The Will To Prepare

Last week the colorful and controversial Hall of Fame basketball coach, Bob Knight passed away.

While Knight’s coaching methods were sometimes questioned and his behavior was too often crude and boorish, his genius in teaching the game of basketball and preparing his teams, can hardly be questioned even by the harshest of critics.

Ironically, while looking for some material I had packed away on the book of Ecclesiastes, I came across a book someone gave me while Knight coached at Indiana, entitled “Quotable General.” And subtitled, “Bobby Knight, Basketball’s Unrivaled Teacher.”

Among the quotes that author, Monte Carpenter, compiled was one highlighted in bold letters and large font on a single page.

“The will to prepare to win is more important than the will to win.”

I believe Coach Knight modified this from a similar quote years earlier by the great football coach Vince Lombardi. Regardless of the sport, preparation is vital to winning. Understanding the fundamentals of your game. Learning the plays. Knowing your role. Being able to execute with flawless precision. The ability to react subconsciously without thinking. And the mental and emotional toughness to fight through adversity without weakening. All of these qualities and more goes into the preparation.

Preparation is not only important in the sports arena, but to success in any endeavor in life. It’s true in business, education, industry. And it’s true spiritually as well.

Through the years I’ve heard Christians wishfully say, “I want to be a better Christian.” Or “I wish I knew the Bible like Bro. ___________” Or “I’m gonna try harder.” “Thanks, preacher, that sermon makes me want to do better.” Those and many other similar expressions indicate a will to win. A will to improve. A will to grow spiritually.

Yet, many who utter these wishes don’t improve and grow spiritually. Why? I believe they honestly feel like they want to. In essence they have the will to win, but don’t have the will to prepare.

The will to prepare is just as important when it comes to Christian living as it is in basketball or football or business. Faithfulness, spirituality, and Bible knowledge are not acquired accidently. It take work. Effort. And a will to prepare.

The apostle Paul advised his young “son in the faith,” Timothy, “Be diligent to present yourself approved to God, a worker who does not need to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth” (2 Tim. 2:15).

The concept of spiritual preparation is embodied in Jesus’ parable of the 10 virgins who went to meet the bridegroom. 5 were wise. And 5 were foolish. The wise were prepared with extra oil for their lamps. The unwise were unprepared when the bridegroom came and their lamps went out because they had no oil. Jesus exhortation was “Watch therefore, for you know neither the day nor the hour in which the Son of Man is coming” (Matt 25:13).

For the past 10 months, we’ve been writing weekly about sowing seeds for spiritual growth. However, reading these posts is not enough. Printing them out and filing them away won’t produce growth. Being inspired to do better won’t ensure improvement. It takes the will to put them into practice. To actually sow the seeds.

Returning to the sports metaphor, Alan Armstrong said it well. “Champions do not become champions when they win the events, but in the hours, weeks, months and years they spend preparing for it. The victorious performance itself is merely the demonstration of their championship character.”

When you see a successful business person, you only see the tip of the iceberg. Their failures, hard work, long hours and investment of effort, energy and resources are often forgotten or overshadowed by their success. My friend, Bob Andrews, always encouraged upcoming entrepreneurs with this advice, “Spectacular achievement is always preceded by less spectacular preparation.”

Spiritual preparation is anchored in regular Bible study, persistent prayer and weekly worship. Christian maturity is realized by daily developing the Christian virtues, growing in the fruit of the spirit, and applying the wisdom of God while shunning the wisdom of the world (1 Pet 1:5-10; Gal. 5:22-25; Jas 3;13-18). Benjamin Franklin’s sage counsel can be applied to Christian living, “By failing to prepare, you are preparing to fail.”

Preparation requires a vision for the future, personal commitment, rigid self-discipline, and a laser-like focus. And it is done daily in seemingly small, yet important actions that produce long-term results. As H. Jackson Brown put it, “The best preparation for tomorrow is doing your best today.”

Probably everyone reading this blog post has the will to win spiritually. But do you have the will to prepare?

–Ken Weliever, The Preacherman