*Post by Sharon Hodde Miller*

As the spring semester rolls around (I’m a student so I still think in semesters), there is one thing that I can’t help but get excited about,

College Basketball!

I received my undergraduate degree and M.Div. from Duke University where basketball is near to a religion, so my husband and I make a BIG deal about the season. That’s right, we are those fans.

As I look forward to this coming basketball season I am reminded of a lesson I learned last year in the midst of all the basketball hoopla.  Around mid-March my family attended the ACC tournament to watch Duke compete. The arena was sectioned off by schools so we sat in the Duke section, and it just so happened that our seats were at the end of the row.

The reason I include this last detail is that, after a few games, my dad noticed one of the steps directly next to our seats was slightly shorter than the rest. As a result, he had been watching people trip on it all day. After my dad pointed this out I started paying CLOSE attention. Our section was filled with elderly people who graduated from Duke “back in the day” and struggled to walk, let alone navigate the tricky arena steps. I was legitimately concerned that one of the older alumni would trip and get hurt. I consequently assumed a position of readiness in the event that I needed to swoop in and save someone from tumbling to their doom.

That’s when something very surprising happened. The longer I watched that short step, the more I realized that the older people weren’t the ones tripping on it. It was the young people who did. The first person I saw who nearly wiped out on the step was a man in his late 20′s. He was physically fit, well dressed, and seemed to have it all together. But he was rushing down the steps, confident in his balance and unconcerned with any potential danger. He wasn’t prepared for obstacles, so he didn’t notice the step.

The older people, on the other hand, were never bothered by the step. Why? Because they approached that step just like all the other ones before it: carefully. Each step was approached cautiously and slowly. They never lifted their heads to look around them, and they never took a step for granted. They realized the danger of a mistake, so they were diligent not to make one.

I will always remember that experience because it is an excellent analogy for the Christian life. So often I live my life like the young man whose over-confidence led him to trip and fall. Whether it is my natural abilities or my assumption that open doors are a sign of God’s will, I rush forward without considering the risks or seeking the Lord’s leading. I take on a new ministry commitment because it “seems rights,” or I spend less time on a teaching message because I’m confident in what I already know.

Clearly, these decisions have more to do with arrogance than wisdom. When I live my life that way, I don’t pause to ask God for protection from any dangers ahead. I don’t search my heart for sinful motivations. I am spiritually brash, and as a result I often trip and fall. That’s why the older Duke fans had it right. Yes, their age forced them to slow down, and sometimes God forces us to slow down and pay attention to Him as well. But we shouldn’t wait for Him to do so.  Instead, our decisions, even the seemingly clear ones about ministry and “godly” commitments, should be bathed in prayer. Pray for wisdom. Pray for discernment. Pray for the patience to stop and seek God. And not just in the big things. It’s important to seek God in the small things as well. Be discerning about how you schedule lunches with people or even spend money on clothes. That seemingly small decision might be the short step that sends you tumbling!