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Living
a 4th Quarter Life
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by Sam Williamson
One hundred and twenty-two months ago
today, I sat at my desk with no appointments, no
tasks to perform, no clients to serve, and no
employees to pacify. My desk was empty. So was my
mind. I had absolutely no clue what I should
do for the next ten minutes of my life. Much
less the next ten days or their following ten
years.
Until that purposeless day, years ago, my entire
life had been directed by others. Oh, I had
flickers of freedom, twinkles of time when I chose
to watch a movie or play my guitar. But all the
sparkles of significant activity in my life were
dictated by other people.
My parents told me what friends I could see and
when to go to bed; my teachers told me what books
to read and which assignments to turn in; and my
bosses told me where to sit and which clients to
serve. Even when I became a boss, higher-up bosses
assigned budgets, projects, employees, and
deadlines.
In 1989, two friends and I bought a software
company. We no longer had bosses, not even
shareholders to please. We were the bosses and
shareholders. But even then, my daily activity was
determined by clients, employees, and industry
competition.
My life was not my own, except for the merest
flashes of freedom when I golfed or scuba dived.
Ten years ago, I quit that job to pursue ministry,
but on day-one, I woke up with a sterile desk and
no parent, teacher, or boss to hint at what I
should do for the next ten minutes.
Living a Prepared Life
When Winston Churchill became prime minister of
Britain, at the beginning of World War II, he
said, “I feel like my whole life has prepared me
for this moment.” Personal preparation is the
pattern of God’s hand in our lives:
- Joseph was hand-groomed by God to be the
prime minister of Egypt;
- God invested eighty years to teach Moses to
lead his people home;
- David was trained as a shepherd, so he could
battle Goliath (David himself sang, “You
trained my hands for war and my fingers for
battle”);
- Esther was brought to the palace “for such a
time as this.”
God’s personal preparation is not reserved for the
big-wigs of history. He acts the same with us.
Churchill’s comments are completely consistent
with the Father’s work in our lives. God
orchestrates our entire journey—up to the last
tick on the clock—to train us for this second. And
he uses this moment to get us ready for the next.
Living a 4th Quarter Life
Professional football players are trained from the
first day they tackle their little brother; and in
the Super Bowl, it all comes down to the fourth
quarter. Even the first three quarters of that
game are just training-ground for those last
fifteen minutes.
The question for all of us is simple: What are
we going to do with our last quarter? What
purpose has God invested years equipping us for?
God used past coaches—parents, teachers and
bosses—to prepare us to lean on him alone in this,
our endgame.
What has God so strongly put on our hearts that
we’ll do it when our parents aren’t there, our
teachers are silent, and our bosses retired? What
are we unstoppably willing to pursue, even if
there is no money, audience, or fame, and even if
we lose friends, family, or die because of it?
We are right now—no matter our age—living in our
fourth quarter. What will be our game? Let’s not
dabble-away our most significant moments playing
golf.
Sam
God still personally prepares us today, with
words, circumstances, friends, and family; but
especially with His Words. He wants us to learn
to recognize his voice when we drive to work,
wait in line, and engage in prayer.
Sam
Williamson has published numerous articles
and has written two books.
He has a blog site, www.beliefsoftheheart.com,
and can be reached at
Sam@BeliefsoftheHeart.com.
Hearing
God in Conversation: How to Recognize
His Voice Everywhere, by Samuel C.
Williamson, published by Kregel
Publications, 2016, available from Amazon
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photo by Bigstock.com
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