fall short or even miss all together. For Beaux this was the worst thing to witness. She often replayed these events in her mind and often in slow motion. Which not only made it worse but made the agony last longer!
So firstly she would try to remind the archer to stand firm. A solid foundation would mean a stronger shot, which would mean hitting the target!
In her tips for success the next steps were:
Number 2: Keep Level. Don’t look to the left or the right and keep on track.
Number 3: Keep your grip. Don’t let go too soon but don’t hold on too tight.
Number 4: Relax and release. There is a time to let go and when that time comes do so as smoothly as possible.
Number 5: Follow through. Keep your eyes open to see the end result.
However when it came to the big competitions Beaux knew only too well that watching what happened next could be a joy to lift you to the great heights or be a disappointment that could crush you. When competition came anything could happen.
Indeed one day Beaux had to face competition of her own…to start with she had faired well in the warm up, where she had been able to flex and stretch to show a range of skills and abilities. The others looked at her, admiring her natural talent and appreciating all the hours she had obviously spent in getting things right. Yet this day was unlike all the other competitions where success was guaranteed … the weather closed in… first the clouds gathered, then there was a strong breeze and lastly some drizzle and yet none of these were enough to stop the big event taking place but they were enough to cause Beaux to be off her game and lose her focus.
Before long it was Beaux’s turn to step up…She was quick to position herself… The first arrow flew…weeeee…straight past the target altogether…nowhere near…Beaux was in shock…she couldn’t believe what had happened…she could blame it on the weather…she could blame it on missing out one of her steps to success…or she could blame it on the young gentleman with a tickly cough in the audience who interrupted her at a crucial moment…but the fact remained it was her arrow that missed and nothing could change that now…Beaux could feel the pressure rise and her confidence sink…
Second arrow…Thud…boing…This time the arrow had landed not on the target but at least on the board…only to spring out again and land on the ground below…Beaux could feel the pressure rise …even higher…and her confidence sink…even lower…She took a moment to steady herself, hopes and fears running through her…
This third and final arrow was her last an only chance to be a winner…the crowd were quiet…anticipation filled the air…this was the decider…winner or loser…the question hung in the air on the breeze, fell from the air like the drizzle, clouding her judgement. Suddenly the third arrow flew through the air…time went slower somehow because Beaux watched every second it travelled…carrying the desperate hope of hitting the target. THUD…the crowd paused…and Beaux could see why…she had fallen short…the arrow piercing below the centre at a jaunty angle. The crowd commiserated with her…no one liked to see someone miss and yet, as these things happen, the crowd would soon move onto another competitor leaving Beaux to think on her own failure and attempt to pick herself up again.
The trouble was Beaux adored success but she did not fair well with missing the target or falling short. What she failed to understand is that sometimes an arrow and indeed each one of us can fall short. Sometimes we can’t make up the gap but sometimes we need to understand that we don’t have to. You may fall short but God will hold you steady to try again.
And so Beaux learned in time not to be crushed by the weight of responsibility of missing the target but in acknowledging the way in which she had fallen short she was able to maintain her peace and try again.
So Beaux, while still feeling some disappointment, challenged herself to remember this in the future…For with God on our side as we shoot the arrow, even if it misses the target… God still holds you… For God is your anchor… and from that point on Beaux hung on to God and came home with a trophy of a lifetime: her peace and her freedom.
Finally…
Romans 3 v23 ‘For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God’
The word for ‘sin’ here is Hamartia and Hamartia means ‘to miss the mark’ just like when someone fires an arrow from a bow and misses the target. If you ever need any encouragement remember we all fall short! But God doesn’t require us to have a perfect target hitting record. In Jesus the gap was bridged and God made up the short fall.
Carly Creates... 