Sometimes you have to tackle a project like you are preparing for war.

When a country goes to war, they first strategize. They plan the kind of defence and attack they will take and try to outthink their enemy. 

The generals want to be two or three steps ahead, knowing the conditions, the terrain and having the right equipment delivered to the battle site. It takes an enormous effort, a large team of advisors and courage to make the right calls.

In some sports we see a similar kind of approach to a game, match or series. A lot of homework needs to be done beforehand.

I remember watching Mohammad Ali fight George Foreman for the heavyweight boxing championship of the world. The fight was held in Kinshasa, Zaire and was dubbed the “Rumble in the Jungle”. 

Mohammad was getting older and did not have the skills he once had. But that didn’t stop him from devising a strategy that would see him defeat a younger, stronger boxer. 

He called it “rope-a-dope”.

For seven rounds Ali let George pound him with punches. Ali wasn’t as quick on his feet and had lost much of his lightning hands, but he could always take a punch. 

Foreman pounded away at him, round after round. Ali covered up, hung on the ropes and just let him pound. … Until George got tired and had expended all his energy. 

Then Ali came to life. He started dancing, doing the Ali shuffle; he started hitting Foreman. 

And in eighth round, George Foreman went down to defeat and Ali was declared the champ again.

It was all strategy, knowing his opponent’s weakness and preparing for what he would have to do to defeat him.

Well, today I need to tackle a project that I feel will be like a war, like a boxing match against an opponent that is bigger than me – I am going to install a new garage door opener. 

I started my project by buying an opener last night. I am now preparing for war later this morning. 

I’ve opened the box and laid out all the parts, making sure that everything was in the box and nothing was missing. I looked over the list of tools needed to install this opener and I have placed them next to all the parts that will need to be assembled and put in place.

I have studied the instructions. … You know instructions! – they sometimes need to be read and re-read to decipher their code. 

And then I spent some time last night checking with my advisory team on how to best approach my enemy.

My advisory team, of course, is YouTube. I watched several videos of professionals and amateurs installing garage door openers. And I have to say I gained a little insight from each member of my team.

I think I’m now ready to launch my attack and gain victory over this garage door opener. 

With great confidence (and fear), I plan to park my car in the garage tonight for the first time in two weeks.

Here’s the thing: We can’t afford to be casual about our commitment to Christ. Your spiritual life takes thought and strategy to continue to grow in relationship to Christ. If you don’t have a plan to stay close to Christ, you will begin to fall away. So devise a plan, a strategy that will keep you close to Jesus. Then you will defeat the enemy who wants to take you down. 

That’s Life!

Paul

Question: What is your spiritual strategy plan? Leave your comments and questions below. 

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