Start Again and Again and Again

Life is filled with series of breakthroughs –a sudden or important development or an instance of achieving success.  As officials, our breakthroughs come in the form of getting our first start at the college level, being assigned a certain game or post-season assignment, and or moving up to the next level we are seeking.  But when considering the games we officiate weekly, each play should be viewed as a breakthrough—a process of successfully finishing the play and being ready to start the next one.

What is the result of our breakthroughs in officiating? —wisdom, knowledge, and perspective.  Simply put---we learn.  Sometimes the lessons learned are easy and other times they are hard.  If not careful, we can allow the hard lessons to become obstacles. Examples include incorrect calls, wrong mechanics, and poor communication.  So how do we overcome these obstacles?  Start again! But realize that we can also allow success to become an obstacle that needs a breakthrough.  Obstacles from success include complacency, pride, over-confidence, etc.  How do we move on from success? Start again!

The reality is obstacles do not go away.  We never enter the land of “no obstacles.”  So, keeping ourselves moving forward –starting again – each play, each game is critical to our breakthroughs. 

Exodus 14: 15  And the Lord said to Moses, “Why do you cry to Me? Tell the children of Israel to go forward.

The Lord led Moses and the Israelites out of their desperate situation in Egypt. During their escape, they were at the Red Sea and had the enemy coming straight for them.  What was the obstacle they saw in their way?  The wideness and deepness of the Red Sea.  Moses prayed to God who answered, “move forward”.  How did they move forward?  Moses obeyed God by putting his staff in the Red Sea resulting in God parting the water, allowing Moses and the Israelites to cross the sea and enter the land God promised, all while the enemy was swallowed by the sea.

What is often seen as an obstacle in our way is actually our breakthrough.  We must keep moving-starting again, and again, and again.

March on. Do not tarry. To go forward is to move toward perfection. March on, and fear not the thorns, or the sharp stones on life's path.   Kahlil Gibran