Retry

Do you remember being taught something by your parents or a teacher, and you didn’t get it right the first time? What did they say to you? Hopefully they encouraged you to try again. Hopefully they told you that if you keep at it and practice, eventually you will master the skill necessary to complete the task. Have you ever spent time with someone who is a professional in their field and observed the ease with which they perform their job? I have had the opportunity on a few occasions to play hockey with some guys who have played in the NHL. These guys skate and handle the puck with such ease, they make playing hockey look completely effortless. That skill and knowledge did not come overnight. They did not wake up one day and say, “I think I will be a professional today.” It took years of training on and off the ice. It took coaches pouring into their lives. It took a whole lot of retries.
Becoming good at anything means being willing to retry and retry and retry. It means that I am aware that I will not get the skills and knowledge I need overnight; it will be a lifelong pursuit, trying and retrying, failing, learning, and growing.
Can I encourage you today? Whatever it is that you are working at, don’t give up. Don’t get discouraged. Regroup and keep going. Soon it will become second nature to you. The payoff is far greater than you are aware of.

-Pastor Tim