The Knot

About a month ago, I got to be a part of a week long sports camp the churches put on for the kids every summer. I was a basketball coach and my team of boys dominated the competition! But that’s not the story I want to tell. I mean so what if my boys could physically pounded the opposition into the ground!

The story I want to tell is about a little boy with a little problem.

One rainy morning, it might have been a Tuesday, a little boy with sandy blond hair and a few missing teeth came up to me and grudgingly stuck out his shoe and said, “Coach Ernie, can you help me untie this knot! UGH. I can’t get it out.” He was visibly frustrated.

So I bent down to help him and realized this kid must of used all his strength tugging on that shoelace, because the sucker was as tight as a snare drum. I realized this was going to take some effort. I had the boy take of his shoe and give it to me. From there, it probably took me about 5 minutes to loosen the knot and untie the shoe.

I gave the shoe back to the kid and asked him why he didn’t just ask for help in the first place. To which he replied:

“I thought if I just pulled hard enough I could do it myself.”

Laughing to myself, I imagined this kid yanking that knot into submission, unbeknownst to himself, that with every pull, he further ensured his own failure.

You ever just fight with God? You ever stood toe to toe with God, looked him the eye (figuratively of course), knew exactly what He wanted you do, and whether you felt it was too hard, would cause too much sacrifice, or would take too much of your own time, you just flat out refused or simply ignored Him?

I know I have.

So we try our best to solve our problems, our way. We hold on to what we should let go of. Maybe God calls us to do something or live a certain way, and we feel we just don’t live up to the call. It just seems too hard. And instead of trusting that God will pick up where we fall short, or believing God will replace (in His own way and His own time) what He calls us to give up, we just keep living the way we always were. As if we believed that if we just tried harder, we could make it work or do it ourselves.

We’re just pulling the knot tighter and tighter.

Then after we pull till we can’t pull anymore, and that problem is as heavy as we can stand, we finally give up, give it to God and say or maybe even beg, “Please help. Please fix it.”

And you know, God does. But, all the while, God is just wishing you would just trust Him and let Him help you.

So you carrying something? You pulling at a knot you just can’t seem to untie, and you find it getting harder and harder?

Why not just surrender, stop trying to do it by yourself, and let God handle it.

Aloha,

Coach Ernie